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Crockpot Chili Meatballs and Spaghetti. Slow-cooked meatballs with onion and garlic, then seasoned with chili powder, paprika, cumin, and cayenne. Roll the meat into balls and slow cook with fire-roasted tomatoes, peppers, and broth. Finish these saucy chili meatballs off with cheddar cheese and serve over spaghetti – Cincinnati chili style. This dish is so warming and delicious. If there’s one comforting chili you make this season, it’s these yummy meatballs. This is a one-pot meatball and spaghetti dinner that’s the easiest dish you’ll make all week, and also one of the most delicious. Be sure to add some beer bread on the side!
We’ve had some seriously cold temperatures here recently. With snow over the weekend and temps in the negatives. I am very much into my “cozy era”. I’ve been having a lot of fun with my crockpot and slow-braising dishes in the oven. They always turn out so yummy.
I made these chili meatballs and spaghetti in the crockpot or you can slow braise them in the oven too. Ethier way, you’ll have such a simple cozy family meal, and it’s all made in one pot. We just love that!
Growing up in Cleveland, Cincinnati chili was fairly common. It’s also my mom’s favorite style of chili. In fact, she won’t eat chili without angel hair pasta underneath and a pile of cheddar cheese on top.
Bowl-style chili just isn’t for her, and honestly, I prefer her way too. It’s yet another cozy, childhood comfort food that we both love.
I thought it would be interesting to make chili meatballs and spaghetti. I know it sounds odd, but I promise, this is going to be delicious and feel like a fun family-style dinner!
The details
Step 1: mix the meatballs
I love to use ground beef, but ground chicken is great too. I seasoned the meatballs with our favorite mix of chili seasonings, onion, and garlic. Then chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, cayenne, garlic powder, and of course, salt.
Roll this mix together until very well combined, then roll into 15-16 bite-size meatballs.
Step 2: assemble the chili
Now, you can cook this in the crockpot or in the oven using a large Dutch oven with a lid. I personally, prefer the crockpot. Arrange the meatballs in the crockpot, then pour over a big can of diced fire-roasted tomatoes. Add tomato paste and broth, then a chopped poblano pepper and pickled jalapeños too.
Be sure to season again with salt.
At this point, slow-cook the meatballs in the sauce for a few hours. By the time these are finished cooking your house will smell wonderful. Like your favorite pot of Sunday chili.
Step 3: cook the spaghetti
If you’re using the crockpot, you can cook the spaghetti in the sauce. Add dry spaghetti directly to the meatballs. Pour over water, then nestle the pasta into the sauce. Let the pasta cook for 20 to 30 minutes. Just make sure to stir once or twice throughout cooking to ensure the pasta does not clump up.
Alternatively, you can cook the spaghetti separately on the stove. Either option works well.
Step 4: finish the meatballs
When the pasta is cooked, sprinkle the cheddar cheese over the meatballs and sauce. Let the cheese melt, about 10 minutes.
Now pull the spaghetti out of the sauce, plate it, and top with the cheesy meatballs, cilantro, and green onions. If you cooked the spaghetti in boiling water, just plate the spaghetti, then spoon the sauce and cheesy meatballs over the spaghetti.
You can serve this up on busy weeknights, but it’s equally great for those upcoming holiday dinners with friends and family. I always do a salad. And if you have a little more time highly suggest adding some 5 Ingredient Beer Bread, it doesn’t take long.
A note on the meatballs…
The longer you cook the meatballs the more they will eventually break apart, that’s okay. Just keep them in the sauce and serve as directed. They’re delicious both whole or broken up!
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Lastly, if you make this Crockpot Chili Meatballs and Spaghetti, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crockpot Chili Meatballs and Spaghetti
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 471 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef or chicken
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 2 tablespoons chili powder
- 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
- 2 teaspoons cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 can (28 ounce) fire-roasted dice tomatoes
- 1/3 cup tomato paste
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 poblano pepper, chopped
- 1/4 cup pickled jalapeños, chopped
- 1 can black beans, drained
- 3/4 pound dry spaghetti
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1/4 cup chopped green onion
Instructions
Crockpot
- 1. Add the ground beef, onion, garlic, chili powder, paprika, cumin, cayenne, garlic powder, and 1 teaspoon salt to a bowl. Mix to combine. Coat your hands with oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-16 meatballs). Place the meatballs in the bowl of your crockpot.2. Pour over the tomatoes. Add the tomato paste, broth, poblano pepper, and pickled jalapeños. Season with salt. Give everything a gentle stir. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or on high for 1-2 hours.3. Crank the heat on the slow cooker to high. Mix in the beans. Add the spaghetti and pour over 1 cup of water. Nestle the spaghetti into the sauce. Cover and cook 20-30 minutes, or until the spaghetti is al dente, stirring halfway through. Sprinkle the cheese over the chili. Let melt for 10-15 minutes. 4. Serve the cheesy meatballs over the spaghetti and sauce. Top with cilantro and green onion.
Stove
- 1. Preheat the oven to 325° F.2. Add the ground beef, onion, garlic, chili powder, paprika, cumin, cayenne, garlic powder, and 1 teaspoon salt to a bowl. Mix to combine. Coat your hands with oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-16 meatballs). 3. Arrange the meatballs in a large dutch oven with lid. Pour over the tomatoes. Add the tomato paste, broth, poblano pepper, and pickled jalapeños. Season with salt. Give everything a gentle stir. Cover and roast for 2 1/2 to 3 hours or until slightly thickened. 4. Crank the heat on the oven to 425° F. Remove the lid. Mix in the beans. Top with cheese. Cook another 10-15 minutes to melt the cheese. 5. Just before serving, cook the spaghetti according to package directions. 6. Serve the cheesy meatballs and sauce over the spaghetti. Top with cilantro and green onion.
Notes
If the meatballs are breaking:
The longer you cook the meatballs the more they will eventually break apart, that’s ok. Just keep them in the sauce and serve as directed. They’re delicious both whole or broken up!
It’s the same basic recipe as used in several other recipes featured here. Just another variation, this time with meatballs instead of ground beef. It’s also rather tasteless if you do it like this instead of browning the meat first and building proper flavours. And of course cooking the pasta in the same pot is a horrible idea.
And PLEASE, slim the website down. It takes forever to load and after using it for the first time in months again, I remembered why I stopped coming here. So annoying. It could be such a good site.
Hi Astrid,
Sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed, thanks for all of your feedback:) Have a wonderful day! x
I made the meatballs today twice once for me and a dinner for my daughter. I froze them after I baked a couple for my husband. He loved it! I plan on making the slow cooker recipe only not putting in the spaghetti until I boil it on the stove. My daughter is happy to have the start of meal. We have been making some of your recipes and sharing. She did the Crockpot Crispy Chicken Tinga Tacos with Avocado Jalapeño Crema last week and even her 12yr old loved it. She did text me to ask what flaky salt was! She substituted kosher.
Thank You!
Hey Terry,
Amazing!! Love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks so much for making it! xT
As others mentioned, the pasta made the over quality of the dish horrendous and inedible- I highly recommend doing the pasta separately and thickening the sauce over the stove and taking the meatballs out. In a honesty perhaps making this not a crockpot dish. The flavours were lovely and the meatballs were great too, just the whole pot turned to glue due to the cooking pasta
So very sorry to hear this, Helen. Thanks for trying the dish and your feedback! xx
Excellent. I loved the extra spice. I used red lentil spaghetti pasta to make it gluten free. We are all taking the leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
Hey Denae,
Awesome!! Thanks a lot for trying this dish, so glad to hear it was enjoyed:) xx
I did it in the instant pot and it came out amazing. It is pretty spicy for and I didn’t even add the jalepeno.
Hi! So glad you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for trying it out! 🙂 xT
In the oven now and made to a letter, except I added extra spice (and then read the reviews that it was spicy lol). I knocked down one start because I thought it would have been better to sautee the onions before and mix in an egg and some breadcrumbs with the meatballs (then sear and roast).
I think this was my first half baked harvest recipe and it did not disappoint!! I thought the consistency and flavor were great. It was a tad spicy for me but I also didn’t include the cheese so this could’ve been why. Overall 10/10!!
Thank you SO much for giving this recipe a try! Hope you have an amazing rest of your week! 🙂 xT
This recipe is great! Definitely a crowd pleaser and so easy to make. It is spicy, so if you don’t like spice I would probably leave out the pickled jalapenos. I didn’t make the meatballs and just cooked the meat, onions, garlic and spices before turning the slow cooker on low. It turned out great!
Hey Rachel,
Wonderful!! I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it and your feedback! xT
Normally HBH doesn’t disappoint, but sadly this was not my favorite. As others have mentioned, the noodles took on a weird texture, (and I used a decent quality pasta). I also could have gone for ground meat vs meatballs-i don’t think the meatball added anything specific or necessary to the dish. The overall flavor was decent. We all ate, it just wasn’t our favorite.
Hi Michelle,
So sorry to hear this recipe was not enjoyed! Thanks for giving it a try and sharing your review:) xx
We tried this recipe tonight because I thought it looked so tasty! I followed the recipe to the letter but for some reason it did not taste good at all. The noodles had the consistency of hot melted wax and the flavor of the whole soup/chili/meatball situation was inedible. Both my husband and I couldn’t take even a second bite and we’re not picky eaters. Most of the time we absolutely love Half Baked Harvest recipes!
Hey Rachelle,
I appreciate you making this dish and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear it wasn’t enjoyed! Please let me know if there is anything that I can help with! xx
I love this concept!!! And the flavor is excellent!!! Two things I didn’t love and would try and adjust next time:
1. While I love one-pot crock-pot recipes, I might cook pasta separately. I felt like the dish was slightly starchy? I’m thinking this would be improved if pasta was cooked on its own then starchy water discarded. Was this just me?
2. Didn’t love meatball consistency for some reason. I would rather have had meat in a none meatball form (so just normal chili).
The flavor and concept are good enough that I’ll definitely try this again… but hopefully the adjustments help!!
Hey Annie,
Wonderful!! I love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it and your feedback! You could totally make the pasta separately and then just use ground meat rather than the meatballs:) xT
Delicious- so so good. Cincinnati native here and this is just divine. The spice is perfect (a little kick), and topped ours off with some crackers and crushed up Fritos. Served a salad on the side and fresh baked bread (not that you need extra carbs)
Hey Melissa,
Happy Thanksgiving! Thanks for making this recipe and your comment, so glad to hear it was a hit! xx
SO GOOD! This could be a weekly meal for us but may cut down a bit on the spice (I’m a whimp).
Hi Erika,
Wonderful!! So glad to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks for making it! Happy Thanksgiving! xT
Made this tonight for dinner and it was excellent!! Very easy to make and I liked the Crock-Pot option so I could make this ahead. The sauce turned out a bit watery but it did not take away from the flavor. Even my husband who doesn’t like tomato based dishes liked it! Perfect for weeknight dinners if I’m at home to prep
Hey Tiffany! Thank you so so much! Love to hear that you’re enjoying this recipe 🙂 xT