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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.
Watch the How-To Reel
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.
This post was originally published on March 17, 2022
This is a great quick dinner! Super easy and so yummy, will definitely make again!
Hey Amelia,
Happy Sunday!! So glad to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it!! ? xx
I made this using already prepared chicken, beef, pork meatballs. I thawed them first and followed the recipe from there. Excellent!!! The sauce got a little thicker than I would like, and next time, I would reduce the cooking time. Thanks Tiegan
Hey Petrice,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
I took the advice and doubled the recipe. So glad I did. This was a hit and will definitely make again!
Hey Virginia,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
This was fantastic. I doubled everything and also added shitake mushrooms, a red pepper & carrots for color. I may just bake off the meatballs next time (and skip the dredging process) because of the splattering oil, but the flavors were excellent. The dipping sauce was absolutely worth making—it could go on so many things!
Hey Jennifer,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
I made this for dinner tonight. A good quick and easy dinner, was soo good. I will be definitely making this again!!
Hey Ashley,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
I have to omit onions, but even without them they were quite flavourful! I used ground turkey instead which I find is hard to get a good flavour with but this recipe was perfect! Nice and quick too!! Thanks for the delicious recipe!!
Hey Melissa,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
Made this tonight. Excellent !
Hey Janis,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
Hi! I made this for last night’s dinner, and the sauce tastes exactly as you would expect (honey-teriyaki flavor — very nice!). If anyone has any tips on how to make ground chicken meatballs a bit more moist, I would appreciate it. I was wondering if making 1 1/2 times the sauce and incorporating some of the sauce into the meatball mix might help. Our family liked the overall dish, though! Thanks!
Hey Renee,
Awesome!! I am thrilled to hear you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for giving it a go! You could always add an egg to the meatballs too. Have a great weekend:) xTieghan
Do you think it would be ok to prep the meatballs the night before and then cook the following day?
Hey Kristine,
You bet, that will work well for you!! Let me know if you give the recipe a try or have any other questions!! xTieghan
I loved this recipe! It was one of the most flavorful dishes I’ve ever made. I didn’t have broccoli on hand so I used Brussels sprouts instead and it still turned out so well. I can’t wait to make this again.
Hey Hillary,
Happy Friday!! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was a winner:) ?xx
Easy asian style recipe!! Absolutely delicious for the entire family. The meatballs are succulent. You absolutely must 3x the broccoli and 2x the chicken. Barely fed 2 adults and a 5 yr old. Will absolutely make again and again.
Hey Audra,
Happy Friday!! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was a winner:) ?xx
I’m glad to hear that it wasn’t just us- two of us ate almost all of it and I was feeling guilty! But it was just that good!
super! I added an egg to keep the meatballs together and add protein
Hey Ingrid,
Happy Friday!! Thanks so much for giving this recipe a try, I am so glad to hear it was a winner:) ?xx
Tieghan, these look delicious! Is the “sesame oil” in the recipe the dark, Japanese sesame oil or regular sesame cooking oil?
Hey Margaret,
Thanks so much! For this recipe, you will want to use regular cooking sesame oil. I hope the recipe turns out amazing for you, let me know if you give it a try! xTieghan
Haven’t tried this yet, but it sounds delicious & love the idea of a weekly series of “homemade take-out” recipes!
Let me know if you give the recipe a try Brenda, I hope you love it!! xx
Am planning to make this tonight with a few changes as to what I have in the fridge already. I am going to use sirloin tips cut into bite size pieces along with sugar snap peas and asparagus. These are veggies I already have in my fridge and need to use up. I think I have some broccoli but not sure on that. I am really looking forward to this meal and think it will be fabulous. I will make it like the recipe states after I get to the grocery store the next time.
Cindy, sounds great! Let us know how it turns out!
I also have all of the ingredients for this dish tonight. I was thinking of making something for Saint Patrick’s Day, but this sounds much more yummy (the green onions and broccoli will count for the bit of green in the dish!).
I can’t wait to try these this week. Can I make them in the oven or air fryer instead?
Hey Lin,
Sure, that will work well for you! Let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xTieghan
I hope you love the recipe Cindy, let me know how it turns out!! xx