Savory meatballs in sticky Garlic Sesame sauce. This homemade restaurant inspired recipe is a family favorite and it’s easy to make for dinner or to serve for a party.
Our family loves Garlic Sesame Meatballs because it’s a dish that is packed full of Asian inspired flavors. Lately, I’ve been cooking meatballs with a variety of different homemade sauces. I’ve been using this meatball recipe for the past couple years and it’s my go-to recipe that never fails. What I love about this meatball recipe is that it’s pretty easy to adapt to different types of sauces. I always use fresh onion and garlic, parmesan cheese, eggs, and breadcrumbs. From there, the seasonings we use can change depending on what type of sauce I’ll be making. If you’re looking for a good meatball base, try this recipe.
Hands down, I love anything made with this Garlic Sesame Sauce. I’ve even used it to make Sticky Garlic Sesame Chicken and last week I tried this sauce with Asian Noodles. It’s my go-to sauce recipe to use with just about any protein or starch as the main ingredient.
The secret to making a delicious and flavorful Asian sauce isn’t that hard. I usually start my sauce with a combination of soy sauce and honey. From there, I like to add ginger and sesame oil. To give it a little kick, I add rice vinegar and red pepper flakes.
To bring this dish together, I always add a generous amount of sesame seeds and green onions. Asian dishes are just not the same without fresh green onions.
TWO EASY ALTERNATIVE METHODS to make this recipe quicker
If you’re looking for an EASY ALTERNATIVE to this recipe, start by using frozen meatballs instead of homemade meatballs. I prefer homemade meatballs to the frozen variety but if you don’t mind them or are in a hurry, skip the homemade version. Then add the meatballs to the slow cooker and cook on low with the sauce for 3 hours. Turn the slow cooker up to high and cook another hour so the sauce can thicken.
Another EASY ALTERNATIVE method to making this recipe is to cook the meatballs then add them to a quick sauce without the slow cooker. Then in a large stock pot, whisk the sauce ingredients and cook on medium heat ( about a 4 on the stove top ) for 7-10 minutes or until thick bubbles form. This method cuts down on cook time. Add the meatballs to the stock pot with the sauce and coat well.
I like to serve Slow Cooker Sticky Garlic Sesame Meatballs with rice, green onions, and sesame seeds. If you’re looking for another delicious Garlic Sesame recipe, try this Sticky Garlic Sesame Chicken. Perfect for a slow cooker dinner or party appetizer for game day.
Slow Cooker Sticky Garlic Sesame Meatballs
Ingredients
For the Meatballs *SEE RECIPE NOTES FOR EASY MEATBALL ALTERNATIVE
- 4 pounds ground beef
- 3 large eggs
- 1 large white onions, finely chopped
- 7 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 1/2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons ground yellow mustard powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 3/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes ( less for less spicy )
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup plain breadcrumbs
Garlic Sesame Sauce
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon cold water
- 1/2 cup soy sauce ( may use low-sodium if desired )
- 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons honey
- 4 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 2 1/2 teaspoons rice vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 5 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1 bunch green onions, chopped
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 8-10 servings cooked rice ( serve with )
Instructions
- Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.Chop onions and garlic. I used a food processor to chop them finely.In a large bowl, whisk eggs. Add garlic and onions. Add meatball seasoning ( not sauce ingredients ).Stir in bread crumbs and parmesan cheese. Whisk to combine egg/seasoning mixture well.Add in ground beef. Using your hands, work the ground beef into the wet mixture, coating everything well.Form even size meatballs with a cookie scoop then place on prepared baking sheet close together, but not touching each other.Bake meatballs for 35 minutes. then transfer to cooling rack while baking the rest.To make the sauce, whisk together 1 tablespoon cornstarch and 1 tablespoon cold water. Add sauce ingredients; soy sauce, honey, ketchup, sesame oil, rice vinegar, ginger red pepper flakes, black pepper, and sugar then whisk well to combine.Add meatballs to slow cooker. Pour sauce over meatballs.Cover and cook on low for about 1-2 hours.Set slow cooker to high for about an hour. This will thicken the sauce.Serve meatballs with chopped green onions, sesame seeds and with cooked rice.***SEE NOTES FOR FASTER ALTERNATIVE
Notes
14 Comments
Kelli
05/09/2018 at 8:37 pmThese look awesome! Meatballs are one of my favorite meal-prep foods… definitely adding these into the mix.
Lauren
05/12/2018 at 7:54 amOh man, I good eat an embarrassing amount of these by myself! The sauce looks so gooey and good! I love that it’s just a bit of both sweet and savory AND a slow cooker option!
Natalie
05/12/2018 at 10:39 amI absolutely love how you flavored this meatballs. The spice and sauce combo sounds sooo good. The meatballs itself look beyond delicious. My hubby is a huge fan of meatballs (and Worcestershire sauce). I must make him this for dinner.
Kitty
05/12/2018 at 10:26 pmI think some cooks would be afraid of the length of the ingredient list. Not me! I love that it’s made from scratch and obviously doesn’t skimp on flavor. I have to to try this!
Meredith
05/13/2018 at 10:11 amMy family will love these Asian inspired meatballs! The sauce sounds delicious and I completely agree… green onions totally make the dish! Pinning….
Anne Murphy
05/13/2018 at 2:20 pmThat’s my kind of cooking – big batch of meatballs, big batch of sauce, combine as needed… And your recipes for both sound delicious!
Amanda
05/13/2018 at 9:30 pmThese look so good. This is definitely a recipe I would love to make for a small gathering during the summer. Plus being able to use the slow cooker makes it so convenient.
Jessica Pinney
05/13/2018 at 11:03 pmGarlic sesame? You’re speaking my language! I love how easy this recipe is. I will definitely be giving it a try.
Kat Jeter
05/13/2018 at 11:18 pmThat sticky, sweet and tangy sauce looks so good! I am going to have to give this a try this week.
Sam | Ahead of Thyme
05/14/2018 at 1:37 amWow now this looks delicious!! I am obsessed with anything sesame. Pinning this for later!
elcitrakale
05/15/2018 at 2:48 amThis seems like my comfort food ! YUM ! Long list ingredient for delicious meal.. okay for me 🙂 thx for sharing
Stephanie Simmons
05/15/2018 at 10:45 amI have a feeling this will be my new favorite dinner! That sauce looks SO GOOD!
Lisa E.
03/10/2020 at 12:06 amI actually made these! Unfortunately, I forgot to add the worcestershire sauce. I’m not sure that would have made a huge difference. I brought them to a potluck, and I brought most of them back home.
🙁
I was disappointed as they sounded delicious! They were okay, but JUST okay.
Jessica Knott
05/05/2020 at 5:54 pmAny extra salt would have worked. Try more soy sauce next time if you don’t have Worcestershire sauce. Also, I have served these with the sauce on the side. That way all that sauce can get saved for dipping at parties.