Sriracha Teriyaki Ground Turkey Meatballs

Healthy Meatballs: Made with oats instead of breadcrumbs, lean ground turkey meat and a delicious homemade sauce.

These Teriyaki Meatballs were by far one of the easiest and tastiest meatballs I have ever made before!

I had some extra time yesterday before I had to go to an event so I figured I could whip something up in the kitchen first! For some, cooking may seem stressful, too hard, or boring…but for me I love it!

It is my stress reliever and certainly never boring!

This recipe may seem like it has a lot of ingredients but most of them you probably already have in your fridge or pantry.

As you will see I made my own teriyaki sauce as well. (Recipe is below)

I chose ground turkey since it is a leaner meat but you can use ground beef as well.

This recipe, in my opinion, is a healthier option then getting frozen meatballs with a pre-made store bought sauce.

Plus it is fun to cook at home! Get your kids involved in rolling up the meatballs with you and teaching them different cooking techniques along the way. 

Ingredients you will need for these spicy healthy meatballs

For the meatballs:

• Ground turkey: You need a little bit of fat to give the meatballs moisture and flavor. Choose a 93% lean/7% fat for the best results.
• Eggs: Eggs are added into meatballs to bind the oats and the spices together. For 1lb. of meat, 1-2 eggs is plenty.
• Oats: You can make these meatballs gluten free by using oats instead of breadcrumbs. I use the quick 1 minute oats and these meatballs turn out tender, juicy and delicious every time!
• Spices and seasonings: Garlic, ginger, cilantro, Sriracha, soy sauce, shallot, pepper, salt, Italian seasoning and garlic powder.

For the teriyaki sauce:

• Soy sauce
• Water
• Orange juice
• Sriracha
• Brown sugar or honey
• Sesame oil
• Sweet Rice Wine (Mirin)
• Ginger
• Garlic
• Sesame Seeds

How to make Healthy meatballs (no breadcrumbs)

1. Preheat oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. If you don’t have any parchment paper, spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients for the meatballs together. The mixture should be moist and able to form together into meatballs using a cookie scoop.
3. Place the meatballs onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, or until fully cooked. (165°F for ground turkey)
4. While the meatballs are baking you can make the teriyaki sauce.
5. In a medium saucepan over low/medium heat. coming the soy sauce, water, orange juice, Sriracha, honey, sesame oil, mirin, ginger and garlic together.
6. Bring sauce to a simmer. In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and water until combined. Slowly whisk in the cornstarch mixture into the sauce until sauce begins to thicken.
7. Once thick, remove from heat and stir in the sesame seeds.
8. After you make the sauce, your meatballs should be done. Pour the sauce over meatballs, garnish with green onions/scallions and enjoy.
9. We love these teriyaki meatballs as an appetizer or turned into a main dish with rice and broccoli!

Tips for making the best healthy meatballs

• When mixing the ground turkey with the dry and wet ingredients, you’ll want to combine them gently. Overworking the mixture will result in tough meatballs, so use your hands to mix in the meat and stop when it’s just combined.
• Use oats instead of breadcrumbs for a gluten free option. Be sure to pulse the oats in your food processor a few times.
• Meatballs are traditionally made with beef or pork which have more fat than ground turkey. The meatballs still need some fat for moisture and flavor so be sure to buy a 93% lean/7% fat for the best results.
• Simmer the meatballs in the teriyaki sauce so they can soak up the delicious flavors before you serve.
• Freeze these healthy meatballs for meal prep! Take the cooled off meatballs and place them in a freezer bag, flatten the bag to squeeze the air out and seal it.  Label and date the freezer bag.
• You can defrost the meatballs in the fridge or take the meatballs out of the bag and defrost in the microwave. Or, my favorite way, is to defrost the meatballs in the slow cooker for 3 hours on HIGH.

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Sriracha Teriyaki Ground Turkey Meatballs

Great for an appetizer or make it into a meal with rice and a veggie! Use oats instead of breadcrumbs in your meatballs for added fiber!

4.70 from 13 reviews

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Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 15 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Servings: 20 small meatballs

Calories: 132kcal

Author: Tawnie Graham of Kroll’s Korner

Equipment

• Parchment paper
• Measuring spoons and cups
• Large mixing bowl
• Cookie scoop/Ice Cream Scoop

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Ingredients

For the meatballs

• ▢ 1 lb. ground turkey meat (16 oz.)
• ▢ 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ 2 eggs
• ▢ 2 Tbsp. cilantro, fresh, chopped
• ▢ 2 Tbsp. Sriracha
• ▢ 1 1/2 tsp. gluten free soy sauce, low-sodium (or use liquid aminos)
• ▢ 1 tsp. ginger, fresh, minced
• ▢ 1/2 shallot, minced (about 2 Tbsp.)
• ▢ 1/2 cup rolled oats, pulsed in food processor
• ▢ 1 tsp. Italian seasoning
• ▢ 1 tsp. garlic powder
• ▢ 1 tsp. salt
• ▢ 1/2 tsp. black pepper

For the sauce

• ▢ 1/2 cup gluten free soy sauce, low-sodium
• ▢ 1/2 cup water
• ▢ 1/4 cup orange juice, fresh
• ▢ 3 Tbsp Sriracha
• ▢ 2 Tbsp. honey or brown sugar
• ▢ 2 Tbsp. sesame oil
• ▢ 2 Tbsp. Sweet rice wine (mirin)
• ▢ 2 tsp. ginger, fresh, minced
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic, minced
• ▢ 2 Tbsp. sesame seeds
• ▢ green onions for garnish

Cornstarch slurry to thicken teriyaki sauce

• ▢ 1/4 cup water
• ▢ 1 Tbsp. corn starch

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Instructions

For the meatballs

• Preheat oven to 400° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. If you don't have any parchment paper, spray baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
• In a large bowl combine all of the ingredients for the meatballs together. The mixture should be moist and able to form together into meatballs. I recommend using a cookie scoop since the mixture is quite sticky.
• Place the meatballs onto the prepared baking sheet and bake for 15 minutes, or until fully cooked. (165°F for ground turkey)

For the sauce

• While the meatballs are baking you can make the teriyaki sauce. In a medium saucepan over low/medium heat, combine the soy sauce, water, orange juice, Sriracha, honey, sesame oil, mirin, ginger and garlic all together. Bring the sauce to a simmer. In a small ramekin, whisk together the cornstarch and water until combined. Slowly whisk in the cornstarch mixture into the sauce until sauce begins to thicken. Once thickened, remove from heat and stir in the sesame seeds.
• After you make the sauce, the meatballs should be done. Pour the sauce over meatballs, garnish with green onions/scallions and enjoy. We love these teriyaki meatballs as an appetizer or as a main dish with rice and broccoli!

Video

Notes

Makes 20-25 small appetizer meatballs or ~16 larger meatballs.

Sub panko breadcrumbs for oats. 

One reader said she loved the meatballs as is without the sauce and would love the meatballs as a wrap with arugula and chipotle mayo. YUM. Possibilities are endless! 

Find Kroll’s Korner on Instagram!Mention @krolls_korner or tag #krollskorner

Nutrition

Serving: 2meabtalls | Calories: 132kcal

Hi, I’m Tawnie!

Welcome to my tiny “korner” on the Internet! I am a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist who loves cookies as much as kale. (OK, maybe I like cookies a little bit more but shh, don’t tell anyone). I am so glad you’re here! Follow along for hassle free, realistic and approachable recipes.

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