Description
A quick, hands-off slow cooker recipe for spicy buffalo chicken meatballs that requires zero prep work. Perfect for game day parties, these meatballs are cooked in a rich sauce of buffalo sauce, butter, honey, and ranch seasoning.
Ingredients
Scale
- 24–32 frozen chicken meatballs (about 1.5 lbs / 680g)
- 1 cup (240ml) buffalo sauce (e.g., Frank’s RedHot)
- 4 tablespoons (60g) unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) honey
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 packet (0.7 oz / 20g) dry ranch dressing mix
- Celery sticks, for serving
- Blue cheese dressing, for dipping
- Tortilla chips or crusty bread, for serving
Instructions
- Dump the frozen chicken meatballs directly into the slow cooker. Do not thaw them.
- In a medium bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the buffalo sauce, melted butter, honey, garlic powder, and dry ranch dressing mix until smooth.
- Pour the sauce over the frozen meatballs in the slow cooker.
- Use a large spoon or spatula to gently toss the meatballs, ensuring every piece is coated in the sauce.
- Cover and cook on LOW for 2-3 hours, or on HIGH for 1.5-2 hours.
- Stir the meatballs halfway through if cooking on LOW for more than 3 hours to ensure even heating.
- Once hot and bubbly, give them one final stir. Serve immediately with celery sticks and blue cheese dressing on the side.
- For parties, keep the slow cooker on the ‘Warm’ setting for up to 4 hours.
Notes
Do not thaw the meatballs; cooking them frozen helps them absorb the sauce better. The butter is essential for emulsifying the sauce and creating a creamy texture. If using a very hot buffalo sauce, increase the honey to 3 tablespoons to balance the heat. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 4 days or frozen for 3 months.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 2-3 hours
- Category: Appetizer
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4 meatballs per serv
- Calories: 280
- Sugar: 4
- Sodium: 650
- Fat: 22
- Saturated Fat: 11
- Carbohydrates: 6
- Protein: 18
Keywords: slow cooker, buffalo chicken, meatballs, game day, party food, appetizer, easy recipe, 5pm dinner, crockpot