Do you ever get tired of making and eating the same thing for dinner each week? You are not alone, most weeks I struggle to come up with new or interesting meal ideas. These Teriyaki Meatballs are just what you need for a simple and delicious weeknight meal.
The tender meatballs are simmered in a flavorful sauce and served over a pile of fluffy rice. Let’s talk about the sauce. It’s not fussy and it’s made with ingredients you probably already have at home. It has the sweet and salty flavors going on from the brown sugar and the soy sauce. Adjust the sauce ingredients until you get them just right for your tastes. Just don’t leave out the corn starch, this is what makes the sauce nice and thick.
Did I mention that they are made in a skillet? So you don’t have to heat your entire house up by turning on the stove during these hot summer day. And the meatballs and the sauce are cooked in the same skillet. So fewer dishes to wash and more of your time spent outside of the kitchen. I’ve tried these meatballs with ground beef and ground turkey and I have to say that we liked the ground turkey better! Yay for healthier!
Teriyaki Meatballs
Let’s talk about the meat in these meatballs for a second. If you use ground turkey and it is really wet, you might want to leave out the milk altogether. The meatballs should be moist but still hold their shape.
Ingredients:
Sauce:
1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
2 1/4 cups water
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons honey
1 tablespoon rice vinegar (can use white vinegar)
2 tablespoons cornstarch
Meatballs:
2 pounds ground turkey or lean ground beef
2 large eggs
2/3 cup bread crumbs (I usually use fresh bread crumbs, but you could sub panko)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 to 2 tablespoons milk (use the lesser amount if using ground turkey)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Directions:
- Sauce: in a medium bowl or in a liquid measuring cup, whisk together all the sauce ingredients until smooth. Set aside.
- Meatballs: in a large bowl, combine all the meatball ingredients, except the oil and mix until well-combined. Form the mixture into meatballs about an inch or two in size (I use my 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop.
- In a 12-inch nonstick skillet, heat the tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat until the oil is rippling and hot. Add the meatballs in a single layer and brown on all sides. You may need to do this in 2 batches. The meatballs don’t need to be completely cooked through, just browned on all sides, as they will finish cooking later.
- Pour the sauce ingredients over the meatballs and gently turn the meatballs to coat them in the sauce. Bring the mixture to a simmer and cook for about 10-15 minutes, stirring occasionally to turn the meatballs and coat them in the sauce, until the meatballs are cooked through. If the sauce is too thick, add a tablespoon of water at a time to thin.
- Serve the meatballs and sauce over hot, cooked rice.
Inspired by this recipe.
