‘Tis the season for parties and where there are parties, there are meatball recipes. These Instant Pot Cranberry Meatballs are one of the quickest, easiest cocktail meatballs I’ve ever made. So good too!
Why you will love this Cranberry Meatballs Recipe
Is it just me or does every holiday party seem to have at least one cocktail meatball offering? Whether it’s a work Christmas party, a family gathering or a big NYE bash, it seems that party meatballs are a must.
My Instant Pot Cranberry Meatballs takes frozen meatballs to hot, fully cooked and covered in a delicious sauce in just 8 minutes. Eight minutes! That is amazing!
The best part? There are only 4 ingredients, including the meatballs. As you can imagine, the main ingredients are cranberry sauce, sweet chili sauce and meatballs. It’s a great way to use up leftover cranberry sauce too.
But I also include one secret ingredient many may leave out – Dijon mustard. It just adds a tiny kick of flavor that I think makes these the best cocktail meatballs out there.
Instant Pot Frozen Meatballs ingredients
You just can’t beat a perfect appetizer recipe with simple ingredients. And that’s just what these cranberry sauce meatballs are.
- Frozen cocktail meatballs – These are easily found in the frozen section of your grocery store. The amount you need for this recipe is usually one large bag. I always use store-bought meatballs, but you could use your own homemade meatballs instead.
- Jellied cranberry sauce – I know there are people that loathe a can of cranberry sauce, but I promise it works for this cranberry meatball recipe! And don’t worry, we use fresh cranberries too!
- Sweet chili sauce – Just like those chili sauce and grape jelly meatballs, we need some chili sauce to add a little zip and flavor to these meatballs. It’s not a very spicy sauce, just flavorful.
- Cranberries – As promised, we use real cranberries too! You can either use these fresh or frozen. Depending on the time of year that you make them, finding fresh cranberries might be a little difficult.
- Dijon mustard – To add just a touch of tang, I like to use some dijon mustard for this perfect party appetizer.
Cranberry Meatball Recipe variations
I love these cranberry meatballs as is, but there are several ways that you can make them your own.
- Crockpot meatballs – Don’t have an Instant Pot? No problem! You can easily make this cranberry meatballs recipe in the crockpot instead. Cook on high for 2 to 3 hours or low heat for 3 to 4 hours.
- Meat – If you aren’t into red meat, you could certainly swap these meatballs out for your favorite chicken or turkey meatballs instead.
- Barbecue sauce – Instead of the chili sauce, you could certainly use your favorite bbq sauce instead. You still get that deliciously sweet, tangy flavor.
- Orange juice – I love the combination of orange and cranberry, so add a splash of orange juice into the mix to take the flavor to the next level.
- Stove top – This is an easy recipe to make on the stove as well. Combine the sauce ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the meatballs and cook until warmed through.
How to Make Cranberry Meatballs
- Combine ingredients. Place frozen cocktail meatballs, jellied cranberry sauce, cranberries, sweet chili sauce and Dijon mustard into the Instant Pot, stir to cover all of the meatballs as best you can. The jellied cranberry won’t mix well and that is ok.
- Cook. Lock lid in place and cook on manual high pressure for 8 minutes.
- Quick release. Use quick release method.
- Stir. Stir sauce and meatballs until sauces fully combine.
- Enjoy. Serve immediately or turn Instant Pot onto warm setting and serve out of the pot.
How to serve Cranberry Meatballs
Honestly, these meatballs don’t need much, they stand out on their own. Serve them with a plate of cheese and crackers, maybe some dips and finger sandwiches for a nice spread.
Storing Cranberry Sauce Meatballs
Storage: You can store leftover meatballs in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to five days.
Freezing: These meatballs also freeze well. Just keep in an airtight container or freezer bag and they will keep for about three months.
Meatballs with Cranberry Sauce FAQs
Meatballs can be soggy if too much liquid and not enough binder was used when making homemade meatballs.
This could be that the meatballs were overcooked, but it can also be the brand. Not all are created equal. Taste different brands until you find a flavor and consistency you enjoy.
Browning does add flavor, but it isn’t necessary. Especially for this recipe that is supposed to be easy with less steps (and dishes).
More Party Appetizers
Meatballs with Cranberry Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
- 48 frozen cocktail meatballs , usually one large bag
- 14 ounces jellied cranberry sauce
- 12 ounces sweet chili sauce
- 1 cup fresh or frozen cranberries
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
Instructions
- Place frozen cocktail meatballs, jellied cranberry sauce, cranberries, sweet chili sauce and Dijon mustard into the Instant Pot, stir to cover all of the meatballs as best you can. The jellied cranberry won't mix well and that is ok.
- Lock lid in place and cook on manual high pressure for 8 minutes.
- Use quick release method.
- Stir sauce and meatballs until sauces fully combine.
- Serve immediately or turn Instant Pot onto “warm” function and serve out of the pot.
- If you’ve tried this recipe, come back and let us know how it was!
Best easy holiday appetizer ever! Great flavor and so delicious!
Love the combination of sweet and savory, and these are so perfect for holiday hosting! I’ll definitely be making these again closer to the holidays. Thanks for the recipe!
I was looking for a recipe like this, thank you for sharing! I can’t wait to try it soon!
This instant pot version of cranberry meatballs looks so delicious. Thanks for sharing
These quick, easy and flavor packed meatballs look incredible. They will not last long at my Holiday party.
Tried to make without the frozen cranberries and got the dreaded burn notice. Salvaged by adding some liquid. Still tasted good! Leason learned. Don’t leave those out!
Thanks, KB- I’ll make a note of that in the recipe card.
What kind of frozen meatballs do you use? I’m not finding any in stores called “cocktail meatballs.” I can only find home style or Italian.
Cocktail meatballs are usually just smaller in size. Home style is the most plain, Italian style has a dried Italian seasoning, garlic and onion. For thes, homestyle is probably best.
I absolutely love this recipe! I made it for a work potluck and couldn’t help myself I had to go back for 2nds! I’ve added them to the rotation of quick snack dinners at home, the whole family loves them! I do use Thai sweet Asian chili sauce cause I can never find the regular chili sauce at the store, it gives it a nice kick but not too spicy for the kids! 10/10!
Thank you so much, Erica! We are so glad you love them and thankful that you took the time to come back and let us know.
I’ve made these twice now with the leftover fresh cranberry sauce from thanksgiving (yes…I know it’s January) and they are so delicious. Great spin on a classic recipe! So happy to have a way use up the sauce.
Yay! Thank you for coming back to let us know. One of our favorites too 🙂
Your recipe calls for sweet chili sauce but the link for it takes you to Heinz chili sauce which is not sweet chili sauce. It’s just a chili based ketchup. Which one do I use?
Hi Leslie! So sorry about that, sweet chili sauce, I’ll correct the link. They sometimes automatically pick up keywords by accident.
I’m trying this recipe for a Christmas Eve party and was wondering what I could add to make it a little spicy…or does the sweet chili sauce add a lot of heat?
So glad to see this, I have been using a similar recipe (with lemon juice instead of dijon) with homemade turkey meatballs on the stovetop. I’m happy to see an instant pot version. If I am making my meatballs fresh with ground turkey, would I need a longer cooking time?
Hi Martha! Sorry for the delay- I had a baby 2 days ago! I’ve done it with raw meatballs and it actually takes the same amount of time. Takes the same amount of time to thaw as it does for them to cook. The only thing that will make a significant difference is the SIZE of the meatballs. If you make then cocktail size (1-1.5 inches) this is the correct cook time, but any larger and I’d add 1-2 minutes.
Love the combination of sweet and spicy on this meatball sauce. Sounds like a very tasty dish!
Finally, someone has come with a brilliant way to use cranberry sauce in a recipe that people will actually enjoy. Meat balls are one of the best appetizers for holiday parties, and this one just screams holiday.
This would be a fabulous appetizer for our New Year’s party! Thank you.
This looks really good. I love cranberries. I don’t have an instant pot but I have a crock pot that I could make these.
These are so tasty! Everyone gobbles them up and they’re so perfect for holiday gatherings!
Oh wow, didn’t think these could be made in IP. I would love to try making some vegetarian meatballs in my IP. Thanks for the idea.
You can totally use this with vegetarian meatballs as well! Just throw them in frozen!