Quick and Easy Keto Asian Meatballs Recipe: Bursting with Flavor and Perfect for Any Meal!

These Quick and Easy Keto Baked Asian Meatballs are a delicious and versatile dish, loaded with sweet and tangy flavors that will satisfy your cravings. Perfect as a main course, appetizer, or meal prep component, these meatballs are easy to make gluten-free and require no fancy ingredients like almond flour or breadcrumbs. Whether you're following a keto, low-carb, paleo, or Whole30 diet, this recipe offers a delightful twist on traditional meatballs with an Asian-inspired flair. These aren’t your average homemade meatballs.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

Meatballs are incredibly easy to make and can be adapted to a variety of flavor profiles, from Italian to Swedish. This recipe takes a detour to Asia, offering a unique and delicious experience. The Asian-inspired flavors make them a welcome addition to a better-than-takeout dinner. Serve them over lo mein, with rice and steamed bok choy, or next to beef short ribs and broccolini. I particularly love to serve meatballs in lettuce cups or with toothpicks as a crowd-pleasing gameday appetizer. When savory beef meatballs AND the perfect teriyaki style Asian sauce get gluten & sugar-free makeover… you can’t say no!

Ingredients

For the Meatballs

Ground pork and beef: This combination provides the best of both worlds, offering extra flavor without being too heavy. You can easily substitute with ground turkey, chicken, or sausage.
Eggs: Essential for binding the meatball ingredients together.
Ginger paste: Adds a significant boost of Asian flavor. If unavailable, use minced ginger or ginger powder.
Garlic: Provides extra savory flavors and balance.
Soy sauce: Can be replaced with coconut aminos or tamari for a gluten-free option.
Herbs and sesame seeds: Cilantro, green onions, and sesame seeds add freshness and make a wonderful garnish.
Chili: Use any small chili pepper you like, such as a jalapeno, aleppo, fresno, or chipotle.

For the Sticky Sauce

The sauce is EVERYTHING! The sauce is so easy to make homemade, with ingredients you’ve probably already got on hand! All the sweet-savory, take-out flavors you love come together in these sticky Asian meatballs. They’re tender, juicy, and coated in a glossy soy-style glaze made with coconut aminos, ginger, and garlic. The rich, sticky glaze clings to every bite, and those hints of ginger and sesame oil give it that cozy, take-out-at-home flavor.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Make the sticky sauce: Stir all of the sauce ingredients together in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat until it’s reduced by half. Add all of the sauce ingredients to a small saucepan and cook for 10 minutes on medium heat until reduced by about half. Turn off the heat and set aside.
Make the meatballs: Gently fold all of the meatball ingredients together in a large bowl. Be careful not to overmix or else the meatballs could turn out rubbery. In a large bowl, stir all of the meatball ingredients together. Gently fold until just combined. Do not overmix.
Shape and bake the meatballs: Use a 1-inch cookie scoop or a spoon to scoop meatballs from the bowl. Wet your hands so you can form evenly-sized meatballs without the meat sticking. Place them on a baking sheet and broil in the oven. Use a small 1-inch cookie scoop to scoop into balls. Add to a baking sheet. This recipe should make 46 meatballs. Wet your hands and roll each meatball into round meatballs. Bake for 7 minutes on broil.
Toss in the sauce: Place the baked meatballs in a bowl or saucepan with the sticky sauce and toss together. Remove the meatballs from oven and toss in the sauce. Serve over cauliflower rice and garnish with green onions, sesame seeds, and chilies if you want a little heat.

Cooking Tips and Variations

Meatball Size and Cooking Time: Small to medium sized meatballs should only need to broil in the oven for about 7 minutes. Break one open to see if it’s still pink inside when they’re done or use a meat thermometer.
Air Fryer Option: Skip the oven and cook the meatballs in your air fryer instead. The cooking time will vary depending on the size of your meatballs. Yes you can make these gluten free meatballs in the air fryer if you prefer but the meat mixture is two pounds so you will need to make them in two batches in order to have a single layer on the basket of the air fryer. Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees F. Place half the meatballs in a single layer on the baking tray and air fry for 10- 12 minutes.
Gluten-Free: The majority of my recipes here on IBIH are gluten free. These particular meatballs can be made with regular soy sauce if that’s what you have on hand and a small amount of gluten isn’t an issue for you.
Paleo Adaptation: If you are Paleo, you can substitute honey for the granulated sweetener, and arrowroot powder (or another preferred thickener) for the xanthan gum. I don’t recommend omitting the thickener altogether in this recipe, because the sauce won’t cling to the meatballs as well and it won’t have that authentic sticky feel - however, the flavor will be just as good!
Nut-Free Option: If you are allergic to almonds, you can replace the almond flour with sunflower seed flour, hemp hearts, or crushed pork rinds to use as your binder in this keto meatball recipe.
Spice Level: Typically, General Tso’s chicken contains blisteringly hot dried peppers, but if you can’t get them, or you don’t like it too hot, you can use fresh chili’s instead and adjust the amount to your preference. Another option is to use crushed red pepper flakes, but the flavor won’t be as authentic.

Serving Suggestions

Pork and beef meatballs with sticky sauce are a flavorful protein next to cauliflower rice and cooked vegetables on the side, like baked asparagus or roasted cauliflower salad. These keto General Tso’s Meatballs go perfectly with my Coconut Lime Cauliflower Rice to soak up that sticky, yummy sauce.

Main Course: Serve over cauliflower rice, zucchini noodles, or Shirataki noodles for a low-carb meal.
Appetizer: Serve them in lettuce cups or with toothpicks for a crowd-pleasing appetizer. These delicious meatballs can be made in under an hour and is perfect to serve for a party as an appetizer!
Side Dish: Pair with steamed broccoli, bok choy, or a roasted cauliflower salad.
Takeout Alternative: Serve over lo mein, with rice and steamed bok choy, or next to beef short ribs and broccolini.

Storage and Freezing Instructions

To store: After the cooked meatballs have cooled, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator. You can toss them with the sauce before storing them, or store both separately.
To freeze: You can freeze the meatballs before or after they’re cooked. Place the shaped uncooked or the cooked and cooled meatballs in a single layer on a baking sheet in the freezer. Once they’re frozen, store them in an airtight container or transfer them to a freezer bag for easier storage. These meatballs are meal-prep magic. Store leftovers in the fridge for up to 4 days or freeze for up to 3 months. I love making a double batch - half for dinner and half to stash in the freezer.

Variations on the Recipe

Keto General Tso’s Meatballs

These Keto General Tso’s Meatballs are easy to make and family friendly. Delicious hot or cold, these sweet and spicy keto meatballs are also perfect for meal prep for lunches all week long! These keto General Tso’s meatballs are inspired by the popular Chinese takeout dish that consists of fried chicken chunks in an addicting sauce that is both sweet and spicy. I’ve taken all the flavors of the classic favorite and jammed them into these little gems of poultry bliss! One of the things I love about these sweet and spicy keto meatballs is that they are equally delicious either hot or cold. Maybe I’m just weird that way, but I enjoy them right out of the fridge - no heating needed. Which makes them super convenient to take them for lunch on the go when you don’t have the option to warm them up.

Read also: Easy Low-Carb Cheese Crackers

Asian Chicken Meatballs

Asian Chicken Meatballs made gluten free, flour free, keto, low carb, paleo and easy for a satisfying meal or appetizer! Bake or air fry instructions are included. When you’re looking for a change of pace from the traditional beef keto meatballs, chicken is a fabulous option. Our juicy meatball recipe has just 2 total grams of carbs for 3 meatballs and just 154 calories! This is a great recipe for meal prep for the week ahead! You can make the meatball form and not bake them, just freeze and then thaw the night before you want to bake them. Baked meatballs just make life easier. You can certainly pan sear these if you prefer a more crispy outer coating, but baking means you can just forget about them and move on to something else.

Asian Pork Meatball Bowls

These Asian Pork Meatball Bowls are packed with umami flavor! The tender pork meatballs are drizzled with a sticky, slightly sweet glaze and served over a delicious fried “rice”. I love a good fake-out takeout meal, and this one may be on top of my list after trying it out this week! The ingredient list may look long, but I bet you already have most of the spices and sauce ingredients in your pantry. There are a couple different moving parts involved here, but I promise this meal comes together quickly.

Health and Nutrition

It’s easy to make delicious meatballs for your ketogenic dinners. Choose the meat - you can use ground beef, pork, turkey, or chicken. Each meat will provide a slightly different flavor. Add some vegetables - adding a small amount of flavorful vegetables (well diced) will provide texture as well as flavor to your meatballs. Add in spices and seasoning - these provide even more flavor to your meatballs. You can make them spicy, salty, garlicky, or even gingery just by changing up the spices and seasoning. Optional binding agent - many meatballs might use flour as a binding agent.

Read also: Magnesium Supplements for Keto

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