My mouth is salivating just looking at this picture. I can still taste these authentic Korean meatballs from the last time I made them. The smokey sweet meat and the saucy zucchini noodles are hard to forget!
If you are looking to branch out from your regular culinary routine and try something new, these Korean meatballs are just the ticket!
How to Make Korean Meatballs
These Korean meatballs are really easy to make! I love to make a double batch and freeze the extra for another meal!
You will need the following ingredients in a large bowl:
2 pounds of 80/20 ground beef
2 eggs
3/4 cup of panko crumbs
1 Tablespoon of minced fresh ginger
2 chopped green onions
1 Tablespoon tamari sauce
1 Tablespoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon each Kosher salt and ground fresh black pepper
Mash these ingredients together until everything is well incorporated. Roll the meat mixture into 18-21 golf ball sized meatballs and place on a cookie sheet about 1 inch apart.
Let the Korean meatballs sit for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator or freeze them for later use.
When thawed, bake the meatballs at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Let them sit for a few minutes before serving.
How to Make Zucchini Noodles
I could make a meal of just the Korean meatballs, but because I am a mom and want my kids to eat their veggies, I serve the meatballs with a delicious and saucy stir-fry.
Sometimes I use Udon noodles, but when I am trying to cut carbs, I make zoodles! This handy-dandy 4 Blade Spiralizer allows me to hook up a zucchini and make zoodles in about a minute or less.
I also make onion rings, spiralized carrots, and curly fries!
For this stir-fry recipe, I spiralize 3 zucchinis. I also julienne 2 large carrots and a medium-sized onion.
In a wok or large saute pan, I heat a tablespoon of sesame oil and then stir-fry the noodles until they are tender.
This will take about 5 to 7 minutes on medium heat.
How to Make Stir-fry Sauce
Once the vegetable stir-fry is finished and my Korean meatballs are cooling from the oven, I toss the veggies with some incredible stir-fry sauce!
I mix the following ingredients in a small bowl and whisk. No whisk? No problem! Pour everything in a small jar, put the lid on, and shake!
1 1/2 Tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp honey
1 tsp minced garlic
dash of salt and pepper
dash of sesame seeds
Toss the dressing in the zucchini noodles. I like to save some of the stir-fry sauce and brush it on top of the meatballs as well!
Putting It All Together
In a bowl, simply scoop some zucchini noodle stir-fry inside and then lay some freshly baked Korean meatballs on top.
I mean, wouldn't you like to sink your teeth into this incredible Asian dinner?
This dinner was a HUGE hit in my house! We eat a lot of Asian inspired food and a lot of meatballs, so this was the best of both worlds. Here are some of our favorites:
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What are your favorite kinds of meals to make? Does this look like something you'd like to try? Drop me a line in the comment section below and tell me what you're making for dinner. Happy cooking y'all!
Korean Meatballs with Stir-fry Zucchini Noodles
Equipment
- wok or large saute pan
- spiralizer
Ingredients
Korean Meatballs
- 2 lbs 80/20 ground beef
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup panko
- 1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
- 2 chopped green onions
- 1 tbsp tamari sauce found in the international section
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1 tsp each Kosher salt and black pepper
Zucchini Noodle Stir-fry
- 3 spiralized zucchini
- 2 julienned carrots
- 1 medium julienned onion
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
Stir-Fry Sauce
- 1 1/2 tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sesame oil
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1 tsp minced garlic
- dash salt and pepper
- dash sesame seeds
Instructions
To Make the Korean Meatballs
- Place all the ingredients into a large bowl and mash together until well incorporated.
- Roll into 18-21 golf ball-sized balls and place 1 inch apart on a cookie sheet.
- Let rest 2 hours in the refrigerator or freeze for later.
- When thawed or after resting, bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes. Let rest before serving.
To Make the Zucchini Noodle Stir-fry
- Spiralize the zucchini and julienne the carrots and onion.
- Heat the oil in a wok or large saute pan. Stir-fry the vegetables until tender, about 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside.
- Whisk the stir-fry sauce in a small bowl and then toss with vegetables. Reserve some sauce to brush on top of meatballs.
- Place zucchini noodles in the bottom of a bowl, top with a few meatballs, and then brush on some of the reserved stir-fry sauce.
I made this last week and it was delicious. I froze half of the unbaked meatballs because there us just 2 of us and we still had left overs.
I’m so glad you liked them, Sandra! Now you have an easy meal for next time!
These are phenomenal! I did use ground turkey instead of beef because we try to limit our red meat consumption throughout the week, but the recipe was still wonderful. My husband refuses to eat zucchini, but I also used a vegetable peeler to make carrot “noodles” as well and he gobbled it up. Thanks for the recipe, Heidi!
It is great to know that you liked it with ground turkey as well. I have been meaning to try that option too.
I made this tonight. It was delicious! The family loved it. My daughter’s boyfriend took leftovers with him for his lunch tomorrow. Thanks again for the recipe.
You are most welcome!
Made these a couple of days ago and they were so good the whole family enjoyed them. I can’t wait to make them again
Aren’t they spectacular!?!? Thanks for trying them!
Loved this recipe. Made it tonight for dinner. Highly recommend you try it. Thx for the recipe.
So glad you liked it!
So I made this tonight and it was a hit with the family. The meatballs are amazingly good… I did the udon noodles and veggie stir fry. I didn’t have the fancy spaghetti making thing so I just used my veggie peeler. It wasn’t pretty but it tasted great 👍
First off, I am so glad you enjoyed the recipe! Second, who cares what it looks like if it tastes good?!?! Third off, you have a cool name. LOL!