Cooktop Cove: How to make slow cooker bacon-wrapped onion meatballs
By John Jasins
This is a fun recipe that your family will love making almost as much as eating. Bacon, onion and ham wrapped around cheese-stuffed meatballs — it might sound complicated, but it's far from it. This recipe is actually quite simple and a super fun dish to make with your family where everyone can get involved. Assembling the meatballs can be such a fun activity, and seeing the results of everyone's work at the end is so satisfying.
We mix ground beef and pork together for the meatballs. The mixture of both meats adds that extra depth in flavor. Bread crumbs and eggs bind everything together, with diced ham and onions mixing into the actual meatball. I recommend using Black Forest ham to add to the smoky flavor of the bacon. The meatball is formed around a nice chunk of colby jack cheese and then wrapped in ham, onion petals and finally bacon. There's nothing like the satisfying feeling of cutting into a meatball that oozes out melted cheese.
Slow cooker bacon-wrapped onion meatballs
8
45 minutes
8 hours
8 hours, 45 minutes
For meatballs:
1 pound ground beef (80/20)
½ pound ground pork
¼ pound finely chopped smoked ham
½ cup panko breadcrumbs
1 whole egg, beaten
3 tablespoons finely chopped parsely
½ cup finely chopped onion (use inner part of onion; see directions to separate onion)
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
8 1-inch cubes of colby jack cheese (or cheese of your choosing)
For wrapping meatballs:
8 pieces of thinly sliced smoked deli ham (use more or less as needed)
4 large or medium yellow onions (see directions to separate onion)
16 pieces thinly sliced bacon
In a large mixing bowl, combine everything from ground beef to Worcestershire sauce. Scoop meatball mixture into large ball (about 4 ounces) and press 1 cube colby jack cheese into the center. Seal meat tightly around the cheese.
Tightly wrap each meatball with a layer of sliced ham.
Take skin off onions and cut off the top and bottom of the onion. Cut onions in half from top to bottom. Separate the onion into layers. Use the larger outside layers. Attach onion peel halves onto meatballs, making sure that there are no large air pockets.
Tightly wrap 2 slices of bacon around onion layer lengthwise. Create a "plus" on top and tuck the ends underneath the meatball.
Place wrapped meatballs in a 6-quart slow cooker.
Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or on high for 5 hours.