One Pot Asian Meatballs (Korean)

Quick and easy one pot Asian meatballs recipe, homemade with simple ingredients. Inspired by Korean flavors, they have a sweet and spicy flavor and are packed with Gochujang paste. These can be served as cocktail party appetizer or enjoy with fried rice for dinner.

Prep Time20

Cook Time20

Total Time40

Course: Appetizer, Main Course

Cuisine: Chinese

Keyword: asian meatballs, korean meatballs

Servings: Meatballs

Calories: 124kcal

Author: Abeer Rizvi

Ingredients

Meatballs

1 pound Ground beef
½ cup Panko breadcrumbs
3 Green onions Thinly sliced
2 tablespoon Garlic Finely minced
1 tablespoon Ginger Freshly grated
2 tablespoon Gochujang paste This is fermented Korean chili paste
¼ teaspoon Red chili powder
1 teaspoon Salt
½ teaspoon Pepper
3-4 tablespoon Oil Vegetable, canola or corn
1 Egg Large

Asian Korean BBQ Sauce

1 cup Soy sauce Low sodium
½-3/4 cup Brown sugar Adjust according to your sweetness preference. I have even gone as low as ⅓ cup sometimes but never lower than that.
2 tablespoon Garlic Finely minced
1 teaspoon Ginger Freshly grated
1 tablespoon Vinegar
2 teaspoon Sesame oil
1 tablespoon Gochujang paste
¼ teaspoon Red chili powder
Salt To taste
Pepper To taste
1 tablespoon Cornstarch
1 tablespoon Water

Garnish

1 tablespoon Sesame seeds Preferably toasted
1 Green onion Thinly sliced

Instructions

In a Ziploc bag, add ground beef, breadcrumbs, green onions, garlic, ginger, gochujang, red chili powder, salt, pepper, oil and egg. Seal and mix until combined. You can do this in a bowl but using a Ziploc bag makes clean up so much faster. One less bowl to wash.
Scoop out small portions of the mixture and roll them into small balls and place them on a tray sprayed with oil.
Heat olive oil in a nonstick pan and pan fry the meatballs in medium heat until fully cooked. Do this in batches and don't over-crowd the pan!
Remove the meatballs and place them on a tray, lined with paper towels.
Prepare the Korean glaze now by adding soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, ginger, vinegar, sesame oil, gochujang paste, red chili powder, salt and pepper in a non-stick saucepan.
Cook on medium heat and bring to a boil.
Make a cornstarch slurry by mixing together cornstarch and water in a small bowl and add it into the boiling sauce.
Mix everything together for a few minutes until the sauce thickens. Then, reduce heat.
Add meatballs in the saucepan and toss them around until they are fully coated. Do this in batches and do not over-crowd the saucepan!
Garnish with sesame seeds and green onions. Enjoy!

Notes

I highly recommend toasting your sesame seeds before adding them as a garnish because it adds so much flavor and aroma.
Use a Ziploc bag to prepare the meatball mixture because you can discard it at the end and it makes cleanup so quick and easy.
Please use fresh garlic and ginger rather than their powder versions because the flavors are so much fresher and the aromas are unbelievable.
Make sure to place your pan-fried meatballs in a tray lined with with paper towels so as to absorb excess oil.
Use plain panko breadcrumbs and not the flavored kind because that will alter the flavor.
Read additional tips and variations above.
Leftovers can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Nutrition