How to make slow cooker teriyaki meatballs (video)
Teriyaki sauce. It's sticky, it's sweet, it's tangy. It's everything you need in a sauce. Pouring it over meatballs and letting it all slowly cook together really "beefs" up the flavor of the sauce, and finishing everything off with a sprinkling of sesame seeds and green onions makes this dish a true masterpiece.
Recipes for teriyaki sauce in the slow cooker typically call for cooking the sauce first, and then pouring it over the meatballs. We didn't want to do that to you. One of the best parts of a slow cooker, after all, is being able to toss everything in and walk away. This recipe lets you do just that.
2 pounds (900 g) frozen or fresh beef meatballs (1-inch or mini ½-inch meatballs)
⅓ cup (85 ml) soy sauce
¼ cup (60 ml) water
¼ cup (60 ml) pineapple juice
2 tablespoons (30 ml) hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon (15 ml) rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons (30 ml) honey
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon (15 ml) grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 green onions, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon (15 ml) toasted sesame seeds
Make a slurry by mixing together water and cornstarch.
Place meatballs in a 6-quart slow cooker. In a large bowl, whisk together slurry, soy sauce, pineapple juice, hoisin sauce, rice wine vinegar, honey, garlic and ginger. Pour over meatballs.
Place lid on slow cooker, set heat to low and cook for 4 hours.
Stir meatballs and sauce together before removing meatballs and placing on a platter. Sprinkle with green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
Pro tip: To make this recipe even healthier, prepare your own meatballs from scratch first and leave them in the freezer. This can also be a great way to swap out the beef meatballs for turkey or chicken!
Note: All slow cookers are a little bit different in temperature and calibration. This recipe was tested in Cooktop Cove's Test Kitchen using this slow cooker, which is available for purchase here.
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