Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Sweet and sour meatballs are a simple meatball recipe covered in a tangy sauce made from simple ingredients you already have in your pantry. These meatballs make a simple dinner served over rice or a quick appetizer for a get together!

We love to make this simple meatball recipe for a quick weeknight meal, you know me, it has to be ready in 30 minutes or less, I just don’t have time for hours of cooking!! This is also an easy recipe to double and make frozen meatballs out of, so you have some on hand for another meal. 

These meatballs covered in sweet and sour sauce really taste like mini meatloaves. My fam does not really love meatloaf, and I don’t like how long it takes to cook, so these are a perfect alternative. The meatballs come together in just a few minutes with simple ingredients, brown them for a minute, cover in sauce and bake…so easy!!

Ingredients

Meatball ingredients:

• ground beef-I like to use a lean ground beef whenever I can, it helps these not get too greasy while they are cooking
• salt
• pepper
• dried parsley
• garlic powder
• egg
• milk
• grated yellow onion
• regular oats-I like the texture that oatmeal gives these meatballs, you can substitute bread crumbs for the oats if desired 

Sweet and Sour Sauce ingredients:

• ketchup
• brown sugar
• apple cider vinegar
• garlic powder
• onion

Instructions

The first step in making this meatball recipe is to form the meatballs. In a large mixing bowl combine the ingredients for the meatballs. Using a wooden spoon, or your hands, mix everything together until it is well combined. 

Depending on the size you want your meatballs, start forming them by scooping out some of the meat mixture with a tablespoon, spoon or measuring cup. I like to use a cookie scoop, it works great for making meatballs. 

Roll the meat mixture between the palms of your hands to form uniform meatballs, place on a plate until ready the are all rolled and you are ready to cook. 

In a large oven safe skillet over medium high heat, pour in some olive oil and add the meatballs to the hot pan. Brown them on each side, this doesn’t take long. 

While the meatballs are browning mix together the ingredients for the sweet and sour sauce. 

Place the meatballs into a 400º oven, uncovered to cook for 15-20 minutes. The sauce will be hot and bubbly and the meatballs cooked through. You can test the doneness by inserting an instant read thermometer into the meatballs, you want it to come to an internal temperature of 165ºF. 

Serve hot meatballs immediately on their own, or these are also delicious served over rice. If you’re looking for a more classic spaghetti and meatball check out this Homemade Meatball Recipe.

Side dish ideas

Some things we like to serve with these meatballs are:

• Garlic Butter Broccoli
• Oven Roasted Vegetables
• Sauteed Asparagus with Lemon

Recipe

Sweet and sour meatballs are a simple recipe covered in a tangy sauce made from simple ingredients you already have in your pantry. These meatballs make a simple dinner served over rice or a quick appetizer for a get together!