Asian Beef Meatballs

These baked Asian beef meatballs are full of fresh and intense flavor from grated ginger, garlic, lime, cilantro and a few drops of hot chili oil. The fresh ingredients add a lot of flavor and also keep the meatballs moist so that no sauce is needed. The meatballs make a great appetizer but can also easily be turned into a main dish when served with fried coconut rice.

For more delicious meatball recipes, check out this Meatball Salad, these Baked Cinnamon Meatballs with Marinara Sauce and these Meatball Stuffed Shells.

Ingredients:

Ingredient notes & substitutions:

• I recommend 90 percent lean ground beef for this recipe. Beef with higher fat content does not work well for these meatballs.
• I don’t recommend substituting ground ginger for fresh ginger root in this recipe. The fresh flavor of ginger adds so much to these meatballs!

Recipe and equipment notes & tips:

• The mashed soaked bread adds flavor and moisture to the meatballs and also keeps them from getting too dense. (This is a trick I learned from America’s Test Kitchen.)
• If you have a metal scoop with spring-loaded handle, I recommend using that to form the meatballs. That way they will all be evenly sized, plus you won’t need to get your hands dirty. (If you don’t have a scoop, use a spoon and then roll the meatballs with your hands.)
• As long as you use non-stick baking sheets you won’t need to grease or line the sheets.

How to make the meatballs:

See full ingredients & instructions in the recipe card below!

Step 1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees F. Mix whole milk, lime juice and sandwich bread cubes together in a small bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes.

Step 2. Mash up the soaked bread cubes with a fork.

Step 3. In a large mixing bowl, combine ground beef and the mashed bread mix.

Step 4. Mix together using a large fork (a serving fork works great for this).

Step 5. Add cilantro, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and egg.

Step 6. Mix together until well combined.

Step 7. Form 18 to 20 meatballs (about 2 tablespoons each). Set them directly onto non-stick baking sheets and bake the meatballs until cooked through (about 20 minutes).

Make the chili oil (optional):

To make the chili oil, add vegetable oil and red pepper flakes to a small pan and heat until the flakes start to sizzle.

How to serve the meatballs:

Drizzle each meatball with a few drops of the hot chili oil and serve as an appetizer. Alternatively, you can turn this recipe into a main course by serving the meatballs with fried coconut rice.

Baking versus frying:

I have done these meatballs both ways, baked and fried, and they get nicely brown and crispy either way. Since baking is much less messy and less work, this recipe calls for baking.

How to store leftovers:

You can store any leftover meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge for a couple of days. Heat them up in the microwave before serving.

How to freeze the baked meatballs:

Let the fully baked meatballs cool to room temperature, then transfer to a freezer bag and freeze.

To reheat, set the frozen meatballs into a cast iron pan or a baking dish and cover with aluminum foil. Bake the meatballs at 350 degrees F. until heated through (about 30 minutes).

More Asian-inspired recipes:

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Full Printable Recipe

Asian Beef Meatballs

Nicole B.

These Asian meatballs are full of fresh and intense flavor from grated ginger, garlic, lime, cilantro and a few drops of hot chili oil.

5 from 6 votes

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Prep Time 20 mins

Cook Time 20 mins

Total Time 40 mins

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Asian

Servings 4

Calories (estimated) 368 kcal

Ingredients

  

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For the meatballs:

• ▢ ½ cup whole milk
• ▢ 1 teaspoon lime juice
• ▢ 2 slices white sandwich bread
• ▢ 1 pound ground beef, 90 percent lean
• ▢ ⅓ cup finely chopped cilantro (about 1 bunch)
• ▢ 4 teaspoons soy sauce
• ▢ 2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press
• ▢ 2 teaspoons finely grated fresh ginger root
• ▢ 1 large egg

For the chili oil (optional):

• ▢ ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• ▢ 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Instructions

 

For the meatballs:

• Heat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Mix milk and lime juice together in a bowl. Cut the sandwich bread into 1-inch cubes and soak in the milk mix for 10 minutes.
• Mash up the soaked bread cubes with a fork.
• In a large bowl, stir together the beef and the mashed bread mix.*
• Mix in cilantro, soy sauce, garlic, ginger and egg.
• Form 18 to 20 meatballs (~2 tablespoons per meatball) using a spring-loaded metal scoop or a large spoon. Set the meatballs directly onto non-stick baking sheets (there is no need to grease or line the sheets).
• Bake the meatballs until they are cooked through (about 20 minutes).

For the chili oil (optional):

• Heat vegetable oil and pepper flakes in a pan until the oil is sizzling. Let cool.  
• Drizzle a few drops of the hot oil onto the meatballs and serve.**

Notes

*A large serving fork works well for this step.

**You can turn this recipe from an appetizer into a main course simply by serving it with fried coconut rice.

Nutrition

Calories: 368kcal

Keywords: asian beef meatballs, asian meatballs