Take Along Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Looking for the perfect potluck accompaniment? Look no further! These Sweet and Sour Meatballs can be made ahead and easily transported to your party destination. Better yet, these are affordable to make and sure to be a hit! Makes a great main served alongside rice and green beans.

We are in the thick of fall, folks! The leaves are falling, the days are getting shorter and the weather is getting cooler. We are also very near (Canadian) Thanksgiving which means we are all in a frenzy with menu planning. But don’t stress, you have no reason to worry. Trust me, you can look past the boxes of just-add-water stuffing and venture beyond the frozen aisles because I have your back! My Sweet and Sour Take Along Meatballs are a crowd pleaser, cheap to make, easily transported  and can be made waaaaay ahead of the family dinner since they can be rewarmed easily stove-top or in a slow cooker. You’re welcome.

In other words, you can enjoy your pumpkin spice latte the morning of Thanksgiving guilt free, since your potluck dish is already in the fridge. All you have to do is show up hungry, and maybe, just maybe offer to help your Aunt with the gravy or indulge in an extra glass of wine. The choice is all yours, really.

Now, let’s talk about the sauce. The sweet and sour sauce is a perfect compliment to the pepper-y and rich tasting meatball. I encourage you to play around with the vinegar and sugar depending on your tastes. You can sweeten it up, or have a bit more zing. The sauce is very forgiving which allows it to be customizable. Just look at the gorgeous colour!

Take Along Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Ingredients

Meat Balls

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1/2 sleeve saltine crackers, crushed
• 1/2 cup yellow onion, finely chopped
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 large eggs

Sweet and Sour Sauce

• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar (you can add an extra tablespoon or two if you like them on the sweeter side!)
• 1/3 cup ketchup
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Add all meatball ingredients to large mixing bowl. Mix with hands until evenly distributed.
3. Roll mixture into small 1-inch balls (makes roughly two dozen) and place evenly space on broiler pan (slotted). Bake for 30 minutes, turning over once at 15 minute mark.
4. In the mean time, make a slurry with cornstarch and some water. Set aside.
5. In large sauce pan, add remaining water, vinegar, brown sugar and ketchup to medium-low heat. Mix with a whisk to breakup sugar.
6. Cook for 5 minutes. Do not boil.
7. Add cornstarch slurry. Raise temperature to medium-high for sauce to boil and thicken. Once sauce is at desired thickness, reduce heat to low and add meatballs.
8. Meatballs can be transferred to large serving dish, or placed in crock pot at low temperature for up to 2 hours for transport!