Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Meatballs
Tender, juicy Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Meatballs are simmered in the most tantalizing sweet heat sauce everyone goes crazy for! Perfect appetizer or delicious, easy meal!
Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe:
Super Simple: I love using my crockpot to cook. It’s so easy to throw everything in, set it, and forget it! This recipe delivers when it comes to easy.
Game Day: First and foremost, everyone loves these meatballs. Serve them up for the next big game with my football charcuterie board, clam dip, and some air fryer potato skins!
Family Friendly: Surprisingly, despite their slight kick, you can easily adjust these meatballs for the kids. You can change up the spice level to make sure everyone is happy.
Slow Cooker Honey Buffalo Meatball Ingredients
Frozen meatballs have been my saving grace! Don’t get me wrong, I love homemade meatballs, but when I need something quick, I grab the frozen meatballs! Scroll to the bottom of the post if you need exact measurements.
Frozen Meatballs: Frozen beef meatballs make this recipe super simple and taste amazing!
Frank’s Red Hot Original Sauce: The OG buffalo sauce that I can pour in and know will taste amazing. If you want to make your own, follow my homemade buffalo sauce recipe.
Honey: Perfectly sweet and adds just the right amount of sticky for the sauce to stick to the meatballs.
Apricot Preserves: My secret ingredient. If you’re like me, then you love the salty and sweet flavor combination. This apricot jam provides that!
Brown Sugar: Provides a touch of sweetness to balance out the heat.
Soy Sauce: Adds a nice salty tang that complements the brown sugar and honey.
Cornstarch: Helps thicken the sauce so everything sticks to the slow cooker meatballs.
How to Make Honey Buffalo Meatballs
If you’re looking for something you can throw in the crockpot in the morning and it’s ready in the evening, then look no further. This crock pot meatballs recipe only takes three steps, and you can set it and forget it.
Prep: Spray the slow cooker with cooking spray and place the meatballs on the bottom of your slow cooker.
Whisk: In a bowl, whisk together the honey buffalo sauce ingredients: hot sauce, honey, apricot preserves, brown sugar, soy sauce, and cornstarch.
Cook: Pour the sauce over the meatballs and stir to coat well. Cook on LOW heat for 3-4 hours, stirring periodically. When the meatballs are heated through serve them fresh or keep warm until ready to serve. Serve with toothpicks or over rice.
Stovetop Instructions and Variations
If you would rather make these honey buffalo meatballs on the stovetop, I’ve got you covered. It’s still simple and delicious.
Stovetop Instructions: You can make this recipe on the stove. Place all the ingredients in a large pot over medium heat. Cook the meatballs and sauce, and stir occasionally until you heat the meatballs through.
Meatballs: You can use frozen or freshly made meatballs for this recipe. I recommend cooking the homemade meatballs first in an oven or skillet until mostly cooked through. Then, add them to the crock pot, so they keep their shape.
How to Store Leftover Meatballs
These slow cooker honey buffalo meatballs are great to reheat later in the week for a quick lunch or after school snack. Here is how to properly store them.
Refrigerator: Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
Freezer: I don’t recommend freezing the meatballs. Enjoy them fresh for the best flavor.
More Meatball Recipes to Try
Here are some more spicey, saucy meatball recipes for you to check out! Let me know which ones are your favorites!