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Weeknight style 30 Minute Sticky Thai Meatballs with Sesame Noodles. Pan-seared gingery chicken meatballs tossed with plenty of spicy Thai style chili sauce, bell peppers, peanuts, and basil. Serve these sticky chicken meatballs over toasted sesame rice noodles and top with mango chili sauce plus fresh herbs. Every bite is sweet, spicy, and hinted with basil – delicious. Major bonus? This comes together in no time at all, just about 30 minutes. Perfect for busy weeknights when you’re looking for something exciting, but easy too.
I didn’t mean to share two Thai chicken recipes in one week but I’m just very into the Thai recipes right now. Well, actually, what’s really got me going is my oldest brother, Creighton. As I’ve been saying on repeat, Creighton has been quarantining with my parents for weeks. He loves Thai, meatballs, and really anything saucy, so I’ve been making a lot of his favorites.
And these meatballs? They have his name written all over them. If you don’t love meatballs, or you’re not into Thai, I am so sorry. Maybe check out yesterday’s cauliflower gnocchi? Or last week’s crockpot carne asada tacos? Plenty of other options for you!
So yes, Creighton may have influenced this recipe, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love it. Because you guys, I really love this recipe. It’s quick, it’s easy, and it feels very fresh, springy, and even kind of summery with all those fresh herbs. So with that, I’m jumping right into the process.
First, let’s talk about the sauce.
You all know how strongly I feel about sauces, a flavorful sauce adds so much to a dish. And when it comes to Asian style recipes, sweet, spicy, and extra sticky are my favorites. Today’s sauce is a mix of pantry staples…soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, sambal oelek (chili sauce), and fresh lime juice and zest. While the lime is not technically a pantry staple, they’re a produce that many people often stock in their fridge.
To help thicken up the sauce I added a bit of cornstarch. You can omit this if you’d prefer, but your meatballs will be just a little less sticky.
Once the stir fry sauce is made, I also like to make a quick mango chili sauce. I use all of the same ingredients, minus the water and cornstarch, and plus some diced mango. I LOVE this extra sauce for serving, but some may feel it’s not needed. So, I’ll leave that up to you…but if it was up to me…I’d make the extra sauce.
The sticky Thai Meatballs.
Now that the sauce is all ready to go, make the meatballs and finish up this recipe.
The meatballs are a pretty simple mix of ground chicken, garlic, ginger, and lots of black pepper. Roll this all together, then pan-fry the meatballs in a bit of olive oil to get them nice and crispy on the outside. At this point, add in the shallots, bell peppers, and peanuts. Let this cook a bit, then pour in that stir fry sauce and simmer away until thickened.
This doesn’t take long at all, so watch the sauce closely. You don’t want it to thicken up too much.
While all that is cooking, prepare the noodles. Then toss with a little olive oil and toasted sesame seeds for crunch. By the time the noodles are done cooking, the meatballs should already be finished, and yes, dinner is complete.
Spoon the noodles into bowls, then spoon the sticky meatballs over and add the sauce from the skillet. Finish each bowl off with all the fresh herbs you can find. I used lemon mint, basil, and cilantro, but you can use your personal favorites. If I had to pick just one, I would go with cilantro, second choice basil.
Enjoy. Immediately.
Yes, this is that simple and that quick-cooking. Honestly, this will take you no more than thirty minutes to make. I know it feels like a lot of ingredients, but promise, this comes together quickly!
Notes and substitutions…
For the bell peppers, you can really use whatever vegetable you have on hand. Broccoli would be my top pick, then asparagus. But you could also use bok choy, carrots, and even toss in some cabbage. Really, use whatever you’ve got or whatever you love most.
I like to use vermicelli rice noodles, but you could use any variety of rice noodles or even Italian style pasta. And while I love serving these meatballs over noodles, I’m sure steamed rice would be equally great.
And well, that’s kind of it! Simple, simple, but extra saucy, extra sticky, and one of those dinners you’re (hopefully) going to have on repeat.
Looking for other Asian recipes? Here are some favorites…
Coconut Popcorn Chicken with Sweet Thai Chili Lime Sauce
Better Than Takeout Garlic Butter Shrimp Pad Thai
Better Than Takeout Sweet Thai Basil Chicken
Lastly, if you make these 30 Minute Sticky Thai Meatballs with Sesame Noodles, 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!
30 Minute Sticky Thai Meatballs with Sesame Noodles
Servings: 4
Calories Per Serving: 847 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2-3 tablespoons sambal oelek (chili paste)
- zest and juice of 1 lime, plus more for serving
- 1 pound ground chicken, pork, or turkey
- 1 inch fresh ginger, grated
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or grated
- black pepper
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus more for rolling
- 2 medium shallots, sliced or chopped
- 2 red or orange bell peppers, chopped
- 1/4 cup raw peanuts
- 1/2 cup fresh basil and or cilantro, roughly torn
- 8 ounces rice noodles
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame seeds
- 1 cup diced mango or mango chili sauce, for serving (see notes)
Instructions
- 1. In a glass jar, whisk together 1/3 cup cold water and the cornstarch. Add the soy sauce, rice vinegar, honey, chili paste, lime zest, and lime juice.2. Add the chicken, ginger, garlic, and a pinch of pepper to a bowl. Mix until combined. Coat your hands with a bit of oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-20 meatballs).3. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add 2 tablespoons oil. When the oil shimmers, add the meatballs and sear until crisp, about 4-5 minutes, turning them 2-3 times. Remove the meatballs from the skillet. To the skillet, add the shallots, peppers, and peanuts, cook another 2-3 minutes, until the peppers begin to char. Pour in the honey/soy sauce mix. Add back the meatballs. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium-high heat and cook until the sauce thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the basil.4. Meanwhile, cook rice noodles according to packaged directions. Drain and toss with a couple drizzles of olive oil and the sesame seeds. 5. To serve, divide the noodles among bowls and top with meatballs. Serve with additional herbs, limes, and mango chili sauce (if desired). Enjoy
Notes
Mango Chili Sauce: combine 1/4 cup honey, 2-3 tablespoons sambal oelek, 2 tablespoons rice vinegar, 1 tablespoon soy sauce, zest and juice of 1 lime, and 1 cup diced mango.
I love all of your recipes that I’ve tried (I’m particularly partial to the Chai Cinnamon Roll Bread that we had Christmas morning!). This did not disappoint – so much flavor and so easy! I cut the chili paste a little after reading the comments – still a little hot, but definitely OK for me, my husband loved the heat.
Hey there,
So great to hear! Love that this recipe was enjoyed and thanks so much for making it! Have a great week? xTieghan
I had the same problem some meat just fell apart.
I love your recipes and tell friends to visit your blog. Unfortunately this one didn’t work for me. Yes, the sauce is great. I went for the three tablespoons of chili paste and for someone who likes heat, that was a bit spicy. I would use two if I try this again. I used ground chicken which made for mushy grainy meatballs. Turkey would have been better. I couldn’t find my black pepper when the time came so I skipped it. It may just be the most important ingredient because the meatballs definitely needed something. I might prefer this sauce over chicken thighs and skip the meatball making, or use ground turkey and hope for a better texture.
Hey Nicole,
Thanks so much for giving the recipe a try, so sorry this one was not enjoyed. xTieghan
I completely messed up the recipe, for some unknown reason I dumped my raw chicken into the sauce! I just cooked everything together and it was still amazing! Next time I’ll make it properly ?
Hey Jen,
Ooops! Glad the recipe still turned out okay for you! xTieghan
Made this tonight. Big hit with my family!
Made 2 modifications-baked the meatballs and added some panko to the meat mixture.
YES!! So happy this turned out so well for you, Deb! xTieghan
Delicious and simple! This actually tasted like take-out! My meatballs took a little longer to cook so the timing with the noodles wasn’t ideal. But other than that, amazing recipe will be making again!!
I am so happy this recipe turned out so well for you, Lily! Thank you so much for trying this one! xTieghan
Really excited to try this recipe! I made another one of your meatball recipes this past weekend and it was so good. One quick question, are the diced mangoes you used canned or did you use fresh? Thanks so much!
Hey Emily,
I like to use fresh mango for this recipe. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
remove the word add from your step 2: in the instructions. makes one believe you add the chicken to the sauce. start the sentence with “in a separate bowl”. This ruined my recipe and i had to start over
Hi Skyler! I am really sorry this step was a bit confusing and it did not turn out well. Please let me know if there is anything I can help with. xTieghan
I can’t wait to make this over the weekend! Do you think cashews would be good as a sub for the peanuts? The little one is allergic to peanuts. :/
Hey Nicole,
Cashews would be great! I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi! If I am meal prepping, would you suggest freezing the meatballs and the sauce in one container or separately?
Hey Natalie,
I would freeze them together. I hope you love the recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
This was such a tasty dish! We were in a bit of a rush, so I didn’t make the mango chili sauce to drizzle at the end and totally forgot to add the peanuts and sesame seeds, but it still was packed with flavor! I added some lime zest and 1/2 c panko breadcrumbs to the meatballs and they held together no problem! Because we love things saucy, I also added an additional tbsp of cornstarch and 1 c of chicken broth to the sauce. I thought 2 tbsp of the garlic chili paste was the perfect amount of heat and I like spice. My husband devoured it! Will definitely make again.
Wow I am so happy this recipe turned out so well for you, Abbey! Thank you so much for trying this recipe!! xTieghan
OMG…..OMG this is so crazy delish….I only had macadamia nuts… so I used them. such a tasty and fulfilling recipe. This is the second time making it. I love the sweet and spicy flavors. I did substitute Stevia powder for honey as my roommate is pre-diabetic. It was a good exchange….couldn’t tell the difference. Thank you so much for your awesome recipes. You make it so easy!!!!
I am so happy this recipe turned out so well for you, Trish! Thank you so much!! xTieghan
All the flavors! We loved this recipe. The sauce is perfect. Thank you!
Thank you so much Jackie! xTieghan
A friend shared this recipe with me several weeks ago and although it was an investment in time, as I made a double batch for my family, I think it changed my life! I used pork instead of turkey and it was amazing and so flavorful! I loved using the Thai basil from our garden. We’re having them again this week but I’m enlisting some help from my daughter. 😉 Thank you!
Thank you Loni!! I am really glad this recipe turned out so amazing for you!! xTieghan
The flavors were good, but I had a heck of a time with the meatballs (I used ground turkey). They were too squishy and fell apart if I attempted to roll them even though I did add a some breadcrumbs. I think next time I’ll have to make them with more breadcrumbs and maybe an egg like regular meatballs. If that doesn’t work I may just try to do patties rather than balls (I admit I am notoriously terrible at meatballs to begin with).
I used a Thai chili garlic paste instead of the samal oelek and it was waaaaay too spicy to me so I’ll back off on that next time. We tried it with ramen because I’ve never been able to make rice noodles without them turning into rubber bands and it was pretty good. I added chopped snow peas to the dish as well and it was delicious.
I didn’t have mango (and honestly my husband probably wouldn’t go for mango anyway), but I did make the little bit of extra sauce and added it to boost the sauce amount. I’m not sure if it was needed now but it yummy at any rate.
Hi April! I am so glad this recipe turned out so well for you!! Thank you for trying it! If there is anything I can help you out with for next time, please let me know! xTieghan
Made these tonight and the meal went FAST! I baked the meatballs to keep them together after reading the comments and used coconut aminos in place of soy sauce. They were saucy, slightly spicy and delicious! I think they may even be better tomorrow night after the meatballs soak a bit. The mango chili was the perfect touch. Thanks for an awesome recipe that I can add to the rotation 🙂
Thank you so much for trying this Ananda! I am really glad it turned out so well for you!! xTieghan