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A woman's hand picking up a skewered sweet and spicy BBQ meatball above a row of meatballs placed on a thin white rectangular serving platter with a mug of beer and a checkered napkin on the side.

Sweet and Spicy BBQ Meatballs

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Fire up the grill for these drool-worthy, gluten-free Sweet and Spicy BBQ Meatballs! These are the BEST Asian-inspired meatballs you'll ever put in your mouth! They're made with ground ground turkey and pork, herbs and seasonings, and a super simple glaze of classic flavors.

  • Total Time: 25 mins
  • Yield: 25 meatballs 1x

Ingredients

Units Scale

For the meatballs:

  • 1 pound ground turkey
  • 1 pound ground pork
  • 3 cloves crushed garlic
  • 4 green onions, finely chopped
  • 1 tablespoon sambal oelek
  • 1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste
  • 1 tablespoon gluten-free soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 3/4 cup gluten-free bread crumbs
  • 1 cup pearl onions, peeled
  • Chopped green onions for garnish

For the glaze:

  • 2 tablespoons gluten-free soy sauce
  • 2 tablespoons Sriracha sauce
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 teaspoons corn starch
  • 2 tablespoons warm water

Instructions

Make the meatballs:

  1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the turkey, pork, garlic, green onions, sambal oelek, red curry paste, soy sauce, sesame oil, egg, cilantro, and bread crumbs. Mix until mixture holds together well.
  2. Form into 25 two-inch round balls (I like to use a small scooper to make the meatballs uniform in size). Place the meatballs into the freezer for about 10 minutes. (This helps to keep the meatballs firm for threading onto the skewers.)
  3. Remove from freezer and thread the meatballs onto metal or wooden skewers with pearl onions in between the meatballs (about 3 meatballs per skewer).
  4. Make the glaze: In a small mixing bowl whisk together the soy sauce, Sriracha, honey, and brown sugar.
  5. In a separate small bowl whisk together the cornstarch and water until dissolved. Add the cornstarch mixture the sauce mixture and combine well.
  6. Place the sauce in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 to 4 minutes until the sauce starts to thicken into a glaze. Do not overcook or it will burn and be too thick! Remove from stove and set aside, stirring occasionally.

Grill the skewers:

  1. Place the skewers on an oiled grill rack or grill pan, turning to brown on all sides until cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes. Brush the meatballs with the glaze about halfway through.
  2. Remove skewers from grill and spoon more glaze over the meatballs. Serve with pearl onions. Garnish with green onions.

Notes

  • Place the meatballs in the freezer to firm up before threading onto skewers. That way they won't fall apart!
  • You can use either a grill pan or outdoor grill for these meatballs.
  • Author: Asian Caucasian
  • Prep Time: 15 mins
  • Cook Time: 10 mins
  • Category: Appetizer
  • Method: Grill
  • Cuisine: Asian-Fusion
  • Diet: Gluten Free

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 5 Meatballs
  • Calories: 573
  • Sugar: 25 g
  • Sodium: 1095.7 mg
  • Fat: 29.1 g
  • Carbohydrates: 39.3 g
  • Protein: 38.6 g
  • Cholesterol: 165.2 mg