These Teriyaki Meatballs are sweet, salty, tangy, and so incredibly moist and addictive. The garlic, ginger, scallion, red bell pepper, and soy sauce all infuse the meatballs with the most amazing flavor. Combined with a simple Garlic & Ginger Soy Veggie Stir Fry and served over rice noodles, it’s a perfect family dinner. Drizzle over or dip the meatballs in the tangy Teriyaki mustard sauce and they burst with even more flavor.
Getting Kids to Try New Flavors
It can be hard to get kids to try new flavors. But sometimes using familiar foods to introduce new flavors works wonders. Enter meatballs! What kid doesn’t like a good meatball, right? I encourage you to experiment with different flavors and sauces. I have tried sweet & sour, apple, chipotle, and other flavors, but these Asian meatballs are a favorite because they are unexpected, fun, and just plain delicious!
Here are some other Meatball recipes you can try at home for dinner!
- Meatballs in Cauliflower Dill Cream Sauce
- Chipotle Meatballs in Mexican Corn Cream Sauce
- Moroccan Meatball Stuffed Pitas
- 5-Ingredient Meatloaf Muffins or Meatballs
Quick note! This post contains affiliate links, which means I earn a commission (at no extra cost to you) if you purchase from them. This commission is what helps me keep this blog afloat :). But, I also share these links because I have used the products, genuinely love them, and want you to know exactly what I used.
EQUIPMENT NEEDED
For this recipe, I used a mini food processor for the ingredients for the meatballs.
For the stir fry, I used my absolute favorite 12″ Ceramic Pan, which is great because food really does slide right off with minimal oil and I don’t have to worry about food sticking and burning. It comes with a glass lid, which is perfect for watching your dinner cook!.
Lastly, you will also need a large sheet pan (I use a 17×11) for baking the meatballs.
PREP-AHEAD FOR YOUR TERIYAKI MEATBALLS DINNER
You are busy, so these are the steps you can do a day or two in advance to prepare food ahead! (See the recipe below for more details)
In terms of Prepping ahead, you can make the meatballs and store them raw for a day or two in the fridge or freeze them raw up to 3 months ahead! You can prep the veggies and make the Teriyaki Mustard Dipping Sauce 1-4 days in advance.
Let’s start with the veggies. You can really use whatever veggies you have in the fridge for this stir fry. I used carrots and broccoli, but you can use celery, zucchini, cabbage, red or green pepper, onions, and more. Cut the carrots into thin strips and the broccoli into small florets.
Combine the Dijon Mustard with the Teriyaki Sauce and ½ tsp Sesame Oil.
Let’s move on to the meatballs. Peel the garlic. Coarsely chop garlic and scallions and ¼ of the red pepper. Save some thinly sliced greens from the scallions for garnish if you like.
Peel the ginger. You can scrape the skin off with a spoon, use a peeler or simply cut off the skin. Chop the ginger (the blender will do the rest).
Into the food processor, put the garlic, scallion, red pepper, ginger, chili pepper flakes, and the soy sauce. Pulse for 30 sec, scrape down the bowl and process 1 minute more, or until finely ground.
Mix the blended ingredients into meat along with the panko breadcrumbs.
I use a tablespoon to scoop out the right amount of meat and then roll in a meatball. Roll meat into 24 balls each about 1.5 to 2 inches in diameter. TIP: score the meat in half, then each in half again, then again to give you 8 equal portions of meat. Then roll 3 balls from each of the 8 portions to give you 24 same-size balls.
At this point, you can move on to cooking the meatballs or storing them in the fridge or freezer. If you want to freeze them, lay them all out on a sheet pan to freeze and then transfer them to a freezer storage bag once frozen.
COOK YOUR TERIYAKI MEATBALL DINNER
Make the rice noodles by bring a large pot of water up to a boil. Add the rice noodles to the boiling water and push them down to submerge. Stir the noodles as they soften and cook for 5 minutes until the desired texture. Drain and rinse under hot water. Place back in the pot until ready to serve.
Preheat the oven to 400 F degrees. Place the meatballs on an oiled sheet pan. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes (if frozen, cook for 30 min) until browned on the outside and no longer pink on the inside.
While the rice noodles and the meatballs are cooking, make the veggie stir fry. Preheat a large skillet on high and add a tbsp of olive oil and the Carrots. Cook the carrots for about 5 minutes, then add the broccoli, garlic, and ginger. Stir so that they do not burn and cook for about 5 minutes, until they start to soften.
Add the water and teriyaki sauce and then stir in the rice noodles, and meatballs to combine and cook for another 3-4 minutes to warm through.
Serve by garnishing with the scallion slices and drizzle the Dipping sauce over top or serve on the side and enjoy!
ENJOY! 😍 Carrie
Asian Teriyaki Meatballs with Veggie Stir Fry & Noodles
These Teriyaki Meatballs are sweet, salty, tangy, and so incredibly moist and delicious with garlic, ginger, scallion, red bell pepper, and soy sauce. Combined with a simple Veggie Stir Fry and served over rice noodles with a Teriyaki Mustard sauce, it's a perfect family dinner. #asianmeatballs #teriyaki #noodles #familydinner #easydinners #dinnerideas #meatballs #glutenfree
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 4 scallions
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger
- 1/4 red bell pepper
- 1/2 tsp chili pepper flakes Optional
- 2 cloves garlic
- 3 Tbls Soy Sauce
- 1/2 tsp Sesame Oil
- 1 pound Ground beef, 90% lean, raise without antibiotics
- 1/4 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- 2 Tbls Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Teriyaki Mustard Sauce
- 1/3 cup Teriyaki sauce
- 1 Tbls Dijon Mustard
- 1/2 tsp Sesame oil
Stir Fry & Sauce
- 1 tsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 3 cups Broccoli florets
- 1 cup Carrots, sliced thin
- 1 tsp Garlic, Minced
- 1 tsp Ginger, Minced
- 2 tbsp Soy Sauce
- 1/4 cup Water
- 10 oz Vermicelli, Rice noodles uncooked
Instructions
Prep-Ahead Instructions
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Peel the garlic cloves. Mince 1 clove for the stir fry. Coarsely chop the remaining 2 cloves garlic and scallions and ¼ of the red pepper.
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Peel the ginger. You can scrape the skin off with a spoon, use a peeler or simply cut off the skin. Mince 1 tsp for the stir fry and store with the minced garlic. Chop the remaining ginger - about 1 inch of the root (the blender will do the rest).
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Into the food processor, put the garlic, scallion, red pepper, ginger, chili pepper flakes (optional), and the soy sauce. Pulse for 30 sec, scrape down the bowl and process 1 minute more, or until finely ground.
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Mix the blended ingredients into meat along with the panko breadcrumbs.
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I use a tablespoon to measure out the meat for each meatball. Roll meat into 24 balls each about 1.5 inches in diameter. TIP: score the meat in half, then each in half again, then again to give you 8 equal portions of meat. Then roll 3 balls from each of the 8 portions to give you 24 same-size balls.
Cook!
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Make the rice noodles by bring a large pot of water up to a boil. Add the rice noodles to the boiling water and push them down to submerge. Stir the noodles as they soften and cook for 5 minutes until the desired texture. Drain and rinse under hot water. Place back in the pot until ready to serve.
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Preheat the oven to 400 F degrees. Place the meatballs on an oiled sheet pan. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes (if frozen, cook for 30 min).
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While the meatballs cook, combine the Dijon Mustard with the Teriyaki Sauce and Sesame Oil.
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While the rice and the meatballs are cooking, make the veggie stir fry. Preheat a large skillet on high and add a tbsp of olive oil and the Carrots. Cook the carrots for about 5 minutes, then add the broccoli, garlic, and ginger. Stir so that they do not burn and cook for about 5 minutes, until they start to soften.
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Add the water and teriyaki sauce and then stir in the rice noodles, and meatballs to combine and cook for another 3-4 minutes to warm through.
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Serve the rice noodles, then top with veggies, then the meatballs. Drizzle the Dipping sauce over top or serve on the side and enjoy!
I absolutely love all the flavors of this dish!! What a wonderful way to start the New Year and I hope you have a Happy one.