The Gunners were gifted the lead when John Ruddy's poor clearance allowed Alexis Sanchez to set up Mesut Ozil. But the visitors were pegged back by Grabban, who received Robbie Brady's defence-splitting pass and held off the challenge of Gabriel to fire in.
Injuries to Laurent Koscielny and Alexis Sanchez deepened Arsenal's woes.
Centre-back Koscielny was forced off in the first half with a hip injury, while forward Sanchez hobbled off after the interval with an apparent hamstring problem.
The Gunners are now two points off the lead in fourth and manager Arsene Wenger may come under renewed pressure to bolster his squad in January to sustain their title challenge.
Norwich, meanwhile, remain 16th but will be buoyed by a display full of heart and determination.
An evening that could ultimately prove damaging to their title aspirations started well for Arsenal as Ruddy's error gave them a deserved lead.
Before the match, the England goalkeeper had addressed criticism of some recent indifferent performances, saying: "I don't think I have been as good [this season] as I have been previously, but form is temporary."
But his hopes of earning Norwich just a second clean sheet in 14 matches were dashed as he scuffed a clearance to Gary O'Neil. Sanchez nipped in to dispossess the Norwich captain and threaded a through-ball to Ozil, who clipped a deft first-time finish over the goalkeeper.
The stats you need to know
- Arsenal have conceded six of their 12 goals this season in the 15-minute period before half time.
- Mesut Ozil has had a hand in 10 of Arsenal's 14 Premier League goals since 4 October (two goals, eight assists).
- Norwich have managed only one clean sheet in the Premier League this season, a joint league-low total (alongside Bournemouth).
- Lewis Grabban has not ended up on the losing side in any of the last 24 games in which he has scored (W19 D5) for Norwich and former club Bournemouth - the last time he lost a game in which he scored was back in October 2013.
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