Slow Cooker Blueberry BBQ Meatballs
INGREDIENTS
· ½ cup panko bread crumbs
· ½ cup milk
· 2 pound lean ground beef
· 1 egg
· ½ cup crumbled cheddar cheese
· 2 tablespoons diced shallots
· 1 teaspoon BBQ seasoning
· 1.5 cup BBQ sauce homemade or bottled, your choice
· 1 cup blueberry preserve
· 1 tablespoon olive oil optional
Making Meatballs!
While not required, most people like to use a binder for meatballs. I find the best choice to be milk soaked panko breadcrumbs. Easy and they don't dry out the meatballs. I also like to add an egg to help everything stick.
You'll want to make sure you season your meatballs. Some dried herbs or other seasonings, like BBQ, are some of my favorite options. Feel free to add extra cheese, onion, garlic, etc. as you desire more flavor.
Be sure to be gentle when mixing the meat. Mix by hand until just combined so that you don't overwork the meat and end up with tough meatballs.
To form the meatballs, I use my hands however you can use an ice cream scoop to measure so that they are all similar in size, plus it does part of the work in rounding them for you.
A little more help!
1. Add milk to panko breadcrumbs in small bowl and let soak for 5 minutes or until softened
2. Add to pork and beef along with egg, cheese, shallots and BBQ seasoning.
3. Mix using hands until well combined but be careful not to overwork mixture.
4. Using hands or ice cream scooper measure out 12 servings and roll gently into balls (a little larger than golf balls)
5. Place on foil lined baking sheet and place in oven
6. Turn on broiler and broil for 5-8 minutes watching closely until browned on top
7. OR, heat olive oil in skillet and brown meatballs on each side for 2-3 minutes
8. Transfer to slow cooker
9. Whisk together BBQ sauce and blueberry preserves.
10. Pour half of mixture over meatballs
11. Cover and cook on high for 2-3 hours for low for 4-6 until meatballs are fully cooked.
12. Remove from slow cooker and toss with remaining sauce (discard any cooking liquid from slow cooker)
