Teriyaki Meatballs with Stir Fry Vegetables and Rice

Credit: Catherine Roscoe Barr

Catherine Roscoe Barr

Try something different with your stir fry, like these teriyaki meatballs

Don’t be daunted by all the rolling, meatballs are an easy DIY option for dinner tonight

The other night I had the rare pleasure of leisurely sipping a beer while my husband and his friend made us dinner. These fellows are known for their stir fry savvy, and this one certainly didn’t disappoint.

Meatballs were a nice change from our usual chicken or beef strips, and they were so fresh and scrumptious because they were made from scratch, which was (or looked, I should say) pretty darn easy.

I absolutely love stir fried vegetables but there’s something about their preparation that eludes me – I can never get it right (even though my husband assures me they are great, I seldom like my results). And why would I bother to perfect my stir fry craft when a perfectly capable soul lives under my own roof?

You could experiment with so many versions of this meal by using a different mix of vegetables and/or a different sauce. On my list for future meatball sauces: black bean sauce, hoisin sauce, ginger sauce, and red curry sauce.

Serve this dish with healthy, nourishing brown rice. We had it with white rice but that’s only because I wasn’t in charge.

Meatballs

Ingredients

• 500g extra lean ground beef
• 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 1 egg
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tbsp ginger, grated
• 2 tsp vegetable oil
• 1 bottle thick teriyaki sauce (we used the Golden Dragon brand)

Instructions

1. In large bowl, add meat, breadcrumbs, onion, egg, garlic and ginger, mixing well to combine.
2. Roll mixture into 1-inch balls and place on a cookie sheet.
3. Refrigerate for 30 mins.
4. In large frying pan, heat oil over medium-high heat.
5. Cook meatballs until just brown, inside should be still be pink.
6. Add teriyaki sauce, bring to a boil, then lower to simmer, cover and cook for 30 minutes.

Vegetables

Ingredients

• 6 mushrooms, sliced
• 1 red pepper, chopped
• 1 head broccoli, chopped
• 2 carrots, chopped
• 1 cup bean sprouts
• 2 tsp oil
• 1/2 cup vegetable stock
• 1 tbsp sweet chili sauce

Instructions

1. Heat oil in wok over medium-high heat and add carrots and broccoli, stirring constantly for 4 minutes.
2. Add stock, continuing to stir, and bring to boil.
3. Add chili sauce, red pepper and sprouts, cooking until red peppers are hot.