Chinese Pork meatballs: Char Seiw like charring on the edges with flavors hitting notes of sweet and salty in each that are ideal for delicious Asian meatball appetizers in about 20 minutes.
Chinese Pork meatballs are full of all of the flavors you love in Chinese food takeout. Salty, sweet, smoky, charred edges with juicy tender pork inside. You can make them in about 20 minutes in a skillet or a wok so they can be made at the last minute for you or your guest’s enjoyment.
I’m super excited to share this Asian meatball recipe with you. It’s a recipe from one of my foodie friends Charmaine Ferrara who writes at Wok and Skillet. Char wrote a cookbook called “The Healthy Wok.” A cookbook about simple, healthy versions of your favorite takeout meals.
As most of you know, I kind of have a meatball addiction, thus I have a lot of meatballs on my site (check out a few of them like Gouda Cheese Meatballs, IKEA Copycat Swedish Meatballs, Buffalo Chicken Meatballs and BBQ Bacon blue Cheese meatballs.)
What pork to use for Asian Meatballs?
This recipe for Chinese Pork Meatballs is the first meatball I’ve made that is primarily made from pork. Pork meatballs tend to be really juicy and full of flavor. For time-saving purposes, I purchased ground pork with full fat.
You can purchase the low-fat option, but I find that when I do that the meatballs are really dry. Because you cook them in a skillet using the regular ground pork you will be able to leave the fatty oil that cooks out in the skillet.
If you wish to grind your own pork you can use pork belly, pork shoulder or pork butt. I highly suggest you don’t use a pork loin as there is not near enough fat to pork ratio for juicy tender meatballs.
What is Char Siew? (char siu)
Char Seiw (sometimes spelled siu) is a Cantonese dish that translates to “fork roasted.” Usually, there are cut strips of marinated pork skewered then “roasted” over an open flame.
The marinade caramelizes as it cooks. Most times you see it a red color when you get it in dishes at restaurants. (That red color comes from using bean paste in the marinade.)
How to cook Chinese Pork Meatballs
You’ll first want to make the meatballs all in a similar size. I find using a scoop like this one guarantees they are all the same size and shape and thus cook evenly.
The recipe calls for cooking them in a wok, and they were easy to roll around in the wok for even cooking.
ALTERNATIVE TIP: You could also make them in a skillet if you don’t have a wok. I found that a cast iron skillet worked really well. The pan got hot enough to really get a nice sear on the edges and the pork charred very nicely.
Either way, you will love the way the edges almost taste like they have been grilled but when you bite into them they are juicy and flavorful.
Here is the link to Amazon for you to purchase your own, or to give your favorite someone a cookbook they will use for years to come. The healthy recipes can be our secret. No-one will miss the take-out I promise!
Need more Asian Recipes to make at home?
- Coconut Shrimp
- General Tso’s Chicken (also from the Healthy Wok cookbook)
- Sui Mai Dumplings
- Chinese Beef with Broccoli (another recipe from the Healthy Wok Cookbook)
Looking for elegant serving spoons or trays for a party?
- Ceramic Serving Spoons
- Ceramic Square Ramekins
- 3 tiered serving piece for a easy serve your self appetizers
- Simple Rectangular Serving piece
Pin this to your Easy Appetizer Board on Pinterest!
Sign up for the mailing list here where it says “join the west via midwest community” for more recipes for entertaining without any stress!
~ Instagram ~Pinterest~ Twitter~Facebook ~
Chinese Pork Meatballs
These meatballs are a slightly different take on the giant pork meatballs so popular in China. They are inspired by Chinese barbecue pork, or char siew, and their smaller size means they can be pan-fried in a wok. The five-spice powder infuses the char siew with its unmistakable flavor, and I love charring the outside just a bit for that seared barbecue crispness.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon minced ginger
- 3 garlic cloves, , minced
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon five-spice powder
- 2 pinches ground white pepper
- 3 tablespoons peanut oil
Sauce
- Green onions or chives for garnish, (cut green ends to get tiny circles
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons sweet soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
- 2-3 tablespoons sriracha sauce, (optional)
- Green onions or chives for garnish
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the pork, cornstarch, ginger,garlic, brown sugar, soy sauce, five-spice powder, and pepper, and mix well.
- Roll 1 heaping tablespoon of pork mixture into a ball and continue until all the pork mixture is used. (about 20 small meatballs)
- In a wok or skillet over medium heat, heat the peanut oil. Using a wok spatula, spread the oil to coat enough of the wok surface to fry about 10 meatballs at a time. Lower the meatballs into the wok in batches.
- Cook without moving for about 2 minutes, or until the bottoms are cooked through. Use the spatula to carefully rotate the meatballs to cook on the other sides.
- Keep rotating the meatballs gently until cooked through.
Sauce
- Combine all ingredients except garnish and stir to mix well. Sriracha sauce can be adjusted to get as spicy as you wish.
- Cut chiffonade (small circles from green onion to float in sauce.) Serve sauce in dipping bowls on the side, and/or drizzle lightly over the top of meatballs. Sprinkle additional green onion circles over the top for presentation.
Notes
All recipe calorie information was calculated on what I purchased to make this recipe. When you make the recipe, the calorie content could vary depending on what specific ingredients/brands you actually use. Please take that into consideration if you are following a strict diet.
The sauce recipe is not from Char's book but from a cooking class I took many years ago with Jet Tila. You may find his recipe on my site under Chinese Pork Dumplings.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
20Serving Size:
20 meatballsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 91Carbohydrates: 1gProtein: 6g
This site uses affiliate links, such as Amazon which pays this site a small commission if you purchase at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Read full info here.
Kathy says
I thought this recipe would be really good to have for the Chinese New Year. All seemed easy, which it was. I should have known better NOT to add so much Fish Sauce (I used what the recipe said). It was far too salty & didn’t balance the meatballs. I even made rice to absorb some of the sauce, didn’t help. If I do this again, since the meatballs were very good, I will remember to use maybe just a teaspoon of Fish Sauce.
Michele says
Kathy~ I know that fish sauce is a LOT like cilantro and people love it or hate it. I’m sorry it didn’t work out for you– I did adjust the notes in the post to mention that if you don’t like fish sauce to adjust the measurement to put a lesser amount in. ~m
Carole says
wonderful! Used vegetable oil instead of peanut oil due to allergy.
All my family loved it. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
Thank you for sharing
Michele says
Thank you for coming back and letting me know! Thank makes my whole day! ~m
Elaine DeFelice says
WOW I made these today and they are delicious. The meatballs have a great flavor; the dipping sauce is a nice contrast.
I served them on the pretty end of chinese napa cabbage that I pickled in white vinegar, water, sugar for 10 min. It looked like petal of goodness. I’m not a great fryer-burn a lot of food, so, I fried them to get coloring/char then baked at 350 for 10 min- give or take.
Thanks for a delicious recipe.
Michele says
I love how you served them…. it sounds perfect! Im so glad you enjoyed them! ~m
Rachel says
I have no idea what “sweet soy sauce” is – and I am not a novice in the kitchen! LOL
Sorry if I have multiple posts! – Don”t know if form is submitting or not (embarrassing)
Michele says
Hi Rachel! No worries… sweet soy is used commonly in Thai foods and is a little thicker than soy sauce. depending on where its from it is made with palm sugar or with molasses. If you can’t find it, you could add a little brown sugar to soy sauce to create a thicker sauce to get the balance of sweetness for this recipe! Im putting a link into the recipe card for what they have on amazon. It will give you some brands to look for at your local grocery store. ~michele
Angela says
Sounds delicious. Could you freeze them?
Michele says
Angela they freeze well. I go ahead and fry them then let them cool completely before freezing. Allow them to come to room temp before reheating them… I usually microwave them to warm them up but you can do a quick sautée in a skillet too!. ~m
Vicki says
Do you think you could use half ground turkey and half ground pork?
Michele says
Yes I do… they may be a little bit dryer if you are using ground turkey breast because of the low fat content, but turkey will absolutely work. ~m
Lyn says
So, where is the VIDEO?
Michele says
The video is right in the recipe card below! How you enjoy it! ~m
Robin says
No link. You can see where it’s supposed to be, but there is no link there.
Michele says
hmmm, Ive checked on my end and when I click all the links in the post and they work. Which one are you looking for and I’d be happy to send it to you! ~m
Larissa Heta says
Yummy, on top of a fresh salad 🙂 Thank you
Madi says
I love these meatballs! The flavors are just so amazing!
Dan from Platter Talk says
These look absolutely amazing! What a fantastic idea for a a fun weekend night with friends; thanks for sharing these!
Madi says
I have to make these soon! I love meatballs and the chinese spin sounds so good!
Michele @ Bacon Fatte says
Ooh! I just Pinned this recipe earlier this week, and now I’m seeing it again… Must be a sign. I need to make these meatballs soon!
Deanna says
Ohhh this looks yummy!! I love meatballs but admit never had an Asian one. That is about to change! I can’t wait to try this!
Sabena Oliver says
Hi, can I bake these?
Michele says
I think they would work fine baked…. Depending on the size… Id try 275° for 15 minutes, then cut into one to see if they are done, or need to be cooked a little longer. ~ Michele
Jennifer A Stewart says
I could make a meal out of meatballs and this glaze is making me drool! That hint of Chinese 5 spice really amps up the flavor!!
Michaela Kenkel says
I could make these little beauties my whole meal!! Thank you for always giving such a wide assortment of recipes on your site. There is always something new and delicious to try!
Sandra Shaffer says
These meatballs are simple and super flavorful! These are perfect little appetizer or heck, this could be my complete meal!
debi at Life Currents says
I’m really interested in this cookbook now. I mean, these meatballs look like reason enough to buy the cookbook. And the sauce on these sounds great!
Sonia says
I just cooked those meatballs, but added half a cup of oats instead of starch, and added chopped capsicum and also large tbsp of corriander paste. I also rolled them in panko crumbs, they were yum. My sauce was a lime, coconut asian sauce.
Michele says
That sauce you used sounds great Sonia! ~michele
[email protected]'s Dinnertime Dish says
These meatballs look delicious and sound so flavorful! They would be great party food!
Debra C. says
These meatballs are so moist, I know they will be amazing! Yes, I definitely need to add this cookbook to my collection!!
Christina Morris says
I made these tonight when I had to change dinner very quickly from Italian (ran out of tomato sauce), to Oriental. They were very good – I’m not big on meatballs per set because I’m not a big lover of red meat – but we all enjoyed these, including me. Great recipe. Thank you.
Michele says
Thanks so much Christina! Im glad you enjoyed them! 😊
Amy says
Made these last night with meatloaf meat mixture. Made into full dinner. Served with rice and Asian Cucumber salad. So delicious!!
Michele says
I love the idea of them for a full dinner! I’ll have to try that too! ~m
Renee - Kudos Kitchen says
Hitting the notes of sweet and salty in every bite is what my taste buds crave. These sound amazing! Love the meatballs and I’m anxious to check out the cookbook!
Samantha says
They were the okay. If I make it again, I’ll try it with ground beef/pork 50/50.
Michele says
That would work too! the beef will give a slightly stronger flavor. ~m
Brenda says
The meatballs were great. Not crazy about the sauce. Didn’t like the fish oil. Will have to experiment for something other than fish oil.brenda
Megan @ MegUnprocessed says
Such a flavorful recipe.
Michele says
They are packed full of flavor, they hit on all sides too,… sweet, salty, umami!
Kristen M Chidsey says
These meatballs look great. I can never have enough meatball recipes.
Linda says
I love meatballs in general and I like to experiment with new influences and flavors! This recipe looks incredibly tasty and I will have to give it a try as soon as possible. Thanks for the inspiration!
Michele says
Im glad you like it Linda! We really enjoyed it too! ~m
Brenda says
The meatballs were great. Not crazy about the sauce. Didn’t like the fish oil. Will have to experiment for something other than fish oil.brenda
Rebecca | Let's Eat Cake says
Love the idea of making healthy Chinese meatballs at home! And, while totally not traditional, I bet these would be great in pasta as well. Thanks for sharing!
Michele says
Now I want to give that a whirl! It would be so different with the sweet sauce too!~M
Nicola @ Happy Healthy Motivated says
These meatballs look amazing! I bet they’re super juicy on the inside, but just the right amount of crisp on the outside. Yum!
Michele says
the crispy edge…. yep, thats my new addiction~. ~m
Suzy says
These meatballs look fantastic! Great twist.