Spicy Grape Jelly and BBQ Meatballs

These Grape Jelly BBQ meatballs have been a classic meal growing up in my house. They are sweet and savory and have the perfect amount of spice. The flavors pair together to create an addicting little meal.

Looking for a quick and delicious appetizer or even main coures? These grape jelly BBQ meatballs are just the thing!

Made with just a few ingredients, they are perfect for any occasion.

In this particular recipe we are making our meatballs on the stove top and adding a bit of hot sauce for an extra spicy kick.

However, you can leave the hot sauce out and the meatballs will still come out tasting fantastic.

Reasons You'll Love these Meatballs

• This recipe is super quick and easy
• It's a classic party appetizer
• You can make them as spicy as you like

Key Ingredients

This meatball recipe only requires 4 easy ingredients.

Grape Jelly: The grape jelly adds a yummy base and subtle sweetness. I use Smuckers grape jelly.

BBQ Sauce: Adds a thickness and savory component to the meatballs. I just buy the which ever one looks good at the moment in the right size bottle. You could also use a homemade BBQ sauce recipe if you'd like.

Louisiana Hot sauce: This is my go to hot sauce. Careful because it can easily make them too spicy if you don't have a high tolerance. For this recipe you can use as little or as much as you like. We used 2 ounces, which seems to be good for most people who like a little spice.

Meatballs: For this recipe, we're using fully cooked, frozen meatballs. But you could totally use homemade meatballs as well.

Green onions: Optional, for garnish.

Instructions

In a large sauce pan, place your meatballs, grape jelly, BBQ sauce and hot sauce and mix them all together.

Cook over medium heat for 10 to 15 minutes until all the ingredients have combined and the meatballs are heated through.

Substitutions

Since this recipe is pretty straight forward it's hard to find substitutions for the base ingredients.

I have heard of someone using cranberry sauce instead of grape jelly, and that worked well. But you'd need a few cans to equal the amount you'd get in a 32oz jar of Jelly.

How to Serve

You can serve these meatballs as an appetizer at a party.

But they also work very well as a main course.

We like toasting up some hoagie rolls and turning them into meatball sandwiches.

Or you can whip up some white rice and add your meatballs over the top.

Make sure to pour on extra sauce for your rice to sop up the flavors.

Storage

These meatballs store really well in the fridge for up to 3 days.

In fact I feel like they are tastier the next day as all of the ingredients have had a chance to meld together.

Reheat on the stove in a sauce pan over low heat or in the microwave until hot.