I made these meatballs the other night for dinner when I was wondering what to do with some ground turkey I bought.  In this recipe ground turkey is combined with garlic, green onions, ginger, hot oil and sesame oil. The mixture is rolled into bite size meatballs, browned and then simmered in a teriyaki sauce.

Teriyaki Turkey Meatballs
15m
Prep
30m
Cook
45m
Total

Servings

4

Ingredients

  • 1 pound ground turkey
  • 2 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 3 green onions (diced)
  • 1 egg beaten
  • 1/2 cup bread crumbs
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
  • 1 teaspoon hot oil
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 cup teriyaki marinade (I like Veri Veri Teriyaki because it has sesame seeds in it)
  • 1 teaspoon soy sauce
  • 1 teaspoon siracha sauce (optional)

Instructions

  1. Combine first nine ingredients together in a bowl. Mix well. Form into about 20 meatballs.
  2. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides, about 6 minutes, they will finish cooking in the sauce. Depending on the size of your pan you made need to do this in batches.
  3. Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl.
  4. Once the meatballs have browned, return all of them to the pan. Pour sauce over and gently stir to coat. Cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes.

Notes

optional
★★★★ 4.3 (3 reviews)
Rate this recipe:
Deseree

Whether it is cooking it, eating it, shopping for it or watching TV about it, food is one of my favorite things.

25 Reviews

  1. Deseree January 2, 2021

    Yay! So happy to hear that, Annamarie! Adding pineapple sounds like a fab idea too :)

  2. Annamarie January 2, 2021

    These were AMAZING!!! I added a little pineapple to the sauce.

  3. Deseree January 22, 2019

    So glad you loved them! And thanks for the tip on the low sodium teriyaki! When I say chili oil, I mean hot chili oil. You can usually find it in the Asian section of the grocery store near the soy sauce. But I also just made my own recently and you can find the recipe here. I love having it on hand! https://www.lifesambrosia.com/hot-chili-oil-recipe/

  4. Deseree January 22, 2019

    Sorry that it turned out salty! Maybe using a low-sodium one would work!

  5. Heidi Rude January 22, 2019

    I made this a while ago and we loved it! We used the low sodium Veri Veri, perfect. I can’t for the life of me remember what the hot oil is. Could you please tell me what you use?

  6. Chloe January 22, 2019

    The meatballs turned out great and I’ll definitely be making them again but the sauce turned out so salty.

  7. Deseree January 15, 2019

    Cathy- I am happy to hear that you love the turkey version! I think that it would work great with ground chicken too. I would probably use the higher fat ground chicken, so not chicken breasts, so that they don’t dry out. Hope this helps!

  8. Cathy January 15, 2019

    I have had the turkey version and we love them, but how do you think it would be with ground chicken?

  9. Playing with my New Kitchen Toys | Diary of a Hungry Québécoise July 3, 2015

    […] mixed two recipes that I found online to make some succulent teriyaki chicken meatballs. I used the meatball recipe from Life’s Ambrosia and the sauce recipe from A Healthful Gluten-Free Life. The result was fabulous. My pound of ground […]

  10. Linda F. June 29, 2015

    I will give that a try next time! Thanks :)

  11. Des @ Life's Ambrosia June 25, 2015

    I’m sorry to hear that you thought it was a bit salty Linda. I do prefer my teriyaki more savory rather than sweet perhaps that’s why I enjoy this so much. With that said, if you want to give it a go again and want to make it a bit sweeter, you can add a tablespoon or two of brown sugar to the sauce before you pour it over the meatballs. Thank you for your feedback!

  12. Linda F. June 25, 2015

    Hi, came across this recipe and decided to try it tonight because it sounded so good! Is it supposed to be more on the sweet or more on the salty side? To me it was a bit salty :(
    i used the Soyaki sauce from Tradrr Joe’s which is essentially the same as Soy Vay’s Veri Veri teriyaki…

  13. Deseree January 11, 2015

    That is a great question Heidi! I actually mean a hot chili type oil. Adds a little kick. I hope you enjoy these!

  14. Heidi January 11, 2015

    Excited to try these! I may be having a “moment”….but what exactly do you mean by hot oil. Heating up oil and adding it in? Or is their a specific oil that has a hot/spicy flavor you add? Thanks!!

  15. Deseree January 30, 2014

    Shannon, Thank you so much for reading the blog for so long! And I’m glad you liked these. Seeing your comment reminds me that it’s time I make them again :)

  16. Shannon January 30, 2014

    Des,

    I have been a fan of yours for years now and you NEVER disappoint. I made these for friends last night and it was a huge success. (As good as the brie-stuffed boule!) :) Great recipe. As a fellow food blogger I must admit, you have inspired me.

  17. April April 28, 2013

    These are amazing! I’m not usually a fan of ground turkey but in this dish it is perfect. My family eats this meal over rice with a side of steamed peas, at least once a month. There is never any leftovers with two adults and two young children. Thank you so much for sharing!

  18. Playing with my New Kitchen Toys | Diary of a Hungry Québécoise April 7, 2013

    […] mixed two recipes that I found online to make some succulent teriyaki chicken meatballs. I used the meatball recipe from Life’s Ambrosia and the sauce recipe from A Healthful Gluten-Free Life. The result was fabulous. My pound of ground […]

  19. I can not hold this for any longer « CrazyHeaven July 6, 2010

    […] (via) Omnomnom #4: Onion bagel turkey sandwich (this kinda makes me want bagels for breakfast tomorrow) […]

  20. Syl July 6, 2010

    They sound delish! What a great recipe :)

  21. Deseree July 14, 2009

    You’re welcome Tammy! I am glad to hear it :)

  22. Tammy July 14, 2009

    My family and I love this recipe. It has now become a part of rotation of recipes. Thank you for this addition to family cookbook.

  23. Deseree March 4, 2009

    They are super yummy! If you like teriyaki you’ll love these! :)

  24. Kevin March 3, 2009

    I really like the sound of teriyaki meatballs!

  25. Success 3 and 4! « Life as a Wife February 27, 2009

    […] SUCCESS: Teriyaki Meatballs over Rice with mint orange sugar snap […]

Leave a Review