My Fearless Kitchen

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Home » Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon Ranch Meatballs

Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon Ranch Meatballs

By Marybeth Feutz 5 Comments

Do you need something quick, saucy, and flavorful? These Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs are perfect for an appetizer, a tailgate snack, or dinner!

Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs from My Fearless Kitchen. Do you need something quick, saucy, and flavorful? These Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs are perfect for an appetizer, a tailgate snack, or dinner!

Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon Ranch Meatballs

{Referral links are used in this post.}

This combination of barbecue sauce, bacon, ranch, and ground beef seems like a masterpiece, doesn’t it? Not quite everyone in my house agreed…

Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs from My Fearless Kitchen. Do you need something quick, saucy, and flavorful? These Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs are perfect for an appetizer, a tailgate snack, or dinner!

We got in a big struggle of wills at our house over these meatballs. I thought for sure these Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs would be a huge hit. And they were. With my husband. And with my friends. But not with my almost-5-year-old.

He claims he doesn’t like meatballs (lies).

Or bacon (lies).

Or ranch (lies – seriously, have you ever met a 5-year-old who didn’t like ranch?).

Or BBQ sauce (that one might be true).

So the Pre-Kindergartner wouldn’t eat it. (Yes, he’s a Pre-Kindergartner. Not a Pre-Schooler. It’s a big distinction. And he will make sure you know it.)

But. All the adults loved these meatballs. And I suspect that if I had just called these Bacon-Ranch Meatballs, the Pre-K’er would have liked them as well. Instead, he got plain meatballs out of the freezer. With a piece of bacon and some ranch on the side. Sigh.

Also, in hindsight? I sort of knew this was coming and I should have left some meatballs plain to begin with.

Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs from My Fearless Kitchen. Do you need something quick, saucy, and flavorful? These Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs are perfect for an appetizer, a tailgate snack, or dinner!


For those of you who don’t mind different sauces being mixed together, you are going to love these meatballs!

Enjoy!

Free Printable Ground Beef Buyer’s Guide

Have you ever gotten confused at the grocery store when you’re trying to pick out ground beef for tonight’s dinner? We can help! This Ground Beef Buyer’s Guide has everything you need to know about buying ground beef, plus you can download a free printable cheat sheet to keep handy in your kitchen or your purse!

Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs from My Fearless Kitchen. Do you need something quick, saucy, and flavorful? These Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs are perfect for an appetizer, a tailgate snack, or dinner!

Tools for Cooking with Ground Beef

Every kitchen needs a few basic tools… These are ones that I use all the time when I’m cooking with ground beef!

  • 5-Quart Saute Pan
  • Mix and Chop
  • 6-Quart Slow Cooker
  • Instant-Read Digital Thermometer
  • Probe-Style Digital Thermometer

3 Ways to Take the Fear Out of This Recipe

  • Where Does Bacon Come From?
  • Different Types of Ground Meat
  • How to Keep Hot Foods Hot

3 More Recipes to Try

  • Slow Cooker French Onion Meatballs
  • Slow Cooker Honey-BBQ Meatballs
  • Bacon Ranch Cheeseburger Cups

Printable Recipe Card for Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon Ranch Meatballs

Slow Cooker BBQ-Ranch Meatballs

Marybeth Feutz
Do you need something quick, saucy, and flavorful? These Slow Cooker BBQ Bacon-Ranch Meatballs are perfect for an appetizer, a tailgate snack, or dinner!
5 from 1 vote
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 2 hours hrs
Total Time 2 hours hrs 10 minutes mins
Course Main
Cuisine American
Servings 8 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 32- ounce bag frozen homestyle meatballs
  • 6 slices bacon about 1/2 pound
  • 1/2 cups barbecue sauce
  • 1 cup ranch dressing

Instructions
 

  • Place frozen meatballs in a 6-quart slow cooker.
  • Chop bacon into roughly bite-size pieces and add to slow cooker. (Do not cook the bacon first.)
  • In a small bowl, combine barbecue sauce and ranch dressing. Mix well.
  • Pour sauce over meatballs and bacon, mix to coat meatballs with the sauce.
  • Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, until the meatballs are heated through.
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

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Filed Under: Bacon, Beef, Holiday Recipe Box, Main Dish Recipes, Quick and Easy, Recipes, Slow Cooker & Electric Pressure Cooker Recipes Tagged With: barbecue, bbq, bbq-ranch, beef, crockpot, food, ground beef, meatballs, ranch, recipe, slow cooker

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Comments

  1. Mary says

    09/09/2018 at 10:44 am

    Hi, I’m sorry about all the flooding, but glad you and family are safe. I enjoyed your video about storm and recipes.

    I just want to ask, for the BBQ ranch meatballs, doesn’t the bacon get all soggy?, or I guess it is just for the flavor. I do want to try it, sounds really good.

    Thanks for recipe.

  2. Cindy says

    09/09/2018 at 3:51 pm

    5 stars
    Oh, how I feel your pain. My son was the pickiest of eaters ever! He wouldn’t touch beef or pork (except for bacon) or any veggie. He would only eat Chicken Nuggets from McDonald’s. He would literally gag if you tried to get him to try the tiniest of bites. There is hope, his tastes did change as he got older (almost to his senior year in high school, before we saw any change). Be patient, there is hope for your son. I have pinned the recipe….he may try it..he does eat beef now!

  3. Marybeth Feutz says

    09/16/2018 at 2:50 pm

    It seems like my son’s tastes change from morning to evening sometimes! Crazy kid. We just keep trying new things and the old things again and again!

  4. Marybeth Feutz says

    09/16/2018 at 2:51 pm

    Hi, Mary! Yes, the flooding was kind of a pain, but we are all safe and sound! The bacon does not get crisp in this recipe. It is mainly there for the flavor, but it can be eaten with the meatballs! It’s not soggy, but it’s not crisp like you would eat bacon and eggs. It’s just tender. I hope you enjoy the meatballs!

Trackbacks

  1. Tailgate Taco Bar - My Fearless Kitchen says:
    09/10/2018 at 12:37 pm

    […] it’s one of the things I know my son will consistently eat! (Did you see his reaction to these delicious meatballs? Some kids…) But whatever the food, it always tastes more delicious when you eat it outside! […]

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Hi! I'm Marybeth, the blogger behind My Fearless Kitchen! Jump in, and let me share what I'm learning about food, farming, quick kitchen tips, and easy recipes to chase the fear out of YOUR kitchen! Read more.
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