Asian Meatballs with Sweet Chilli Glaze
These flavoursome Asian meatballs are incredibly easy to make and come with a delicious, 3-ingredient sweet chilli glaze. They make a great appetizer or easy dinner idea everyone will love.
Servings 5 servings
Calories 300kcal
Equipment
- Food processor
- Large non-stick pan
Ingredients
For the meatballs
- 1.1 pounds ground turkey
- 1½ tablespoons fresh ginger finely chopped
- 2-3 garlic cloves finely chopped
- 2 scallions/spring onion chopped, plus another for garnish
- 1 small soft bun/roll torn into small pieces
- ⅓ teaspoon fine sea salt plus pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil for frying
- 2 tablespoons flour for coating
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds for sprinkling on top
For the glaze
- 5 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce
- 1⅓ tablespoons light soy sauce
- 1¼ teaspoons sesame oil
Instructions
- Tear the bun into small pieces and place in a food processor along with the chopped scallions, ginger and garlic. Pulse a few times until crumbly (don't overprocess).
- Add the meat, salt and pepper and pulse a few times just to combine the ingredients. Form small meatballs and coat in the flour.
- In a large non-stick pan heat up 2 tablespoons of oil and fry the meatballs slowly over a low/medium heat for 10-12 minutes or until fully cooked and lightly browned turning often. Do not overcrowd the pan.
- Towards the end of cooking make the sweet chilli glaze. In a small non-stick pan heat up the sweet chilli sauce, soy sauce and sesame oil. Bring to the boil and simmer for a minute stirring often then remove from the heat.
- Remove the meatballs from the heat and using a slotted spoon transfer into your serving dish. Cover with the glaze, scatter the sesame seeds and chopped green onion over the top and enjoy!
Notes
- I used ground turkey but pork, chicken or beef would work well too. If you use beef you can make the glaze using hoisin sauce instead of the sweet chilli sauce and add a teaspoon of rice vinegar.
- In my experience a soft bun produces softer meatballs so I do not recommend using breadcrumbs instead.
- I recommend using a non-stick pan. Try not to overcrowd it so the meatballs have enough space to cook evenly and you can comfortably turn them over. Fry the meatballs in batches if you have to.
- Fry the meatballs over a medium heat so they don't brown too quickly and have enough time to cook through.
- Remove the meatballs from the pan using a slotted spoon to get rid of excess oil. Coat in the glaze after you've done this.
- Best served immediately.
- Freeze raw meatballs (without the flour) in a single layer on top of a tray for 4 hours then transfer into a freezer bag/plastic container and freeze for up to 3 months. Defrost, coat in the flour and fry as per instructions.
- Yields approx. 25 meatballs.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 300kcal | Carbohydrates: 19g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Cholesterol: 74mg | Sodium: 734mg | Potassium: 263mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 9g | Vitamin A: 121IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 51mg | Iron: 2mg