Perfect to serve as an appetizer or a main meal over rice. Delicious and very flavorful pork meatballs made in the Instant pot with a mind-blowing honey and garlic glaze-like sauce.
These honey garlic glazed meatballs are a delicious recipe you won’t want to live without. Made from scratch the meatballs are tender and juicy on the inside while crisp and browned on the outside.
The honey garlic glaze is also fantastic and rivals anything you can find in a restaurant. Everything is so simple and easy to throw together and uses basic ingredients too, making this an easy winning appetizer or the main course to serve with your meal.
Honey Garlic Meatballs and Rice
Whether you want to serve up these meatballs as a tasty appetizer or as a meal you’re sure to have a winning recipe on your hands. Everyone will flock to the plate full of meatballs so don’t expect many leftovers. These honey-glazed meatballs are always a huge hit and never last for long!
Ingredients you’ll need for Glazed Meatballs:
For the meatballs, you will need:
- Ground pork
- White onion
- Eggs
- Toasted sesame oil
- Breadcrumbs
- Garlic powder
- Salt
- Grated Ginger
- Chili Flakes
- 2 eggs
For the sauce, you will need:
- Low sodium soy sauce
- Honey
- Water
- Garlic cloves
- Spring onions
- Toasted Sesame Seeds
- Cornstarch
- Olive oil
For the exact amounts needed, please see the recipe card below.
How to Make Instant Pot Honey Garlic Glazed Meatballs
Dice your onions as finely as possible and then set them aside. Grate the ginger root and then set it aside as well.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground pork, diced onion, grated ginger, breadcrumbs, garlic powder, salt, sesame oil, and chili flakes (if using). Mix well until fully combined.
Crack an egg on and place it in the bowl, off to the side. Whisk the egg to break it up and then incorporate it into the rest of the mixture by hand or with a large spoon.
Form the meat into meatballs using your clean hands and place them onto a covered plate.
Grate your garlic and set it aside.
Set your Instant Pot to saute mode at medium heat and add in a tablespoon of olive oil along with the grated garlic.
Saute for 3 minutes or until golden brown. Move the garlic around constantly using a wooden spoon to prevent it from burning. One golden, remove from the instant pot and set aside.
Add in the meatballs, working in batches as needed to brown them. Do not overcrowd the Instant Pot at this stage or else the meatballs can break and not brown evenly.
While the meatballs are browning prepare the sauce.
Stir together the fried garlic, soy sauce, sesame seeds, and honey with a whisk until combined and the honey has dissolved.
Once all of the meatballs are browned, return them all to the Instant pot and pour the glaze on top.
Add in 2 cups of water.
Cover the Instant Pot and set to High Pressure for 10 mintues.
Once finished, allow to natural pressure release for 5 minutes. After those 5 minutes, manually release the remaining pressure.
In a small bowl combine the flour or cornstarch with 1/2 cup of water and whisk to combine.
When you open the Instant Pot lid, set it to saute mode over medium heat and add in the slurry you just made.
Cook for about 10 minutes or until the sauce becomes thickened and shiny.
Serve the meatballs with toothpicks as appetizers or over rice as a main dish.
Garnish with finely chopped green onions and more sesame seeds.
Recipe Tips
- The sauce will thicken while being stored in the fridge, so if you want to eat it after being in it, transfer the portion to a pan and add a splash of water to make the sauce a bit runnier while the meatballs reheat.
- They can be made with beef, turkey, or chicken instead of pork.
FAQs
How long are glazed meatballs good for?
These meatballs are fridge and freezer-friendly and can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days in an air-tight container or portioned in the freezer for up to 5 months.
Do you have to brown meatballs before putting them in sauce?
Yes, by browning our homemade meatballs we not only help to seal in the juices and keep our meatballs tender on the inside but we also help to get them to hold their shape better. If we didn’t brown them into a round ball, we risk the meatballs falling apart. Browning the meatballs does not have to cook them all of the ways through as the sauce and pressure cooking will help to do that.
Can I use panko instead of breadcrumbs in meatballs?
Yes, these two ingredients can be used interchangeably within this recipe depending on what you already have on hand or prefer to use.
For more Instant Pot Recipes, check out these great ideas!
Instant Pot Honey Garlic Glazed Meatballs
Delicious and very flavorful pork meatballs made in the Instant pot with a mind-blowing honey and garlic glaze-like sauce. Perfect to serve as an appetizer or a main meal over rice.
Ingredients
For the meatballs
- 1.5 pounds /700 gr of ground pork
- 1 large white onion or two medium-sized onions.
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil (toasted sesame oil)
- 2 cups breadcrumbs
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 2 tablespoons of freshly grated ginger. (1 tablespoon dried)
- 1 teaspoon chili flakes (optional)
For the sauce:
- 1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce (tamari) use less if using regular soy sauce
- ½ cup honey
- 2 ½ cups water
- 5 garlic cloves
- 2 spring onions
- 3 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
- 1/3 cup white flour or cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
- Dice the onion as fine as possible and reserve, grate the ginger root and set aside as well.
- In a big bowl combine the ground pork meat, diced onion, grated ginger, breadcrumbs, garlic powder, salt, chili flakes (if adding) and the sesame seed oil, combine well.
- On one corner of the bowl crack the eggs and whisk welll, then combine with the rest of the mixture.
- Form the meatballs with your clean hands and set them aside on a plate covered.
- Grate the garlic cloves and set them aside.
- In the Instant pot on saute mode and medium heat add the tablespoon of olive oil and the grated garlic cloves and saute for 3 minutes or until golden brown and aromatic. Move constantly with a wooden spoon to prevent them from burning. Once golden take them out of the instant pot and set them aside.
- Add the meatballs in batches if needed and brown them. Do not overcrowd the instant pot at this stage otherwise, the meatballs can break and will not brown evenly.
- While the meatballs are browning prepare the glazing sauce:
- In a small bowl combine the fried garlic, soy sauce, sesame seeds, and honey. Whisk well until everything is combined and the honey is dissolved.
- Once the meatballs are browned, return all of them to the Instant pot and pour the glazing sauce on top. Add the 2 cups water too.
- Cover and close the Instant pot. Cook on high pressure for 10 minutes.
- Once the Instant pot finishes cooking, let it naturally release for 5 minutes. After the 5 minutes, manual release all the remaining pressure.
- In a small bowl, add the flour or cornstarch and ½ cup water and combine.
- With the Instant pot open, set on sautee mode on medium heat and add the slurry (water and flour mixture), let cook for 10 minutes or until you notice the sauce gets thick and shiny.
- Serve the meatballs with Bambu picks as an appetizer or over rice as a main meal. Garnish with finely chopped green onions and more sesame seeds.
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