These Crockpot Meatballs will melt in your mouth! They are incredibly tender, loaded with Parmesan cheese, fresh parsley and garlic. Simmered low and slow for 4 hours in a homemade tomato sauce. This will be your go to Sunday Dinner!
Love meatball recipes?! Then give my Asian Turkey Meatballs or my Old School Italian Meatball Recipe a try!
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Crockpot Italian Meatballs
Who doesn’t love meatballs? Especially when they are cooked low and slow in a crockpot. These authentic beef meatballs are easy to make, versatile and can be made in advance and frozen for quick weeknight meals. The meatballs are melt in your mouth tender thanks to the combination of beef and pork. This truly is the best Italian meatball recipe!
Rich, meaty, hearty and comforting these Italian Meatballs are the perfect meal for busy weeknights or Sunday dinner. You will need a little bit of prep time to throw the meatballs together. The most time consuming part of this recipe is forming the meatballs.
The sauce is super simple as well. Simmering the sauce low and slow for 4 hours makes the sauce super thick, rich and loaded with flavor. I add some crushed red pepper flakes, Italian seasoning and bay leaves for extra flavor.
This recipe makes enough to serve 6-8 people and always leaves tons of leftovers!
Crockpot Meatball Ingredients
- Meat: For the best tender and flavorful meatballs I like to do a combination of ground beef and ground pork! Look for a 80 / 20 ground beef for juicer / tender meatballs.
- Onion: Minced yellow onion is added for flavor. To make mincing easier you could also grate the onion with a cheese grater.
- Garlic: 2 minced garlic cloves are added. Add more if your a garlic lover!
- Parsley: Fresh chopped parsley really brightens up these meatballs. I also love the pop of green!
- Italian Breadcrumbs: I always opt for Italian breadcrumbs for the extra seasonings and salt that it adds to the meatballs. You can use panko if you have that on hand just make sure to sprinkle in some extra seasoning and salt.
- Eggs: Act as the binder for the meatballs and help to hold everything together.
- Parmesan Cheese: Add a bit of salt and a pop of flavor to the meatballs. You can use pre-grated or shred your own parmesan cheese.
- Crushed Tomatoes: Are the base of the sauce. If you only have whole tomatoes or diced tomatoes simply pulse it a couple times in the food processor before adding to the crockpot.
- Tomato Paste: Helps to thicken up the sauce.
- Seasonings: Crushed red pepper flakes, Italian seasonings, salt, pepper and bay leaves are added to the tomato sauce. Feel free to omit the crushed red pepper flakes if you don’t want the touch of spice.
how to make crockpot meatballs
- Add beef, pork, onion, garlic, parsley, breadcrumbs, eggs and cheese to a large bowl. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix with your hands until combined. Make sure not to over-mix. The more you mix the meatball mixture the tougher it will become.
- Form into 1 or 2 inch meatballs. I made 24 meatballs.
- Lightly grease a baking sheet. Broil meatballs on high until browned on each side. About 4-5 minutes on each side.
- Add meatballs to crockpot. Top with crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaves, red pepper flakes and Italian seasoning.
- Cook on low for 4 hours. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm with basil or parmesan cheese for serving, if desired.
Kelley’s tips
- Do not over mix: I combine the ingredients with my hands just until it’s combined. That’s it. The more you work the mixture the tougher the meatballs will be.
- Wet your hands to help with rolling: When you portion the meatballs they tend to get a little sticky. I recommend wetting your hands with water before you start rolling out your meatballs.
- Buy 80/20 beef: If you can find it 80/20 beef makes the best crockpot meatballs. They turn out super juicy and tender.
- Freeze leftovers: This recipe makes tons of meatballs. Freeze the extras in an airtight container for up to 3 months for a quick weeknight meal. You can freeze the meatballs either par cooked (just broiled) or fully cooked.
- Brown meatballs: It’s important to sear the meatballs before adding them to the slow cooker. This helps to keep the juices inside. I brown the meatballs under the broiler on a sheet tray to get a nice caramelization on the outside.
- Baked Meatballs: If you are short on time try my Easy 30 Minute Meatball Recipe. Perfect for a busy weeknight!
- Use a cookie scoop: To easily portion out perfectly round meatballs. It saves on time and keeps everything consistent.
- Reheat: To warm up leftovers simply add the meatballs back to the crockpot and warm up on low heat with the sauce. Or heat them up in a saucepan on the stove until warmed through.
What to serve with Crockpot Meatballs
- Pasta Carbonara
- Pasta with Garlic and Oil
- Creamy Mashed Potatoes
- Roasted Broccoli
- Roasted Cauliflower
- Pesto Gnocchi
- Air Fryer Vegetables
- Garlic Bread
- Focaccia
- Side Salad
- Serve on a roll with provolone to make a meatball sub!
- Creamy Polenta
Here are more Easy Meatball Recipes to try!
- Thai Red Curry Chicken Meatballs
- Easy Teriyaki Beef Meatballs
- Turkey Meatballs with Arugula and Mushrooms
- Asian Style Chicken Meatballs
- Slow Cooker Asian Sesame Meatballs
- Italian Meatball Soup
products used
Slow Cooker Italian Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1/4 cup onion, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
- 1 cup Italian breadcrumbs
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- salt and pepper
- 2 24 ounce cans crushed tomatoes
- 1 6 ounce can tomato paste
- 2 whole bay leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- salt and pepper to taste
- basil for serving, if desired
- parmesan cheese for serving, if desired
Instructions
- Add beef, pork, onion, garlic, parsley, breadcrumbs, eggs and cheese to a large bowl. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix with your hands until combined.
- Form into 1 or 2 inch meatballs. I made 24 meatballs.
- Lightly grease a baking sheet. Broil meatballs on high until browned on each side. About 4-5 minutes on each side.
- Add meatballs to slow cooker. Top with crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaves, red pepper flakes and Italian seasoning.
- Cook on low for 4 hours. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm with basil or parmesan cheese for serving, if desired.
Nutrition Information
Did you make this?
I’d love to hear your feedback! Leave a review and make sure to share your pictures on social media! Don’t forget to follow @thechefsavvy.
Hina Munawar
The meatballs are looking sooo yummy. I have bookmarked the recipe, will try it soon. Thanks for sharing.
Mary Beyer
I made this dish for friends last night. I followed the recipe to the letter and I was very disappointed. The meatballs were delicious, moist and juicy! The sauce was a huge disappointment! I served it over linguine and the sauce was thick, tart and strong. I would recommend adding sugar and using less garlic. My friends were too nice to say anything but my one friend always has seconds of my food, not this time! In the end, I tossed the sauce and saved the meatballs for another dish.
Kelley Simmons
Hi Mary,
I am so sorry to hear that you did not enjoy this sauce! You can always thin out the sauce with some broth or water and add garlic to taste. I am glad you enjoyed the meatballs!
Thank you so sharing,
Kelley
Melissa Hendricks
Can I use Italian sausage instead of ground pork?
Kelley Simmons
Hi Melissa!
Yes absolutely! Let me know how you make out!
Kelley
AB
I’ve made these meatballs numerous times, and they always come out amazing. I add Worcestershire to the meatballs (eyeball it) and I put red pepper flakes/Italian seasoning both in the meatballs and in the crock pot.
Kelley Simmons
So happy to hear you enjoyed these meatballs! Thanks so much for sharing!
AJ
These meatballs are SO tasty. Thank you for the recipe. My son thought they were a little TOO tender…with the half that I froze, I might try cooking them for a shorter time…do you think that would still work? 2 or 3 hours on low or high? Thank you again for this fantastic recipe!
Kelley Simmons
So happy to hear you enjoyed these!! Yes I think cooking on high for 2 hours or low for 3 would work!
Thanks!
Ashlie
The most delicious meatballs EVER! I’ve tried making meatballs so many times and this recipe is the one. So glad I came across it!
Kelley Simmons
That makes me so happy to hear! Thank you so much Ashlie!
Caroline
Crowd pleaser. Made mini-pizzas for the kids with leftovers.
Colleen F.
I have seriously made this recipe close to 50 times. AMAZING!!
Kelley Simmons
Yah that makes me so happy to hear! Thank you Colleen!
yesnospin
These meatballs are delicious! I love the flavor that the crockpot brings to them.
Tina M Evans
I haven’t made these yet I have a question. When you mix the meat I still see breadcrumbs that didn’t mix in is that how to do that? When I make a meatloaf it falls apart so do I over-mix mine? I will wait until I hear from you to make these. Thanks
Kelley Simmons
Hi Tina!
I mix until everything is combined (but make sure not to overmix) by the time you portion out and roll your meatballs everything should be mixed up well!
Thanks and enjoy!
Kelley