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Meatballs With Grape Jelly Chili Sauce

Print Recipe
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 55 minutes
Servings 8
Calories 357

Ingredients

For the sauce:

  • 8 to matoes
  • 2 onions
  • 5 garlic cloves
  • 2 chili peppers
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 4 tbsp red wine
  • ½ cup brown sugar
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • 1 jar grape jelly

For the meatballs:

  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 1 onion
  • 1 cup panko
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ tsp salt
  • ¼ tsp pepper
  • ¼ tsp chili flakes
  • 3 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

  • All ingredients ready? Let's begin!
  • Roughly chop the tomatoes, 2 onions, and garlic cloves. Cut the chili peppers in half and remove all the seeds.
  • In a medium pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.
  • Add the onions and chili and cook for 2 minutes.
  • Add the garlic and cook for another 2 minutes.
  • Now add the tomatoes, red wine, brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes.
  • Turn the heat to low and bring to a simmer. Cover the pot and continue to simmer for about an hour.
  • After an hour, check the consistency. It should be super mushy and relatively thick. If there is an excess of liquid, remove the lid and let simmer for another 30 minutes or until is evaporates.
  • Remove from heat and let cool for half an hour.
  • In a strong blender or food processor, add a cup of the tomato mix and blend until thick and smooth. Transfer to a pot.
  • Repeat with the rest of the tomato mix until it is all blended and smooth. You want to do it in small increments if the sauce is still warm because otherwise too much steam can build up.
  • Put the sauce over medium heat and add the entire jar of jelly.
  • Continuously stir while cooking for 15 minutes or until the jelly has melted and is fully mixed with the tomato chili sauce.
  • Remove from heat and set aside.
  • Preheat the oven to 395F.
  • Peel and finely chop 1 onion. Add it to a large bowl along with the ground beef, panko, eggs, salt, pepper, and chili flakes.
  • Mix together. It is easiest (and more fun) if you use your hands. Make sure the egg yolks have popped and mixed in well.
  • Roll the meat into balls. This can be easily done if you use a small muffin or ice cream scoop to keep the sizes even. Scoop into your hands and roll to make sure the meatballs are firm.
  • Place the meatballs in a large baking tray or two. Try to leave a little space between the meatballs.
  • Pour the olive oil on top of the meatballs and roll around to coat. You don’t need to use the full amount–just enough to lightly grease them.
  • Cook in the oven for 30 minutes, checking halfway to see if you should turn the meatballs. When the they’re done, they should be brown all the way through. You can check this simply by cutting one open. Remove from oven and plate. Drizzle a generous serving of chili-jelly-sauce over the meatballs and serve.
  • Enjoy!

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 357kcal | Carbohydrates: 30g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 20g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 81mg | Sodium: 414mg | Potassium: 610mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 1211IU | Vitamin C: 37mg | Calcium: 70mg | Iron: 2mg