Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Looking for the perfect meatball recipe? Look no further! These sweet and sour meatballs are tender, perfectly seasoned, and amazingly delicious!
This is a favorite meal of ours that I have been making for years.
On Sunday evenings when I am planning our weekly menu, I’ll ask Brian to give me at least one meal suggestion.
No fail, he either comes up with this dish or his other fave, Sweet and Sour Chicken.
By the way, I usually veto his suggestions, though, because I have so many recipes to try that I don’t like eating the same thing week after week.
Rude, I know, but how will I ever try all these recipes before I die if I am making Sweet and Sour Meatballs or Chicken every week?
These meatballs are also a huge winner with my kidlets.
The meatballs are tender and perfectly seasoned, especially after baking in the simple sweet and sour sauce.
For me, this is definitely a perfect weeknight meal – and we enjoy it often (but clearly not as often as Brian would like)!
Update Nov. 2014: After five or so years living on the blog, this recipe needed an update (mostly the photos). I also gave a few additional tips and instructions in the recipe.
I cut the milk down to 1/4 cup to make the meatballs sturdier (the original was 1/2 cup if you want to stick with that) and I usually scale back the sugar to 1/4 cup as well (1/2 cup in the original).
And of course, I always double the sauce since we like it on the saucy side.
Read the notes below the recipe title for another cooking variation that is speedy and oven-free.
What to Serve With This:
Baked Brown Rice
Fresh, seasonal fruit
Spinach Strawberry Salad with Homemade Creamy Poppyseed Dressing
Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 1 ½ pounds lean ground meat, see note
- ¾ cup quick oats or old-fashioned oats that have been lightly pulsed in a blender
- 2 eggs, slightly beaten
- ½ cup finely chopped onion
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Sauce:
- ¼ – ½ cup brown sugar, depending on how sweet you want the sauce
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
- ¼ cup barbecue sauce
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- Hot cooked rice for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- For the meatballs, combine all of the ingredients and mix well. Form into about 12 meatballs (right around 2-inches each). Place in a lightly greased 9X13-inch pan.
- For the sauce, whisk together the ingredients until well-combined.
- Pour the sauce over the meatballs and bake for 30 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through and the sauce is slightly thickened.
- Serve over hot, cooked rice, if desired.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted from Lion House Recipes
I love this recipe! I usually add canned pineapple and diced peppers and the juice from the pineapple can in with a double batch of the sauce and it turns out delicious and a little less plain. We love it so much I always make a double batch so there’s one in the freezer for another day.!
Soooo good, super simple
OHHH I LOVE THIS RECIPE!!!!! I actually make meat loafs instead of balls! Same process, but bigger ovals! I have made these for company and dinner for my husband and I and we are big fans!!! Thanks for sharing! I love new recipes.
I browned the meatballs in a skillet then added the sauce (doubled) and simmered for about 15 minutes. Took them, along with rice, broccoli, your French bread rolls and Andes Mint Cupcakes (their request – they’ve had them before and loved them!), to a family whose mom hasn’t been feeling well and was just diagnosed with lymphoma. This one will stay in my rotation for “take-in” meals…SO yummy!
Thanks for the review, Sharri – and what a sweet thing to do for that family.
So yummy
My family love this recipe made me print it out to make another time
I made this for supper for my boyfriend and I – it was a huge hit and super easy! I baked the meatballs first and then threw the sauce on them and baked them for another 10 minutes and they came out perfect.
Do the meatballs have to be browned before placing in oven?
I don’t brown them first but you could
Delicious and so easy. A big winner.
These meatballs were a huge hit in my house! All the kids, the grandparents and the spouse were all very impressed! The taste was amazing and the recipe was easy! This will definitely be added to the rotation!
I made this last night with your oven baked brown rice. Delish! I made it completely in the skillet and doubled the sauce but might triple it next time so we can have some more for the leftovers. Thanks. I know if I find a recipe on your site my family will love it!
Made this tonight for dinner, I did not double the sauce even though it seems everyone said I should. I have not tried it because I have an insane cold and can’t taste! My husband did say he found the sauce a little sweet… I even used the 1/4 cup instead of the half cup of brown sugar. Will have to tweak it in the future I guess. Otherwise it was a success 🙂
I made these for my sisters baby shower, but I subbed in pre-made frozen gluten free meatballs. It was a huge hit!
Have you ever made your sweet and sour meatballs in your instant pot? I am trying to adapt as many recipes as possible for my son for when he goes to college and have purchased him an instant pot. Everything is just so much faster and easier to clean up. Would love your advice.
What a great idea for your son! I haven’t made this meal in the IP mostly because I’m not sure how the meatballs would hold up (afraid they’d fall apart somehow) and that there isn’t enough liquid to bring it up to pressure.
Love this recipe but I double the sauce mix.
No wonder your husband wants these for every other Sunday dinner! Delicious! We tried them tonight and everyone gave them a thumbs-up! Thanks for the awesome recipe. It will be in regular rotation around here, from now on.
(also, I used a cookie scoop to form the meatballs. I’ve never tried that before but it worked really well. And yes, doubling the sauce is a MUST.)
These Sweet & Sour Meatballs over Rice were a real winner w the fam tonite. They were fun to throw together & bake in the sauce. I loved how the sauce thickened a little during the baking process. I only had one egg on hand, so halved the meatball ingreds, yet it still made enough for three adults. (I added some summer squash, we still had hanging around, to the rice.) I used ground turkey, & every one loved it!
Love this recipe!! I’ve probably made it 8-10 times. Great on day one but leftovers are soooooo delicious!
I’ve used this as our go to Dutch oven recipe when camping for the past few years, and it’s always a hit. Just prep the meatballs and sauce in a Tupperware and store in a cooler until it’s time to cook.
If using quick oats do I have to blend in a blender? Also could I substitute with breadcrumbs if needed? I plan on making these either tonite or tomorrow and need to gather up a list of ingredients I need to buy. Thank you!
Yes, you can definitely sub bread crumbs (will probably make a slightly sturdier meatball). And if you use quick oats, you may not need to blend, but I personally still would a bit so that the meatballs bind together well.
This looks delicious! Can you make this up ahead of time and throw it in the crockpot for 4 hours to simmer? Or could that burn the flavor?
I haven’t tried that, but I think it sounds like a good idea!
We loved then! But next time I’m gonna double the sause!!
AMAZING!!! THIS RECIPE IS PICKY KID APPROVED:)) AND DELICIOUS FOR THE PARENTS TOO! SERVED WITH A CAESAR SALAD AND RICE. IM IMPRESSED! THANKS YOU:
I can’t do dairy right now so I subbed bbq sauce for the milk in the meatballs. I haven’t had it the other way, but this way is fabulous! I left out the Worcestershire sauce too (figured the bbq sauce would make up for the flavor–it did). In case anyone else is dairy free and wants to give them a try. 🙂 Thanks Mel!
Glad those subs worked out!
Absolutely delicious but the only thing I would change is doubling the sauce, thanks so much for sharing this recipe. I will make these again for sure.
Absolutely delicious but I would double the sauce next time, thanks so much for sharing this recipe.
I recently needed to prepare a gluten free meal. I finally settled on S&S meatballs over rice it was a hit. Still the recipe was lacking a nice blend of seasonings as I could not use the soup mix which was called for. This may be the perfect solution to perfecting my gluten free menu. Thank you.
Worcestercire sauce contains barley so I would just leave out it you want this to be gluten free
Lee and perrins Worcestershire sauce is gluten free so you can use that.
I made these for my wedding and they were a huge hit! So many people have asked for the recipe and I’ve shared it on my Facebook page. Thank you! They’re truly amazing and a regular meal at our house.
I never do this for recipes but I just have to leave a note here! This is a regular in our house, even my picky 4 and 5 year old boys eat this!! We absolutely LOVE this recipe!
Glad to hear it, Brook!
If you like an extra kick I HIGHLY recommend trying this meatball recipe with the firecracker sauce from “firecracker chicken”. Its my go-to guest recipe. 🙂
Can I use regular white vinegar instead of apple cider
I haven’t tried it but you could definitely experiment!
These meatballs are delicious! I follow the recipe to a “T”. Perfect every time. We’ve made them twice in one week, they are just that good!!
Tried these today and my husband couldn’t stop eating them! Really great recipe!
We love these! Curious if you know how they freeze after being fully cooked? I want to make them for a friend and I’m not sure if they will eat them immediately or stick them in their freezer for another time. Thanks! PS We had your sweet and sour chicken last night for about the 100th time. Our favorite!!
Hi Lindsay – these freeze well after they are cooked, I think. The trick is to reheat on low instead of cooking them fully again.
These meatballs have been a family favorite for a long time. Last night I tripled the batch (some for dinner, some for the freezer) and was feeling good and then remembered my son had to leave for scouts early – yikes! He needed dinner fast! My Instant Pot was out to make rice, but I switched things up and put a single layer of Meatballs and sauce in with the saute mode, to speed things up, but it also browned the bottom of the meatballs for even more tastiness! I set manual pressure cook for 7 minutes and did a natural 10 min. release. They were absolutely fabulous!!! And my boy went to scouts with a full belly!
I love this!
I just received my Instant Pot (haven’t event taken it out of the box yet) and my first request from the family was sweet and sour meatballs. I’m not much of a cook, so this may be a silly question, but when you say you put the meatballs in with the sauce on saute mode, are these pre-cooked meatballs or uncooked? Does the sauce thicken up enough or remain watery (this is another IP question I’m wondering about – I make alot of meals that have sauces that need to “thicken” so I wonder how they do that in the IP)? Thanks in advance!!
HI Jeni, I haven’t made these in the Instant Pot so you’ll have to experiment – these are uncooked meatballs (I bake them in the oven). I’m not sure how the sauce would fare in the IP – sorry!
My 8 year old made these meatballs tonight for dinner! He had a great time doing this (mostly) on his own and was so proud when we all rated this a 10 out of 10 for dinner.
Way to go 8-year old! 🙂 That’s impressive.
Do these meatballs work as a party food? using toothpicks, they’ll need to be pretty firm. Would love your opinion on this. Thanks!!
I think these meatballs are a bit too soft for toothpicks.
I made these meatballs the other night, they were delicious! And they’re husband approved which makes them even better! Thanks for sharing the recipe! =)
Made it, doubled the sauce so we’d have some for on the rice. Sweet ‘n’ tangy! Yum!
These are delicious!! Only tip I would add is to not overcrowd the skillet (like I did) if you are browning first, as this makes it difficult to turn them these are definitely picky kid friendly!
I make this recipe at least monthly for the past 3 years! It is one of my favorites and the leftovers taste just as good as fresh!
Mel, Excellent recipe. I had my boys 8 and 10 make this recipe tonight. What a blast watching them mix the burger with their hands! Thank you for sharing.
I love the fact that your boys made this so, so much!
This recipe is amazing! It’s a staple in my house now (like a lot of your recipes) and it never fails. I’ve used every kind of BBQ sauce you could think of and it always turns out great (My favorite to use is Stubbs sweet heat). Thanks Mel!
fantastic! and bonus–my kids loved them! thanks, mel!
After I saw these on Facebook, I knew I had to make them tonight. They were a huge hit. Seriously, the best meatballs I’ve ever had. We had them with roasted root veggies because I had way too many from a crop share this week, but they went awesome with the sauce. Thanks for another great recipe!!
I made your meatball sub recipe last weekend and it was the first-and-only meatball I’ve ever made that my fiance and I both loved. It was perfect and I don’t know if I want to experiment with another recipe… but I’d love to try this sauce.
What do you think about using the meatballs from your meatball sub recipe with this sauce?
I think that would work just fine if that’s a meatball recipe you already prefer.
Have you ever used all ground turkey?
Yep, works great.
These are so good! I wanted a crockpot recipe so
I baked the meatballs in the oven at 350 for 30 minutes
I doubled the sauce recipe and dumped all the ingredients in the crockpot and added the cooked meatballs to the crockpot
cooked on low for 2hrs
the Best!!
Just made this for supper, using ground chicken instead of ground beef. To be honest, I wasn’t sure about it while it was cooking – the smell of the apple cider vinegar was a bit off-putting (my 6yo even said “what’s that smell?!?”), but it tasted really good. Next time I’d triple the sauce though – doubled wasn’t saucy enough for my sauce-loving family.
I made these tonight for the second time, they had been in the freezer and in an effort to speed up the cooking process I put them on the stove. I seared them on all sides then added the sauce and let simmer on the stove. AMAZING!!! This will be my method of cooking these from now on! Thanks Mel for another great recipe!