Slow Cooker Bourbon Meatballs cooks low and slow until tender: saucy, savory, and mostly hands-off for busy weeknights.
Weeknight Bourbon Meatballs: Saucy, Tender, Mostly Hands-Off
Low-and-slow meatballs that marry lean protein with a sticky, boozy-sweet glaze—great for busy nights when you want comfort without babysitting the stove.
When dinnertime sneaks up on you, this slow-cooker approach is the solution: a mostly hands-off way to get tender, saucy meatballs on the table. Using a blend of ground turkey and lean beef keeps the meatballs protein-forward and not overly heavy, while rolled oats and a splash of milk bind without the dense chew of too much breadcrumbs.
The flavor comes from a short list of pantry-friendly staples: tomato paste gives body, low-sodium soy and Worcestershire add umami depth, honey brightens, and a generous hit of bourbon rounds everything out with caramel-like warmth. Browning the meatballs briefly in a hot skillet before they go into the slow cooker sets a savory crust and keeps them attractive and flavorful once they finish simmering.
Shape them about 1 to 1¼ inches wide so they cook evenly and gather plenty of sauce on each bite; the slow cooker turns them meltingly tender while the sauce becomes glossy and clingy. A sprinkle of fresh parsley at the end keeps the dish lively and cuts through the richness.
These meatballs are wonderfully flexible: serve them over steamed rice or mashed potatoes, pile them into buttered rolls for casual sandwiches, or tuck them into a grain bowl with roasted vegetables for a balanced weeknight meal. They also freeze well—either pre-cooked in sauce or shaped and frozen raw—so you can stretch one weekend batch into several quick dinners.
Ingredients
How to Make Slow Cooker Bourbon Meatballs
- Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic; measure and set aside the oats, egg, milk, Worcestershire, parsley, salt and pepper.
- In a large bowl, combine ground turkey, ground beef, rolled oats, egg, milk, Worcestershire sauce, half the chopped onion, half the minced garlic, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, kosher salt and black pepper; mix gently until just combined (don’t overwork).
- Shape the mixture into 20–24 meatballs about 1 to 1 1/4 inches wide and place them on a tray while you heat the pan.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the meatballs in batches for 1–2 minutes per side to set the crust (they do not need to be cooked through); transfer browned meatballs to the slow cooker.
- In a medium bowl whisk together bourbon, low-sodium soy sauce, tomato paste, honey, Dijon mustard and low-sodium chicken broth until smooth; add the remaining onion and garlic to the sauce and stir to combine.
- Pour the sauce over the meatballs in the slow cooker, cover, and cook on low for 3 to 3 1/2 hours (or on high 1 1/2–2 hours) until meatballs are cooked through.
- About 30 minutes before the end of cooking, stir in the frozen mixed vegetables, cover, and continue to cook until vegetables are heated through and tender-crisp.
- If you prefer a thicker glaze, whisk the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water to make a slurry and stir it into the slow cooker in the final 15–20 minutes, switching to high if cooking on low so sauce thickens.
- Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt or pepper if needed, sprinkle the remaining parsley over the meatballs, and serve warm.
- Serve the bourbon meatballs and vegetables over whole-grain rice, quinoa, or alongside a green salad for a balanced plate (optional serving suggestion).
Recipe Card
Slow Cooker Bourbon Meatballs
Slow Cooker Bourbon Meatballs cooks low and slow until tender: saucy, savory, and mostly hands-off for busy weeknights.
- Prep
- 20 min
- Cook
- 3 hr 30 min
- Servings
- 4
Ingredients
Instructions
- Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic; measure and set aside the oats, egg, milk, Worcestershire, parsley, salt and pepper.
- In a large bowl, combine ground turkey, ground beef, rolled oats, egg, milk, Worcestershire sauce, half the chopped onion, half the minced garlic, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, kosher salt and black pepper; mix gently until just combined (don’t overwork).
- Shape the mixture into 20–24 meatballs about 1 to 1 1/4 inches wide and place them on a tray while you heat the pan.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the meatballs in batches for 1–2 minutes per side to set the crust (they do not need to be cooked through); transfer browned meatballs to the slow cooker.
- In a medium bowl whisk together bourbon, low-sodium soy sauce, tomato paste, honey, Dijon mustard and low-sodium chicken broth until smooth; add the remaining onion and garlic to the sauce and stir to combine.
- Pour the sauce over the meatballs in the slow cooker, cover, and cook on low for 3 to 3 1/2 hours (or on high 1 1/2–2 hours) until meatballs are cooked through.
- About 30 minutes before the end of cooking, stir in the frozen mixed vegetables, cover, and continue to cook until vegetables are heated through and tender-crisp.
- If you prefer a thicker glaze, whisk the cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water to make a slurry and stir it into the slow cooker in the final 15–20 minutes, switching to high if cooking on low so sauce thickens.
- Taste and adjust seasoning with additional salt or pepper if needed, sprinkle the remaining parsley over the meatballs, and serve warm.
- Serve the bourbon meatballs and vegetables over whole-grain rice, quinoa, or alongside a green salad for a balanced plate (optional serving suggestion).
Nutrition
- Carbohydrates
- 32
- Saturated Fat
- 7
- Sodium
- 700
- Fiber
- 3
- Unsaturated Fat
- 12
- Protein
- 46
- Fat
- 19
- Cholesterol
- 190
- Trans Fat
- 0.1
- Calories
- 550
- Sugar
- 20