Honey Buffalo Crockpot Meatballs

It’s prime game day party time folks… time to get your favorite appetizers ready.

Party foods… specifically game day foods, are some of my all-time favorites!  There’s something so tantalizing about a spicy buffalo chicken dip, a big platter of nachos, or a perfectly pop-able bite sized meatball.

Plus, I really love the easy appetizer recipes, where there’s hardly any prep work, nothing to remember to thaw, and that don’t use all the ingredients in my pantry or refrigerator.

That’s where this recipe comes in! The meatballs are cooked from frozen, there’s no chopping needed, it uses just 5 ingredients, and the slow cooker does 95% of the work.

And that honey buffalo flavor? Whew, it’s always a crowd-pleaser.

Perfect for parties, these little meatballs are pop-able, and oh so delectable.  Your guests will keep coming back for more and asking you for the recipe, I promise!

How to make honey buffalo crockpot meatballs?

This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.

1. Make sauce. You can stir everything together in a bowl, or just mix it up right in the slow cooker insert.
2. Add meatballs. Pour in the frozen meatballs and give everything a big stir.
3. Slow cook. That’s it… so easy, and so delicious!

Variations of this recipe

• Spicy – a fan of the heat?  Try using buffalo wing sauce instead of hot sauce (it usually has more of a kick), adding some cayenne pepper, and using less honey or brown sugar.
• Mild – if you’re sensitive to heat, make sure you’re using hot sauce instead of wing sauce, and you can increase the amount of honey or brown sugar.
• Garlic – for some fun extra flavor, try adding some garlic powder or minced fresh garlic to the sauce. Add a little and just taste the sauce as you go, adding more if needed, to make sure you have the flavor you want.
• Meatballs – to save on some time, this recipe uses pre-cooked frozen meatballs, but you can use homemade meatballs if you want.  Just sear or partially bake them first, so they hold up well in the slow cooker.
• Hot sauce – this recipe has been tested with Frank’s Red Hot Original Cayenne Pepper Hot Sauce, but should work well with other brands as well.
• Thawed – if you have thawed meatballs, you can use those, just cook on LOW for 1-2 hours, or HIGH for 45 min. – 1 hour (I would stir a couple of times if cooking on high, just to make sure the sauce doesn’t burn).

Making honey buffalo meatballs ahead of time

Since these meatballs cook in the slow cooker, and there’s not any rushing around cooking, I don’t find I need to make this recipe ahead of time.

If you want to do it, you can make it 1-2 days ahead, and reheat in the slow cooker until hot and bubbly.

Freezing

Meatballs can also be frozen for up to 3 months.  Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then reheat.

Storage

Leftover meatballs should be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 5 days.