These plant-based slow cooker meatballs are a great update on a potluck classic! Try these for your next game day or holiday gathering!
One thing that seems to end up on every potluck or buffet table is some type of meatball in a slow cooker. Do you notice this too? And people love them! Well, most people. Not Chris. Even back in his meat-eating days, he always just skipped right over those. So he was understandably not that excited when I decided to try to see if I could come up with a reasonable plant-based version to bring to our next neighbourhood potluck. But guess what? He humoured me and he actually tried them. Then he went back for seconds! This recipe for plant-based slow cooker meatballs is a keeper for sure.
I also brought these to our neighbour’s Super Bowl party last weekend and they were enjoyed by kids and grown-ups alike. Actually, I don’t think anyone realized that we had brought them and that they weren’t real meatballs.
Ingredients Needed for the Plant-Based Slow Cooker Meatballs
So, I have to say that this is pretty much the simplest recipe in the world. If you already have a favourite Crock Pot meatball recipe like this one, you can probably figure out how to make it plant-based. If you’re like me though, maybe you just never thought about it. It wasn’t until recently that I actually put two and two together and realized that I could make those delicious buffet meatballs that everyone loves by switching out the regular meatballs for plant-based. So if you’re often looking for fun, plant-based menu items and snacks that you can serve to your family or other plant-based guests, keep this idea up your sleeve for your next holiday dinner or get together.
Here are the ingredients!
- Chili Sauce
- Apple Jelly
- Plant-Based Meatballs
And that. is. it.
I debated the merits of a chili-sauce-based recipe vs. one that uses ketchup and I decided to go with the chili sauce just to try something a little different. As the story goes, it was a hit, so I’m not messing with it. 🙂
How to Serve Your Slow Cooker Meatballs
The absolute best way to serve your Crock Pot meatballs is to stick the slow cooker right on your snack or buffet table, place a big serving spoon right next to it and let everyone serve themselves. We had several slow cookers going on the Super Bowl snack table the other day and my neighbours had a power bar plugged in to keep them all warm. It was a great set up. 🙂
These plant-based meatballs would also make a great, fun dinner. Just serve them over rice with a nice big salad on the side!
Here’s the full printable recipe!
These plant-based slow cooker meatballs are a great update on a potluck classic! Try these for your next game day or holiday gathering!
- 50-75 Plant-based frozen meatballs (about 2-3 packages)
- 1 cup Chili sauce
- 1/2 cup Apple jelly
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Dump your frozen meatballs directly into your crock pot. Dump the chili sauce and apple jelly right on top.
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Cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8. Stir just before serving to finish mixing the sauce and evenly coat all the meatballs.
So so so simple. I felt kind of silly even typing that out into a formal recipe card because these are just so simple to make. A great one to keep in mind so you can add to your buffet table without adding too much to your to-do list!
Don’t forget to pin this recipe so you’ll have it when you need it! We’ve been craving these this week so I’ll definitely be making some of these to serve over rice in the next few days and I’m planning to definitely make them at Easter too!
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Courtenay Hartford is the author of creeklinehouse.com, a blog based on her adventures renovating a 120-year-old farmhouse in rural Ontario, Canada. On her blog, Courtenay shares interior design tips based on her own farmhouse and her work as founder and stylist of the interior photography firm Art & Spaces. She also writes about her farmhouse garden, plant-based recipes, family travel, and homekeeping best practices. Courtenay is the author of the book The Cleaning Ninja and has been featured in numerous magazines including Country Sampler Farmhouse Style, Better Homes and Gardens, Parents Magazine, Real Simple, and Our Homes.