An easy recipe for delicious, sticky, sweet and sour meatballs, smothered in a tasty sauce. They are oven baked, healthy and low carb.
An easy recipe for delicious, sticky, sweet and sour meatballs, smothered in a very tasty sauce. Oven baked, they are very easy to make.
How to make sweet and sour meatballs
The original recipe is my mother in law’s and calls for browning the meatballs in a skillet, then cooking them in broth, and finally glazing them with the sauce.
My mother in law’s meatballs are amazing, but I am far too lazy for a three-step recipe! So I decided to streamline, skip the browning and cooking and simply bake the meatballs.
The result is wonderful! Easy and delicious meatballs that are also low carb. Scroll down to the recipe card for the detailed instructions.
How to serve sweet and sour meatballs
You can serve them with toothpicks as an appetizer. But I usually serve them as a main dish for dinner. They’re great on a bed of cauliflower rice. I also like to add an Asian-style vegetable such as braised bok choy.
Is this a healthy recipe?
I think it is. These meatballs don’t contain fillers such as breadcrumbs, and carb count is kept to a minimum.
Current dietary advice is to limit red meat. But fresh unprocessed meat is very nutritious.
As long as one doesn’t overindulge, or have a specific issue that requires them to limit saturated fat (which is generally not harmful), I believe that red meat does have a place in a healthy diet.
Of course, you can always opt for chicken or seafood instead. These chicken meatballs are excellent.
What about leftovers?
Leftovers of these sweet and sour meatballs should keep well in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat them in the microwave, covered, on 50% power.
More tasty meatball recipes
I have many meatball recipes on this blog because they’re such an easy solution for a family dinner. A few of my favorites are pork meatballs, meatballs in tomato sauce, and baked chicken meatballs.
Sweet and Sour Meatballs
INGREDIENTS
- 1 teaspoon olive oil for pan
Meatballs:
- 1 lb. lean ground beef (85/15)
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
Sauce:
- 1/2 cup unsweetened ketchup
- 2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey or a low carb substitute
- 2 tablespoons light soy sauce (or use a gluten-free alternative and add salt as needed)
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Brush a 9 X 13-inch baking dish with a teaspoon of oil.
- Mix the meatballs ingredients in a large bowl. Form 20 meatballs, and place in the prepared baking dish. Bake 10 minutes.
- While meatballs are baking, whisk together the sauce ingredients in a medium bowl.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven. Pour the sauce over the meatballs, spooning sauce over each meatball to make sure they are well-coated. Bake 10 more minutes, uncovered, until meatballs are well browned and sauce is thick and fragrant. Serve immediately.
NOTES
More Healthy Recipes:
Vered DeLeeuw, LL.M., has been following a healthy real-food diet and blogging about it since 2011. She has taken 
