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Spicy Cranberry BBQ Meatballs

Spicy cranberry BBQ meatballs with a thick, glossy sauce made in a slow cooker—sweet jellied cranberry meets smoky chipotle and sriracha. Perfect for bite-size serving with toothpicks and a quick jalapeno and parsley garnish.
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Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours
Total Time 3 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 10 servings
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: American
Calories: 320
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Frozen fully cooked meatballs
  • 2 lb frozen fully cooked meatballs Frozen; no thawing needed.
Cranberry BBQ sauce
  • 1 can (14 oz) jellied cranberry sauce
  • 1 cup BBQ sauce
  • 2 tbsp sriracha
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 0.5 tsp garlic powder
  • 0.5 tsp chipotle chili powder
Garnish
  • 1 jalapeno Thinly sliced.
  • 0.25 fresh parsley Chopped; for garnish.

Equipment

  • 1 slow cooker

Method
 

Make the cranberry BBQ base
  1. Whisk the jellied cranberry sauce, BBQ sauce, sriracha, apple cider vinegar, garlic powder, and chipotle chili powder in the slow cooker until smooth, with no streaks of cranberry sauce visible.
Cook the meatballs
  1. Add the frozen fully cooked meatballs and stir to coat so the sauce covers them evenly.
  2. Cover and cook on LOW for 3-4 hours or HIGH for 2 hours.
  3. Stir once halfway through cooking to keep the sauce glossy and evenly distributed.
Finish and serve
  1. Continue stirring until the sauce looks thick and glossy enough to lightly coat the meatballs.
  2. Top with thinly sliced jalapeno and chopped fresh parsley, keep on WARM, and serve with toothpicks.

Notes

For the glossiest coating, stir halfway so the sauce simmers evenly and thickens throughout. Refrigerate leftovers in a sealed container up to 3 days and rewarm in the slow cooker on WARM or on the stovetop over low heat until hot. Freezing is not recommended because the sauce can separate after thawing. For a lower-sugar option, use a reduced-sugar BBQ sauce and check that your jellied cranberry sauce is labeled reduced sugar.