We all adore General Tso's Chicken, but let's push that aside for a moment and marvel at how awesome these General Tso's Meatballs are! Quick, simple, and can easily be made using frozen meatballs!
Having a food blog allows you to be creative and intuitive. I mean, you do not need a food blog to be creative with food, but us food bloggers get to show off our results in the end! I love coming up with creative ideas and when they turn out amazing, that is just an added bonus.
These General Tso's meatballs were a result of buying ground pork on sale. I thought ground beef was on sale at our grocery store, but turns out I made an error. No big deal, my husband likes ground pork as much as ground beef. My sister told me to make tacos with the meat, but I wanted to do something even easier than tacos. That's when these General Tso's meatballs were born. The recipe takes little time and can easily be made gluten-free by using oats instead of breadcrumbs and a gluten-free soy sauce.
I knew with the ground pork I wanted to go Asian-inspired with this recipe, and for some reason General Tso's chicken popped into my head. I went with a basic meatball recipe because I knew the sauce would be the star of the show. I am always worried about overpowering meat with certain ingredients (especially fresh ginger) and since I do not eat meat, I cannot taste my recipe along the way. Usually I have Mr. TCW taste test for me, but he was not home. I took the chance and hoped the meatballs would work out! My daughter inhaled the meatballs with no sauce on them so I am going to assume I had the recipe perfectly fine! The sauce was super easy to make and can actually be made vegetarian by subbing in water or vegetable broth. Obviously a vegetarian sauce is not needed for this recipe but you understand where I am going.
I found the sauce recipe was the perfect amount for these meatballs. If you wanted to keep your General Tso's meatballs warm in a slow cooker, you could maybe add a bit more liquid but otherwise, as an appetizer, this is the perfect balance between sauce and meat. Serving them over rice may warrant doubling the sauce recipe.
📖 Recipe
General Tso's Meatballs
If you do not have oats on hand, an all breadcrumb mixture works perfectly!
Ingredients
- 2 lb lean ground pork
- 1 tbsp. fresh ginger, minced
- 1 bunch (½ cup) green onions (about 6-7 onions) chopped
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- ¼ cup bread crumbs (sub in all oats for GF recipe.)
- ¼ cup oats (I processed mine into flour in my food processor.)
- 2 eggs
- Salt and pepper
- ¼ tsp. red chili flakes
Sauce
- 1 tsp. olive oil
- ¾ cup chicken broth
- 1 tbsp. tomato paste
- 2 tbsp. soy sauce (use Tamari or GF soy sauce instead for GF recipe.)
- 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
- 1 tsp. sesame oil
- 3 tbsp. granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp. cornstarch
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tsp. fresh ginger, minced
- Salt and pepper
Garnish
- Dried chili flakes
- Green onions
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone mat.
- In a large mixing bowl, add the pork, ginger, onions, garlic, bread crumbs, oats, eggs, salt, pepper, and chili flakes. Give the meal a good mixing (hands work best,) but do not overwork it or you will have touch meatballs.
- Measure out 1 tablespoon-sized portions (I used a cookie scoop) and roll into balls. Place onto baking sheet (you may have to use more than one pan.) Place tray into the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until meatballs are golden and cooked through (160F.)
Sauce
- While the meatballs are cooking, it is time to make the sauce. In a small saucepan add a bit of olive oil and place over medium heat. Add the garlic and ginger and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Mix together ½ cup chicken broth, tomato paste, soy sauce, vinegar, sesame oil, sugar, salt, pepper, and dried chili flakes. Pour into pan and stir, bringing to a simmer. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Mix the remaining ¼ cup broth and cornstarch together, Pour into the pan and simmer for 3-4 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened. Remove from heat.
- Pour the sauce over the meatballs and garnish with green onions!
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 60 Serving Size: 5Amount Per Serving: Calories: 130Total Fat: 10gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 15mgSodium: 67mgCarbohydrates: 2gFiber: 4gSugar: 1gProtein: 4g
Give these General Tso's meatballs a shot the next time you have a party or are looking for a quick appetizer to whip up. Whenever I made meatballs in the past, I would fry them in a large frying pan, working in batches. I thought this was the only way to make them is how my dad makes them. Baking them in the oven is so much easier because you do not have to worry about turning the meatballs to brown them on each side and there is no standing around to make sure they do not burn. But if you prefer frying your meatballs, go right ahead!
Love these General Tso's Meatballs?! Try some of these recipes:
Ashley | The Recipe Rebel
These look amazing! I'm sure your taste testers enjoyed sampling these 🙂 Pinned!
Kacey
There were no complaints from my taste-testers 🙂
Kristen @ A Mind Full Mom
These are just FUN! So creative--way to be a great food food blogger 😉
Kacey
Thanks, Kristen! I liked the unique twist 🙂
Leia @ Eat It & Say Yum
Wow, those look amazing. These would be a huge hit at my house. Pinned!
Kacey
Thanks, Leia!
Kirsten
Kacey,
These meatballs look glorious! (Ok, if you're not into meat I'll just tell ya that your photos are very appetizing to me!)
My son loves the flavor of General Tso's chicken and I think this should be his next project as he continues to branch out in cooking. He's already helped me to make Swedish meatballs so he's got the 'don't handle the meat too much' technique down.
Thanks!
Kacey
That is awesome, Kirsten. It is great you are teaching your son the basics along with the facts. My parent's never told me you could handle meat too much. Food bloggers' kids are going to be cooking geniuses 🙂
Des @ Life's Ambrosia
I adore any kind of pork meatball, especially those with an Asian flare. These look absolutely fantastic. Must try soon!
Kacey
Thanks, Des!
Beth
Pork or beef, I don't care.. these are making me drool 🙂 You rock!
Kacey
Haha, thanks so much, Beth 🙂
Chrisy @ Homemade Hooplah
This is one of those combinations that is so genius but yet I never would have thought of it. Looks and sounds delish!
Ginny McMeans
Love all the spices and flavorings in your recipe!
Dee Dee (My Midlife Kitchen)
Ack! I LOVE General Tso's chicken, but never allow myself that splurge for the sodium content and other bad stuff in there. But this version is an answer to my prayers! I love the sweet/spicy flavors, and I have to say that I love ground pork as an alternative for a lot of recipes. A much rounder flavor, and it marries with so many other flavors that you can do just about anything with it. Gotta add this to my "must make" list quickly! Thanks!
Cate | Chez CateyLou
I love getting creative in the kitchen, and it is so much fun to be able to share it on our blogs! These meatballs are awesome - so saucy and delicious. I love that they use pork!!
Kacey
It is the sauce that makes the dish 🙂
Stephanie
These are fantastic!!! Thanks for such a fun recipe that even my 5 year old loves! And definitely double the sauce! 🙂
Kacey
Yay!! You are very welcome!
Toots
These were awesome! The sauce definitely makes the dish. I think a pork meatball goes so much better with an Asian or Korean flavored sauce rather than an Italian red sauce so this was perfect. I served with a homemade veggie fried rice. My husband said this was one of the best things I've ever made and he wants me to make again!
Kacey
Yay!!! I am so happy to hear! Agreed, pork definitely pairs great with Asian flavours. The best wonton soup we had as kids used pork (the place closed so many years ago and I still think of the flavours!)