Slow Cooker Frozen Meatballs
Is there a better family-friendly meal than classic meatballs and creamy red sauce with pasta? Add frozen meatballs to the slow cooker with a simple, homemade sauce to simmer away for the ultimate cozy meal. Use this easy recipe combination to spark your own flavor inspirations!
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What’s To Love About This Recipe
- It’s easy to have a home-cooked Italian meal with just a bit of planning earlier in the day! Using frozen meatballs saves a step in assembling all the elements of a classic dinner with pasta, salad, bread, and more.
- Most frozen meatballs have the option to reheat within a few minutes, but with the slow cooker, you will get a much richer flavor and improved texture. It’s an easy hack to get homemade results! With a sauce made from quality ingredients and seasoning, the flavors will simmer and meld together over a few hours.
- Using the slow cooker is a great hands-free option when you have several meal elements to prepare. Prep the meatballs and sauce a few hours in advance and just boil some water for pasta, or prep your veggies around dinnertime.
- This recipe is the perfect base for you to customize and run with it! There are so many different varieties of frozen meatballs, and the combination of meat and sauce can truly be customized to fit your taste. Mix and match with different sauces – jarred or homemade!
Ingredients Needed
- Frozen meatballs – Use your favorite brand of frozen, fully cooked meatballs or use your own homemade, previously frozen recipe (like my recipe for make-ahead frozen meatballs). Some of my favorite premade brands are:
- Rosina Gluten-Free Italian Style Meatballs – Use the store locator on the site to find retailers near you.
- Cooked Perfect HomeStyle Meatballs – These can usually be found at Walmart stores.
- Amylu Meatballs – This brand is all chicken meatballs, and any flavor will work for the slow cooker! These are not technically frozen, but I often buy the large packs at Costco and freeze them immediately, so they’ll work perfectly for this recipe. If you use them fresh (instead of frozen), then reduce the cooking time.
- Crushed tomatoes – A can of crushed tomatoes creates a hearty flavor and texture and provides a nice thickness for this sauce.
- Tomato sauce – Add a can of tomato sauce to the base.
- Seasonings – A simple combination of seasonings will deepen the flavor of the tomato sauce and enhance the flavor of the meatballs. Combine sea salt, garlic powder, and dried basil for a savory, slightly herbal flavor.
- Honey – Honey adds a slight sweetness to complement the acidity of the tomatoes.
- Heavy cream – Finally, I like to add a small amount of heavy cream to the sauce to reduce the overall acidity and give a rich, smooth texture that coats the meatballs well.
How To Make Frozen Meatballs in the Slow Cooker
In these steps, I’ll explain how to create your own made-from-scratch red sauce in the slow cooker. This is a simple yet delicious homemade sauce that is great for serving over regular noodles, gluten-free noodles, veggie noodles like zucchini, spaghetti squash, and more.
Use this recipe as a guide to prepare other similar homemade or jarred sauces with frozen meatballs, too!
- Put sauce ingredients (except for heavy cream) in the slow cooker and stir to combine.
- Add the frozen meatballs.
- Cover and cook until heated through (the meatballs are already fully cooked, so you just need to warm them through), about 2-4 hours on high or 4-8 hours on low. (The time will vary based on whether they are frozen or not.)
- Add heavy cream to the slow cooker and stir to combine.
- Serve with pasta or as desired.
Recipe Substitutions and Variations
I love using this recipe as a base for many different variations of frozen meatballs and sauces. You can use almost any type of frozen, pre-cooked meatball and change up the sauce for the type of dish you’d like to serve.
Meatball Variations:
- Try making a big batch of Make-Ahead Italian Meatballs for the freezer and just take out what you need for the slow cooker each time.
- Turkey or chicken meatballs are another great option. You can also try combining two different ground meats for a more complex flavor.
- To make this recipe gluten-free, be sure to check ingredient labels to find gluten-free frozen meatballs.
Sauce Variations:
I love making this simple sauce as a fresh, homemade addition to the frozen meatballs. I encourage you to try this version first (vs. jarred sauce). You’ll see that it’s worth the extra few minutes of prep!
You could also try your favorite version of frozen meatballs with the sauce from Slow Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs, Slow Cooker Swedish Meatballs, and Slow Cooker BBQ Meatballs. Feel free to try any other types of prepared jarred sauces as well!
How To Serve Slow Cooker Meatballs
An obvious and tasty choice is to cook some traditional spaghetti or penne noodles to serve with Italian-inspired meatballs and red sauce. Add a bagged salad and a slice of garlic bread. Ta-da! A gourmet meal is on the table in no time.
I also enjoy eating meatballs and sauce as the main entrée with veggies or salad on the side. Sautéed zucchini or Sautéed Green Beans with Garlic are simple options to prep. If you need something to soak up the red sauce, you could also serve the meatballs and sauce over Mashed Potatoes.
Don’t forget extra toppings like fresh parmesan cheese, a sprinkle of mozzarella, parsley, or a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes for a bit of heat.
Storing and Reheating
Store leftover meatballs and sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. To reheat, warm them up in a saucepan until heated through. You can also microwave them in a microwave-safe dish, stirring in between short intervals.
I don’t recommend refreezing previously frozen meatballs.
Slow Cooker Meatballs and Tomato Cream Sauce
Equipment
- Slow Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 package precooked frozen meatballs
- 1 can 28 oz crushed tomatoes
- 1 can 8 oz tomato sauce
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1/4 cup heavy cream
Instructions
- Put sauce ingredients (except for heavy cream) in slow cooker and stir to combine
- Add frozen meatballs
- Cover and cook until heated through (the meatballs are already fully cooked, so you just need to warm them through), about 2-4 hours on high or 4-8 hours on low
- Add heavy cream to slow cooker and stir to combine
- Serve with pasta or as desired
Notes
- Store leftover meatballs and sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in a saucepan or the microwave, stirring in intervals.
- Previously frozen meatballs should not be frozen again.
- Substitute other frozen meatball varieties and sauce combinations.
Nutrition
Slow Cooker Frozen Meatball FAQs
- Should frozen meatballs be thawed before cooking in the slow cooker? No, you do not have to thaw fully cooked meatballs before cooking them in the slow cooker.
- Can meatballs be cooked too long in the slow cooker? It is possible to cook the meatballs and the sauce for too long. It will typically take 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low to heat through, and much longer than that could lead to tough meatballs or burned sauce. Depending on the type of sauce you use, you will need to monitor it for overcooking as well.
- What temperature should meatballs be heated up to? Meatballs need to reach 165 ℉ to be fully cooked (including when they are heated from frozen).
- How long does it take to heat up frozen meatballs in the slow cooker? It will typically take 2 hours on high or 4 hours on low to fully heat precooked meatballs in the slow cooker.
How do you make the meatballs doesn’t say?
Sorry, looks like the link to those in the post is broken. Here is the meatball recipe: https://slowcookergourmet.net/freezer-make-ahead-italian-meatballs/
How many meatballs will this make sauce for?
If I make the Meatball today and put then in the crock pot tomorrow since they are not frozen how long should I cook them for? 4 hours in low?
Hi there! 4 hours on low should be long enough. My slow cooker cooks fairly fast so it might depend on how yours typically cooks. I would assume that 4 hours on low for thawed meatballs should be sufficient though. I hope you enjoy them!
It is not a safe bet to put frozen meat in the crockpot. It takes too long to get out of the danger zone and above 140 degrees. BE SAFE! Thaw those meatballs overnight before putting them in the crockpot.
Hi Robyn! Very true and best to be safe. These meatballs are fully cooked prior to freezing but you are right, to be as safe as possible thaw them out and then heat in the slow cooker.
I make my own meatballs. It does not take much time for me to do this. Plan it out and it works. Plus, the result is tastier. But I understand those without this extra time available, so the frozen ones will work for them. Tried it both ways and both were good, one just a little better, but it does take time to make your own meatballs.
yes, the homemade ones are certainly worth the effort, but thankfully the frozen work well in a pinch! 🙂