Slow Cooker Cranberry Sauce
54 Comments Nov 08, 2023
Updated Nov 23, 2025
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You won’t believe how hands off this easy slow cooker cranberry sauce recipe is! Set the slow cooker and walk away. Made with fresh cranberries, orange marmalade and brown sugar. We make this the night before a special holiday.
Homemade cranberry sauce is a must along with slow cooker turkey breast and Crockpot ham. You can make the entire holiday dinner in slow cookers if you have a few.
Featured Comment
Amazing, So easy and fabulous. I have made 5 or 6 of your crockpot recipes and every time they are so good.
– KIm
If you grew up eating cranberry sauce from the can, you have no idea how delicious homemade cranberry sauce is. Using the slow cooker, this is a simple recipe that will take your holiday dinner to a whole new level. Once you make this recipe, you will never buy the canned stuff again! The whole berry cranberry sauce goes great over crockpot turkey and gravy.
Key Ingredients
Fresh cranberries– Find the cranberries in the produce section; they usually show up in stores in late October. You can use frozen cranberries with the same cooking time, for they quickly thaw. We also use fresh cranberries in my Christmas Jam Recipe and Cranberry Apple Butter.
Orange marmalade– Orange is the perfect complement to cranberry sauce, and the orange marmalade adds sweetness and flavor. The flecks of orange peel in the marmalade are what make this pop. Orange juice or apple juice is not a good alternative for it will make the sauce too runny.
Brown sugar– This gives a richness to the sweetness of cranberry sauce; use light brown sugar or dark brown sugar. You can use white sugar in a pinch if you are out of brown sugar.
How to Make Slow Cooker Cranberry Sauce
- Toss the cranberries and marmalade into the crockpot and let it do the work.
- Cook until everything bursts and gets jammy.
- Stir in the brown sugar and chill so it thickens up beautifully.
How to use Cranberry Sauce:
Use on classic recipes such as crockpot spiral ham, or slow cooker whole chicken. You can also use this as a topping for my Thanksgiving Casserole or Crockpot Pumpkin Pie. Don’t forget the crockpot green bean casserole to round out the meal.
You can use the cranberry sauce in recipes such as Cranberry Chicken, Cranberry Meatballs, or our favorite Cranberry Pork Loin.
Other options are to use on a cold turkey sandwich, or top your toast or pancakes with it! Try my bourbon cranberry sauce for a fun twist on this recipe!
Cook’s Notes
If the cranberry sauce isn’t thick enough, you can take the lid off the slow cooker at the end of the cooking time and let some of the liquid evaporate. It won’t take much time at all.
Add a cinnamon stick and a pinch of cloves for a more Christmas flavor.
Slow Cooker Cranberry Sauce
How to Video
Ingredients
- 24 oz. fresh cranberries, (two 12 oz. bags)
- 13 oz. orange marmalade, (I use Bonne Maman)
- 1/2 cup brown sugar , (add at the end of the cooking time)
Instructions
- NOTE – This is best served cold, make the day before or early in the day and refrigerate for a few hours.
- Add the cranberries and orange marmalade to the slow cooker, stir to combine.
- Cover and cook on HIGH for 4 hours. After the cooking time is up, stir and pop any un-popped cranberries with the back of a spoon. Add the sugar and stir.
Stove-top instructions
- Add the ingredients to a pot. Cook on medium-high heat, stirring often for 15 minutes.
- Once the cranberries start to cook and pop, turn down the heat to low and continue cooking for about 10 minutes until a thick sauce forms.
Sarah’s Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.
Other great holiday slow cooker recipes:
Slow Cooker Turkey Breast pairs perfectly with cozy sides like Mashed Sweet Potatoes and Slow Cooker Butternut Squash for a complete fall or holiday meal.
Add a touch of sweetness with Slow Cooker Candied Pecans, or serve a comforting bowl of Slow Cooker Butternut Squash Soup alongside your favorite main.
If you’re cooking for a crowd, Slow Cooker Apple and Clove Ham makes a flavorful centerpiece that’s both easy and festive.
It says 20 servings do you know what the portion size is?
Thanks
Nancy
It’s about 1/8 cup.
I’m making this cranberry sauce in the crockpot right now for Thanksgiving.. Hoping there is leftover after Thanksgiving because next thing is the Cranberry pork loin. I love me some cranberries.
Looks easy, and yummy
I have looked at so many recipes for cranberry sauce for a large Thanksgiving get together. As soon as I found yours with the orange marmalade I knew it was the one. I haven’t made it yet but I ‘m looking forward to it. Thank you for sharing it.
Can I can this to use all year long? How much does a single recipe make?
About 5 cups of cranberry sauce (roughly 2½ pints / five 8-oz jars). This isn’t a canning recipe – there has to be a certain ratio of ingredients for it to be safe to can.