These Juicy and delicious gluten-free Asian meatballs are topped with a homemade super flavorful sticky Asian sauce. I promise you that These Whole30 Meatballs are better than Chinese takeout! not only are they so easy to make, they are also paleo, gluten-free, dairy-free, and keto-friendly!
Growing up in China, my dad always made a “sticky” sauce with most dishes. Sticky tofu, sticky short ribs, sticky eggplants. You name it. It is always his magic sauce in the kitchen.
And these sticky Asian meatballs are one of my favorites.
You may also love some of my other favorite Asian recipes with a healthy twist:
- Chicken Teriyaki Stir Fry (Whole30)
- Healthy Paleo Orange Chicken
- Instant Pot Cashew Chicken (Whole30)
In order to make a healthy twist on my Asian food, I made some substitutions for these gluten-free meatballs.
I have made my dad’s authentic Chinese food magic happen in my kitchen here in America, 10 thousand miles away from home with these super flavorful and healthy Asian meatballs with sticky sauce.
And, you won’t believe these are Whole30 and Paleo compliant.
Why I love these Sticky Asian Meatballs
1. Packed with flavors
To begin with, this gluten-free meatball recipe itself is packed with all the aromatics – ginger, garlic, green onion.
Additionally, we are going to top off these Asian Meatballs with a flavorful sticky sauce simmered to perfection.
2. Easy to Make Whole30 sticky Asian Meatballs
This oven-baked Meatball recipe is so easy to make.
With only a few accessible ingredients, you have the best juicy and tender meatballs.
3. So “Fancy” to bring to the dinner table or party
Not your average Chinese Takeout Food.
This authentic Chinese dish is healthy, fancy and so creative, and will definitely please a crowd.
4. Reminds me of Home
I don’t make Chinese food often because I never think I get even close to my dad’s cooking level.
But these sticky Asian meatballs, my dad would actually be proud of!
Ingredients needed for this healthy sticky Asian Meatballs Recipe
If I learned a thing or two from watching my parents cooking Asian cuisine growing up, to begin with:
- Green Onion 葱
- Ginger 姜
- Garlic 蒜
These are the three ingredients you will find in most Chinese food.
Additionally, Asian cuisine also uses a lot of sesame seed oil, soy sauce, and white sugar.
Additionally, here are the main ingredients for these Asian meatballs.
1. A mix of ground pork and ground chicken
You can also use all ground pork, chicken, or turkey
I like the texture of pork meatballs and chicken meatballs the most. It also provides just enough fat to bring out the flavor.
Asian pork meatballs or Asian chicken meatballs? Your choice!
2. One egg
3. Arrowroot flour
My dad always used corn starch or flour to marinate meat in his Asian cooking. I substitute it with arrowroot flour which helps to keep the gluten-free meatballs moist after baking. Additionally, it is gluten-free and paleo-friendly.
4. Coconut Aminos
5. Salt to taste
I actually did not end up adding any extra salt. Take into consideration that coconut aminos themselves are salty.
HOW TO MAKE THESE sticky ASIAN Meatballs WHOLE30 FRIENDLY
To make this meatball recipe whole30 and paleo compliant I have made a few substitutions
Coconut Aminos:
Instead of soy sauce, I used coconut amino, which is gluten-free, paleo, and Whole 30 compliant. Additionally, it is packed with 17 amino acids.
Arrowroot Flour:
Similar to corn starch that acts as a thickener, arrowroot flour is a great gluten-free, paleo, andWhole30 alternative to use in this sticky Asian sauce recipe.
Coconut Sugar:
Unlike white sugar, coconut sugar is paleo-friendly. Although, it is not Whole30 compliant. However, you can omit coconut sugar to make this meatball recipe Whole30.
What Makes the Asian Sauce Sticky?
So my dad uses this flour called Sheng Fen 生粉, which is a kind of starch.
Besides the fact that I cannot find Sheng Fen in normal grocery stores, it is also not gluten-free or whole30 friendly.
Therefore, I have tried a whole 30 approved paleo starch – arrowroot flour.
What is Arrowroot Flour?
Arrowroot flour is a starchy substance extracted from the root of Maranta arundinacea (read more here).
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You may be familiar with corn starch, a traditional thickener in many recipes. Similarly, arrowroot flour also thickens food, but has no taste, leaves food glossy and clear.
Even better? It is a healthy starch. It is gluten-free, paleo, and Whole 30 friendly.
How to Serve THESE whole30 STICKY ASIAN gluten-free Meatballs
Perfect Party Appetizers
These Whole30 Asian Meatballs are the perfect bite-size. Just put some toothpicks in them and you have a fancy and healthy Chinese food “takeout” appetizer.
Gluten-free meatballs makes a Healthy Dinner for the Whole family
Chinese food isn’t complete without rice. Serve these Sticky Asian Gluten-free Meatballs with some Jasmine rice and some stir-fried vegetables on the size.
Or top them off with noodles.
Again, NOT your average Chinese Food takeout.
For a whole30 friendly option, you can serve it with cauliflower rice.
These Whole 30 Sticky Asian Meatballs are great to serve as a healthy dinner, appetizers for parties and social gatherings. They look so fancy, but no one needs to know how easy they are to make.
(Last Updated July 11th, 2019 – tweaked the recipe a bit to make it extra moist and soft)
OOO ALSO I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOUR CREATIONS! YOU CAN USE “TRIED IT” ON PINTEREST OR SHARE ON INSTAGRAM BY TAGGING #SHUANGYSEATS
You May Also Like these Meatball Recipes:
1. Paleo Italian Meatballs (Whole 30)
2. Slow Cooker Paleo Italian Meatball
3. Whole 30 Turkey Burger Recipe
Sticky Asian Meatballs {Whole30}
Ingredients
Asian Meatballs
- 1 lb ground pork
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp arrowroot flour make it extra moist
- 1/4 cup green onions chopped
- 1/4 cup poblano pepper optional for spicier taste
- 2-3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 inch fresh ginger minced
- 2 tbsp coconut aminos
- Salt to taste *
Asian Sticky Sauce
- 1/3 – 1/2 cup coconut aminos **
- 2/3 cup chicken stock
- 3 – 4 tbsp rice vinegar
- 1 heaping tbsp arrowroot flour
- 1/2 tsp fresh or ground ginger
- 1 clove garlic minced, optional
- 1 tbsp coconut sugar optional
Instructions
- Asian Meatballs
- Preheat the oven to 400 F. Grease a baking sheet with avocado oil.
- Finely chop the green onion, garlic, and poblano pepper. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, add ground pork, ground chicken, egg, arrowroot flour, green onion, poblano pepper, garlic, ginger, coconut amino, and salt. Use a spoon or your hands to combine the ingredients well.
- Roll the batter into balls using your hands. (approx. 24 – 26 meatballs for 2 lb of meat). Wet your hands with cold water to prevent the meat from sticking to your hands.
- Place the meatballs on the greased baking sheet.
- Bake the meatballs for 15 – 18 minutes. Broil for 2 minutes in the end.
- Sticky Asian Sauce
- Add coconut aminos, chicken stock, rice vinegar, ginger, garlic, and coconut sugar to a skillet and whisk together.
- Add the arrowroot flour to the skillet and whisk to combine well until there are no clumps left.
- Bring to a boil then turn the heat to low.
- Stir frequently until the sauce thickens. This takes about 2 – 3 minutes.
- Once the meatballs are done, transfer them into the sauce skillet and cover them with the sticky sauce.
- Sprinkle some extra green onion and sesame seeds for garnishing. Enjoy!
Notes
- Instead of pork and chicken, you can use turkey or beef. I prefer having ground pork in the mix because the fattier meat brings out the flavor.
- If the sauce doesn't thicken, keep stirring and turn the heat up by just a notch.
- * Coconut aminos are salty themselves, take into consideration when you add additional salt.
- **If using soy sauce instead of coconut aminos, use a less soy sauce and more stock ratio since soy sauce is saltier than coconut aminos. You can add up to 1/2 cup of coconut aminos to taste.
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Nutrition
The Nutrition Facts above are specific to the ingredients I chose to use for this recipe, which may vary.
Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This does not result in any extra cost for you, but it does mean that I make a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
Hi Shuang
First it goes without saying we love all your great recipes. I am going to try this recipe this week for our friends. I notice the sauce has listed twice for bullion and garlic, was that suppose to be in it?
Thanks so much
Hi Renée, That is so sweet of you! 🙂 Thank you for pointing this out. I have now updated the recipe (no double garlic or chicken stock). I hope you enjoy this recipe.
All the best, Emmelie
Hello! I’m wanting to take these to a game night with friends. Any tips on transporting them in a crockpot? Can I just make them in the pan and put the sauce and meatballs in a crockpot to keep warm?
Hi Allie, That’s a great idea! I would make them at home and then bring the meatballs and sauce in two separate containers. Then at the party, I would combine everything in the crockpot and let it heat up again. Maybe make a double batch of the sauce since the meatballs most likely will absorb some of the sauce while sitting in the crockpot. Good luck! /Emmelie
This recipe looks amazing! I wanted to use just one pound of ground beef so I plan on cutting the meatball recipe in half. Do I need to
Make any changes when making the sauce?
Hi Anu,
You certainly can! I personally would do 2/3 – 3/4 of the sauce measurement listed here. You can always have more sauce for dipping the meatballs, rice, bread or whatever side you decide to serve the meatballs with. Hope this helps!
Shuang
Super easy to make and so flavorful!
Made these tonight and my fiancé loved them. A couple of subs – I used turkey and sausage, ACV in lieu of rice vinegar since I was out. I actually put the arrowroot on the sauce and whisked it with no problem. Will be making again!
These are super good. One thing though, you need to make a slurry with the arrowroot flour and COLD water just like you do when using cornstarch. If you add the arrowroot to a hot liquid you get cooked lumps. Rule is add flour to hot, cornstarch/arrowroot to cold liquid. But this is really a good recipe. Served with stir fried vegetables.
Hi Jolene,
Thank you for the feedback! I usually don’t have trouble with clumping if I whisk it in. But that’s good advice I will certainly take into concern in the future.
Shuang
Easy to make, ingredients aren’t exotic, my family loves it. The only bit of critique I would offer is: the instructions tell you to set aside chopped green onion, poblano pepper, and garlic but never tell you what to do with the set aside ingredients.
Have you tried to freeze the meatballs to warm for later with the sauce?
Hi Becca,
Yes you can freeze them! The sauce may get a bit more sticky. I usually just add a dash of water/broth when reheating. Hope this helps.
Shuang
Everyone in my family loved these and they’re super easy to make.
Looks really delicious and I can’t wait to try it. I love meatballs and this sticky asian meatballs looks new to me but I bet they are good. 🙂
Hi there,
They are so good! I can’t wait for you to try either!
Shuang
These are such a good meal doesn’t even taste like whole30
Me and my family were doing whole 30 this month but my parents both started to loose way to much weight to quickly the docotor told them to stop so now me and my two sisters are on our own this meal was pretty easy to prepare and we all loved it also tomorrow’s lunch 🙂
Hi Skylar,
I am so glad you and your sister are able to enjoy it! I hope your family could all taste it too 😉
Shuang
My family loved these. They tasted delicious. I did use soy sauce instead of coconut amino’s and they were salty but tasted great.
These are a hit in our home! There were no leftovers which was a bummer. I am doubling the recipe tonight. I did not use the sugar and I don’t think it needed it. The poblano didn’t make it spicy at all! Thanks so much for this fantastic new dish!
Hi Andia,
Aw YAY!! That makes me so happy! I am so glad your family enjoyed it 🙂
Shuang
Very good but it seemed very salty even though coconut aminos used (vs soy) in both meatballs & sauce. Next time I would most certainly decrease the salt in meat balls & also decrease aminos & add a lil’ more coconut sugar for the sauce. Otherwise a great recipe! 👍🏻
Hi,
Thank you for the feedback. I should definitely note that here. Coconut aminos is salty enough generally even without the additional salt. But glad you enjoyed regardless 🙂
Shuang
This is the first whole 30 recipe I tried and they were delicious! Except when I mixed the ingredients together, the mixture had the consistency of peanut butter-very sticky and gooey. Any ideas as to what I might have done wrong? Thanks so much!!
Hi Dina,
If the mixer is super sticky, you can add some coconut aminos and water to dilute it. It will get more sticky once it cools too. To make it more liquid-y, you can heat it up with some water. Let me know if it helps 🙂 Enjoy!
Best,
Shuang Shuang
Hi your recipe has peppers in the description but not in the list of ingredients. Which is right?
Hi Christy,
Thank you for pointing it out. It was meant to be an optional ingredient for spicier meatballs. I just added as an “optional ingredient” in the recipe card. Enjoy 🙂
Shuang