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Takeout-style Weeknight Sticky Honey Garlic Meatballs – inspired by classic Mongolian beef. Easy homemade chicken and ginger meatballs, tossed in a sweet, spicy, and extra sticky honey garlic soy sauce. Then served over rice and topped with plenty of sesame seeds for a deliciously fun dinner. Make the meatballs even better with a creamy garlic dipping sauce. Quicker than any take-out meal…and made a little more wholesome too.
Thursday night takeout-style food at home! What if we made this a weekly series? It could be fun, especially since we all know how much my family loves Chinese, Thai, and Korean-inspired dinners. Plus, I have so much fun with a “takeout” inspired meal. It’s always a nice change from our usual pasta and pizza nights.
Creighton has been asking me to make Mongolian beef for some time now. Really anything beef (or lamb). He’s kind of a guys-guy, he wants at least a little beef in every meal.
Since I have a Mongolian beef recipe in the new cookbook, I wondered if there was a fun spin I could take on the quick and easy recipe. Meatballs are something I usually make with a more Italian-style sauce. But a sweet and spicy Mongolian-inspired meatball sounded fun. And like the perfect simple twist on the very popular restaurant entree, Mongolian beef.
Mongolian beef is a very simple dish consisting of thinly sliced steak, stir-fried with garlic, and ginger, then tossed in a sweet soy-based sauce. It’s not usually too spicy, just a touch, but a little sweet and tangy.
The sauce is the key. It’s usually topped with green onions (scallions) and paired with vegetables, then served over rice.
For the meatballs, instead of using steak, I made ginger chicken meatballs.
Here are the details
For the meat, I used ground chicken, but ground pork or ground beef will work just as well. I seasoned them up with plenty of green onions, ginger, and a splash of soy (well, I like to use tamari, which is gluten-free soy sauce). Then I rolled them through cornstarch (or arrowroot powder) to give them a little breading before pan-searing in a skillet.
Similar to how I make this orange chicken, but with meatballs.
While the meatballs cook, mix up the sauce, which is simply soy sauce mixed with honey and water. I then made a quick cornstarch slurry to use to thicken the sauce.
Once the meatballs are seared, pull them out of the skillet, then toss in lots of broccoli. I love to use broccoli here, but bell peppers, asparagus, or even brussels sprouts would all be delicious.
Pan-fry the broccoli for a few minutes, then add the garlic, ginger, and a pinch of chili flakes. Pour over the sauce and add the meatballs back.
Simmer the sauce a few minutes, then pour in the cornstarch slurry and let the sauce cook until it coats the meatballs.
Grab your bowls full of rice and spoon the meatballs and sauce over top. Next, add lots of fresh green onions and sesame seeds.
So quick and easy, but the flavor is perfect. I made mine a little less sweet than the traditional sauce and added double the ginger. Totally delicious.
Here’s a tip, double the recipe and save the leftovers for quick and easy lunches. The meatballs would also be great atop a chopped salad or served over rice noodles.
They’re great as party appetizers too, so the serving options are endless! Of course, around here we love them over rice with lots of vegetables. It’s our kind of “comfort” food.
Looking for other weeknight dinners? Here are my favorites:
Ginger Sesame Chicken and Crispy Brussels Sprouts
Crockpot Crispy Chicken Tinga Tacos with Avocado Jalapeño Crema
Lastly, if you make these Weeknight Sticky Honey Garlic Meatballs, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Weeknight Sticky Honey Garlic Meatballs
Servings: 4
Calories Per Serving: 536 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground turkey, chicken, or beef
- 1 tablespoon tamari or soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 2 green onions, chopped
- black pepper
- 1/4 cup avocado or sesame oil
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 cup tamari or soy sauce
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 large head broccoli, cut into florets (about a cup and a half of florets)
- 4 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1 tablespoon chopped ginger
- chili flakes
- 1-2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
- 1. To make the meatballs. Combine the meat, 1 tablespoon tamari/soy sauce, 1 tablespoon ginger, green onions, and a pinch of pepper in a bowl. Mix until just combined. Coat your hands with oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls. The mix will be wet. 2. Place 2 tablespoons cornstarch in a shallow bowl. Dredge the meatballs in cornstarch to coat. Take the remaining 1 tablespoon cornstarch and mix with 2 tablespoons water, set aside.3. To make the sauce. In a glass jar, whisk together 1/2 cup tamari/soy sauce, 1/4 cup honey, and 1/3 cup water. 4. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the meatballs, cook until seared all around, about 8 minutes. Remove the meatballs from the skillet.5. To the skillet, add the broccoli and cook until lightly charring, 5 minutes. Add the garlic, ginger, and chili flakes, cook 1-2 minutes. Pour in the tamari/honey sauce. Bring to a boil, boil 3-4 minutes, then add the chicken. Toss with the sauce and cook until the sauce starts to thicken. Pour in the cornstarch slurry and cook another 2-3 minutes, until the sauce coats the meatballs.6. Serve the meatballs and sauce over steamed rice with sesame seeds, green onions, and dipping sauce (recipe in notes).
Notes
Sweet/Creamy Dipping Sauce: combine 1/2 cup mayo, 1 tablespoon ketchup, 1 teaspoon seasoned salt, 1 teaspoon tamari/soy sauce, and 1 clove garlic in a bowl. Thin with 1-2 tablespoons water.
Tieghan you’ve done it again! This recipe was a major hit. I had been worried after reading some reviews about the meatballs falling apart. But no issues for me. I just rolled them in the cornstarch and popped them in the fridge for about 15 min before pan frying. I personally prefer meatballs like this without a binding agent (ie breadcrumbs) because they turn out more moist. I would recommend this to anyone, it’s a great weeknight meal that’s a crowd pleaser.
Hey Natalie,
Happy Friday!! Thanks so much for trying this recipe out, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xx
So tasty, and fun to make! Will definitely make again.
Hey Molly,
Wonderful!! Thank you so much for trying this recipe out, I am so glad to hear that it was a winner! xxT
Oh my goodness so good and so easy
Hi Cathy,
Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! xTieghan
My Daughter in Law made this for us while visiting. It was so delicious that I had to get the website to find the recipe when I returned home. I will definitely be putting this one in my collection.
Hey Pam,
Perfect!! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a go, I am thrilled to hear that it was a winner! Have the best week!? xT
This was delicious and so easy to make. It’s definitely going into the regular rotation and I found that the salt content was perfect over plain white rice. Will double the recipe next time so that I can have it as meal prep too. Not enough left overs and I was craving it the next day.
Hey Ani,
Perfect!! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a go, I am thrilled to hear that it was a winner! Have the best week!? xT
This was so good!! I had to double this recipe as I knew it would not be enough to feed my husband and teenage son! Definitely will be making this again!
Hey Jodi,
I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xxT
Came out delicious, I loved the sauce but I used Tamari over soy sauce. I’m wondering if that’s why mine wasn’t as salty as other reviewers. I’d recommend using tamari you can find it at Trader Joe’s if you’re near one. I used ground chicken which was a tad dry I’d recommend maybe a combination of ground beef or pork instead as that makes it juicier. Overall a great meal!
Hey there,
I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it! xxT
I loved this. Jumped straight into a double batch because I knew it would make great leftovers. I made the sauce just as suggested (using regular Chinese-style soy sauce) and it was a hit with my whole family. Did not find it overwhelmingly salty, but I did add a lot of extra vegetables which may have diluted it. I also was impressed by the chicken meatballs which were perfect. I had to fry them in three batches and probably should have made it into 4 as I needed lots of room to flip them in the pan without them breaking. The corn starch coating created a brilliant crispiness so I’ll use that trick again. I was very liberal with the oil on my hands to shape the very wet meatballs – this recipe would not have worked without that.
Hey Krista,
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Thanks for sharing your feedback! ?Tieghan
Very delicious!! We made this recipe with 1/2 the amount of soy sauce after reading through previous comments regarding the saltiness.
Maybe we’ll have leftovers next time to get a picture posted on Instagram!
Hey Rebecca,
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! ?Tieghan
I just made this tonight and it was pretty good! I think next time I’ll use pork instead of chicken as the flavour of the meat is a little weird but overall the meatballs turned out well. I used broccolini and added it at the same time as the ginger and garlic as it cooks quicker than regular broccoli, then I added some sugar snap peas right at the end. I never use low sodium soy sauce and didn’t find the sauce overpowering at all so not sure what happened for those saying it was salty. I use the naturally fermented soy from Costco if that helps. I made the dipping sauce too and added some sambal for heat. It was great although I’m not sure how ideal it was for the meatballs but it did work. I also scattered crispy fried onions on top in addition to the green onions and sesame seeds. Good recipe!
Hey Kat,
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! Thanks for sharing your feedback and what worked well for you! ?Tieghan
Meatballs just don’t work without some kind of binder. These need breadcrumb of some kind or you’re going to have a pan of falling apart meatballs like I did!
Hi Deanna,
So sorry to hear about your meatballs, please let me know if there is any way I can help! xx
So tasty! Literally one of the best meals I’ve had in a while and a new favorite for sure! I added some brown sugar to the sauce and I’ll do that from now on as too much soy is too strong for me!
Hey Heidi,
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! ?Tieghan
I found the sauce to be way too salty, even using reduced sodium soy sauce. I would recommend not using as much soy sauce in the sauce and not using as much sauce to avoid a salt overload.
Hi Kaci,
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! ?Tieghan
really, really tasty ! I used pork instead of chicken. I always use low sodium soy sauce, so no complaints about saltiness. It’s amazing how much the broccoli cooks down. The sauce comes together / thickens quickly after adding the slurry. And I think I will double the sauce next time ! I was liberal with the ginger and the garlic as I feel you can never have too much !
Will make this again !
Hey Melanie,
Fantastic!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed! ?Tieghan
WAY way way too salty (and I LOVE salt). Almost inedible. Looked and smelled amazing but holy cow the soy sauce should be cut at least in half (maybe sub dark soy which is sweeter and not salty?)
Hi Moe,
So sorry to hear the recipe was not enjoyed, you could try coconut aminos next time! xTieghan