Slow Cooker Sweet & Sour Meatballs Recipe // Freezer Friendly

These slow cooker & freezer friendly sweet & sour meatballs were created as part of a sponsored campaign for Collective Bias and Kraft.

A couple weeks ago, I found myself frazzled and overwhelmed.  I felt like I was going, going, going, but never really getting anything done.  After almost losing my mind, I realized the problem- ME.  My time management skills were non-existent and I was constantly hopping from one thing to the other without focus or concentration.  With our homeschool year about to begin, I knew I had to get it together.  I sat down and figured out what I wanted to accomplish each day and how long each task would take and then I scheduled my day out.  Now that I have a schedule to stick to, I’m working to find others way to stress less.  Freezer cooking is one of my favorite time savers in the kitchen because it allows us to have quick family meals.  When you can combine freezer cooking with slow cooker recipes and meal helpers, you have easy meals that come together with little effort.

These sweet & sour meatballs can be made head and frozen.  When you are ready to use them, pop them in the fridge overnight to thaw and they’ll be ready to cook the next day.  This is a basic meatball recipe that can be adapted to your tastes.  I use this same recipe for BBQ meatballs and the Sweet & Sour meatballs.  The only thing that changes is the sauce!  You can also add different spices to change the recipe up to please your tastes.

For these sweet & sour meatballs, you’ll notice that I used the new Kraft Recipe Makers.  I love that I can create a homemade recipe with the help of the sauces included in the Kraft Recipe Makers.  It’s rare that I cook from a box as I prefer to serve my family from scratch meals so these cooking sauces are a huge help in the kitchen!  Unlike my husband who can throw anything in a pan and make it taste delicious, I need direction especially when it comes to foods that aren’t considered southern.  I would have been clueless about how to create the sweet & sour flavor on my own, so Kraft Recipe Makers helped me try new things in the kitchen with ease.  We found it at Walmart, by the way, and there are several other flavors available too.  You can see more photos in my Google + album.

5.0 from 9 reviews

Slow Cooker Sweet & Sour Meatballs Recipe // Freezer Friendly

 

Print

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

3 hours

Total time

3 hours 20 mins

 

Serves: 4

Ingredients

• Meatball Ingredients:
• 1½ pound ground beef
• ¾ cups oats
• 1 cup milk
• 3 Tablespoons minced onion & bell pepper mix
• 1½ teaspoon salt
• Black Pepper, to taste
• For Browning Meatballs:
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• Oil (Vegetable or Canola)
• Sweet & Sour Sauce:
• Kraft Recipe Makers- Sweet & Sour Chicken

Instructions

1. Combine all meatball ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. Roll into medium sized meatballs and place on baking sheet.
3. Place meatballs in the freezer until firm.
4. Next, heat oil over medium heat. Roll the meatballs in the flour, then cook on each side until brown.
5. Transfer the meatballs from the oil to the slow cooker.
6. Pour the sesame ginger simmer sauce over the meatballs and cook on low 2 hours and 30 minutes.
7. Cover the meatballs with the sweet & sour pineapple finishing sauce and cook an additional 30 minutes.
8. Serve on a bed of rice or with your favorite sides.

Notes

After combining the meatball mixture and rolling it into balls, you can freeze the meatballs. Place them on a cookie sheet and pop them into the freezer until firm, then transfer them to a freezer bag.

3.2.2124

I was a bit worried about trying something new.  Sweet and sour flavor isn’t something I like to eat, but hubby does so I gave these a try mostly for him.  I completely expected Bryson and Bella to turn up their noses and ask for a hotdog.  And then, they each agreed to taste a sweet & sour meatball.  Then, they came back for another bite.  Finally, they asked for a bowl of meatballs and before I knew it, Bella (2.5 years old) had eaten FIVE sweet and sour meatballs.  No joke.  I call that a win, folks.

Since my family loved the sweet & sour meatballs create with Kraft Recipe Makers so much, they’ll be on our menu at least once per month.  I’m happy to have another meatball flavor in my recipe box since they are one of the easier freezer meals to prepare.  Quick and easy family meals will help me make it through our first few weeks of back to school as I work on my time management and try to find a routine.