Slow Cooker Meatballs in Marinara Sauce
This slow cooker meatball recipe is a comforting family dinner that cooks low and slow in the slow cooker and makes the whole house smell delicious and inviting, which is one reason I love slow cooker meals. The smell of dinner wafting through the house adds a feeling of coziness and contentment to the home. I love making slow-cooker meals when we go to church on Sunday evening, there is nothing better than walking in the door to dinner already made.
These slow cooker meatballs require some prep work, but once you get them in the slow cooker you can walk away and enjoy the rest of the afternoon.
The first step is to chop your garlic and onion, separating half for the meatballs and half for the sauce. For the meatballs you want to grate the onion, for the sauce, you can dice them.
Next, you want to add all your meatball ingredients to a big bowl. I like my recipes to feed a crowd so I did 1.5 lbs ground turkey and 1 lb ground beef. Add all the other ingredients and mix well. For the parmesan cheese, I blend chunks of fresh parmesan in the vitamix blender and turn it into powder form. I like doing this instead of purchasing powered parmesan, which has added unhealthy ingredients.
After mixing the meat really well, head back over to your blender which is still dirty from the parmesan cheese, and add a can of San Marzano whole peeled tomatoes. Give that a quick blend.
Head over to your slow cooker and saute the other half of the garlic and onion in olive oil and spices. My slow cooker has a saute function which makes this easy, but you could also skip this step and just dump it all in there. Pour the tomato in the slow cooker and also add some tomato paste if you have some you can use up. I also added some leftover marinara from a meal we made a few days earlier. It’s hard to mess this up!
Next, head over to your skillet. This part is tedious and messy but well worth it. Shape your meatballs, I use a tablespoon scoop and over-fill each scoop for my meatballs. Heat some oil in a skillet, add the meatballs, and gently sear on each side, it doesn’t need to be perfect. You want to space the meatballs out and do this in batches. It doesn’t need to be cooked all the way through, you just want to add some crisp to the outside of the meatball which seals in the flavor and also helps the meatballs to keep their shape when you add them to the slow cooker. Next, carefully nestle those meatballs into the marinara sauce being careful not to squish any of them. It’s ok if the sauce doesn’t completely cover the meatballs, it will begin to cover everything as it slowly cooks.
I cooked mine on low for about 4 hours. These turned out super flavorful and tender and I served it up with homemade garlic rolls that I made with freshly milled flour. If you are interested, I shared that recipe in this youtube video.
Slow Cooker Meatballs in Marinara Sauce
Ingredients
Meatball Mixture
- 1.5 lbs ground turkey
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1/2 large onion grated
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 cup powdered parmesan
- 1/2 cup almond flour or bread crumbs
- 1 egg
- 2 tsp each salt, dried oregano, basil, garlic powder, and onion powder
- 1 tsp pepper
Marinara Sauce
- 1 28oz can of San Marzano Whole Peeled Tomatoes blend with blender or immersion blender
- 2 tbsp tomato paste optional
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1/2 large onion diced
- 2 tsp italian seasoning
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
- Mix together meatball mixture in a large bowl.
- Make the marinara: Add olive oil to the slow cooker and saute onion and garlic for the sauce directly in it. Add the tomato paste, seasonings, and blended tomatoes. Set slow cooker to low and cover.
- Shape and sear the meatballs: Shape your meatballs, I use a tablespoon scoop and over-fill each scoop for my meatballs. Heat up some oil in a skillet, add the meatballs and gently sear on each side. You want to space the meatballs out and do this in batches. It doesn't need to be cooked all the way through, you just want to add some crisp to the outside of the meatball which seals in the flavor and also helps the meatballs to keep their shape when you add them to the slow cooker. Next, carefully nestle those meatballs into the marinara sauce being careful not squish any of them. It's ok if the sauce doesn't completely cover the meatballs, it will begin to cover everything as it slow cooks.
- Cook on low for 3-4 hours.
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