Vietnamese-Style Meatballs with Chili Sauce
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My husband calls these Vietnamese-style meatballs “flavor bombs.” Serve them over rice for a quick weeknight dinner.
My husband calls these Vietnamese-style meatballs with a deliciously bright and pungent sauce “flavor bombs” (which, by the way, is a good thing). They are flavored with fish sauce and soy sauce—two umami-rich condiments commonly used in Vietnamese cooking—along with ginger, lime, spicy Sambal Oelek (not a traditional Vietnamese ingredient, but the spicy, garlicky flavor works so well here), and fresh herbs. They practically explode with flavor. I love them over rice, but they are also delicious wrapped in lettuce cups or served over rice noodles. Be judicious with the chili sauce—a little goes a long way.
Table of Contents
What You’ll Need To Make Vietnamese-Style Meatballs
Step-by-Step Instructions
In a large bowl, combine the eggs, fish sauce, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, scallions, lime zest, cilantro, and mint.
Whisk to combine.
Add the beef, pork, and panko.
Using your hands, mix until evenly combined.
Roll the mixture into golf ball-sized balls and arrange on an unlined baking sheet. The mixture will be a bit sticky; dampen your hands every so often while rolling the meatballs if necessary.
Bake for 25 minutes, flipping once with a metal spatula halfway through the cooking time, until the meatballs are browned and cooked through.
Meanwhile, make the sauce by whisking all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl. Be sure the sugar is completely dissolved and not stuck to the bottom of the bowl.
Serve the meatballs drizzled with the sauce and sprinkled with scallions, cilantro, mint, and peanuts.
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Vietnamese-Style Meatballs with Chili Sauce
My husband calls these Vietnamese-style meatballs “flavor bombs.” Serve them over rice for a quick weeknight dinner.
Ingredients
For the Meatballs
- 2 large eggs
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh ginger (see note)
- ¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 3 scallions, finely chopped (about ¼ cup), plus a few more for serving
- 2 teaspoons lime zest, from 2 limes
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves, plus more for serving
- 3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint, plus more for serving
- ¾ lb 85% lean ground beef
- ¾ lb ground pork
- 1 cup panko
- ½ cup chopped unsalted peanuts, for serving
For the Sauce
- 2 tablespoons Asian chili sauce, such as Sambal Oelek, or Asian chili garlic sauce (available in Asian aisle of most supermarkets)
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- ¼ cup lime juice, from 2 to 3 limes
- ¼ cup sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and set an oven rack in the middle position.
- In a large bowl, combine the eggs, fish sauce, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, scallions, lime zest, cilantro, and mint. Whisk to combine. Add the beef, pork, and panko. Using your hands, mix until evenly combined. Roll the mixture into golf ball-sized balls and arrange on an unlined baking sheet. The mixture will be a bit sticky; dampen your hands every so often while rolling the meatballs if necessary. Bake for 25 minutes, flipping once with a metal spatula halfway through the cooking time, until the meatballs are browned and cooked through. (If the meatballs stick a bit to the pan, simply slide the metal spatula underneath them and they should release.)
- Meanwhile make the sauce by whisking all of the ingredients together in a medium bowl. Be sure the sugar is completely dissolved and not stuck to the bottom of the bowl. Taste and add more chili sauce if desired.
- Serve the meatballs drizzled with the sauce and sprinkled with scallions, cilantro, mint, and peanuts. (Be judicious with the sauce; it's very strong in flavor.)
- Note: Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger here.
- Make Ahead: The meatballs can be made completely ahead of time and refrigerated in a tightly sealed container for 2 to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The meatballs can be frozen for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to serve them, reheat them in the microwave.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 488
- Fat: 29 g
- Saturated fat: 9 g
- Carbohydrates: 27 g
- Sugar: 11 g
- Fiber: 2 g
- Protein: 30 g
- Sodium: 2046 mg
- Cholesterol: 141 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Comments
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This is sooo very good! I followed the recipe as written but did a meatloaf instead! I used the baking instructions from the Italian Meatloaf on this site. Perfect! I absolutely LOVE the flavors in this…I paired with the Asian Ginger Slaw…wonderful! I am using this for meal prep this week and am so happy🤩
These were so good and full of flavor! Everyone loved them. I served them with the perfect jasmine rice recipe. Next time I will make a double batch to freeze for later.
Hi, these stuck like crazy when I tried to flip them. Would they still brown if I used non stick foil? Thanks
Sorry to hear these stuck! It’s fine to use non-stick foil – the meatballs will still brown.
Fabulous as usual, Jenn! Flavor is amazing! Thanks again!
Love to try the Vietnamese Meatballs but concerned about using fish sauce with iodine allergy What could be used as a substitute?
Hi Ramona, There’s no perfect substitute for fish sauce. You can use soy sauce in place of it though. The meatballs will still be good, but won’t have that signature Vietnamese flavor. Hope you enjoy!
Had the opportunity to use mint out of my garden for this recipe. Loved the flavours!
Really great! Perfectly tender, flavorful meatballs and sauce adds a great zing. Paired with some stir-fried veggies- delicious!
I Thickened the sauce a bit and made it into a glaze. These were delicious.
Another home run!
Jenn, my little market that has everything, even pomagranate molasses, does not have asian chili sauce. They have something called sweet chili sauce (Tsang). Is that the same thing or do I have to start hunting?
Hi Carol, Sriracha would be a decent substitute here. Hope you enjoy!
I couldn’t find fish sauce at the store. What do you recommend I use in place of fish sauce. (Fish sauce is also not my favorite. )
Hi Kristine, There’s no perfect substitute for fish sauce. You can use soy sauce in place of. The meatballs will still be good, but won’t have that signature Vietnamese flavor. Hope you enjoy!
This was delicious! While I don’t often cook, I decided to try this out and they are indeed full of flavor, I do think that adding the sauce makes a big difference as well. I was able to freeze them and have them ready for dinner, and these are also toddler approved! <3 Delicious!
five stars!
“Flavor bombs” for sure. Made these the first time for me and my fiancée, who is a chef himself, and they came out amazing. Recently, we had a dinner party of 6 people and I thought these would be great to serve. We served them on the table and our guests were able to add what they like. We had lettuce cups and jasmine rice along with the chili sauce, crushed peanuts and scallions. Everyone either made them with lettuce cups, rice or both. They were a big hit with everyone. What I like about this dish is that it can be served as an appetizer or you can make it into a meal. As for the prep-there are quite a number of ingredients (which is common in Vietnamese style dishes) which does make this a little more time consuming (have to get better with my knife skills;) However, it is worth it, because they are so flavorful! This is one of my favorite recipes by Jen. Some of my other favorites are the turkey meatloaf, potato leek soup, corn with lime, sugar, cilantro and baked ziti.
I made this recipe exactly as written and my family LOVED it. My kids gobbled them up. I was worried that the peanuts would seem weird to them but actually really liked them. The sauce has just the right amount of kick. I served them with rice and a salad.
I like Vietnamese dishes and I can handle subtle fish sauce flavor, but when I was making this recipe the fish sauce smell was overpowering. I was hoping the smell and flavor would be more subtle once the meatballs cooked, but it was overpowering. I would recommend this recipe for anyone who loves the taste of fish sauce. My 2 year old devoured the meatballs but the rest of the family wasn’t a fan. I’m sure it had partly to do with the brand I used – Polar Fish Sauce maybe is just too pungent?
Hi Lea Ann, sorry you found these to be disappointing! There is a lot of variation in brands of fish sauce. If you need fish sauce again for a recipe, the brand I like best is Red Boat. I buy it at Whole Foods. 🙂
This was delicious and full of flavor! I made a few adjustments: honey instead of sugar, buffalo instead of beef, and added cucumber at the end to brighten the dish. Would definitely make again!
Hi Jenn,
Do you think these meatballs would be good on the BBQ, or do you get the best results in the oven? If the BBQ is a go, what temp and time would you recommend? We have our first really beautiful weekend coming up here and I would love to do these on the grill!
Thanks!
Hi Bry, I think these would be fabulous on the grill. I’d follow the instructions from this grilled meatball recipe. Hope that helps!
Made these meatballs following your other recipes BBQ instructions and they were great! Made with the suggested sides of jasmine rice and thai crunch salad (which we have enjoyed many times). I also made a half batch of the meatballs with only 1 teaspoon of fish sauce for my 10 month old (to reduce the salt) and he loved them! The leftovers will be going into the freezer for easy weekday meals. Thanks Jenn!
I made these meatballs tonight – followed the recipe exactly and they were AMAZING! Especially the sauce which you pour over at the end, with the peanuts – incredibly tasty! Thanks Jenn – this one’s a keeper.
Absolutely AMAZING! These are so flavourful. Really loving the step by step layout of your recipes. I’ve been trying a new one each Sunday for the last few months and every recipe is a hit! Thank you thank you!
Made it without the cilantro and peanuts. Also made the chilli garlic sauce from scratch but all in all, they live up to their flavour bomb promise. Ate with some German mashed potatoes for a filling brunch. Highly recommended.
Oh I hate doing this but…………I had such high hopes for this recipe. I followed it exactly but the over-powering flavour of the fish sauce totally ruined it. The meatballs & the sauce would have been so much better without the fish sauce, there was just too much of it. So sorry I didn’t like it.
These meatballs were fantastic. Never disappointed with your recipes, Jenn. The only thing I did different was to cut the Asian Chili Garlic sauce to 1 tablespoon (rather than 2) because of your comment about using the sauce judiciously. It was pleasantly spicy enough for everyone. Served over white rice. We all loved it.
As usual, this was a great recipe. However, as much as our family loved the meatballs, the sauce was WAY TOO SALTY. Not sure of the culprit-probably fish sauce or soy sauce. Next time I’d flavor adjust the sauce and probably use far less soy. Otherwise, YUM!!
I’m dying to try these, but is there a different item that you can use in place of lime (or lemon)?
Thanks!
Hi Sam, you can just leave the zest out of the meatballs and replace the lime juice with rice vinegar in the sauce. Hope you enjoy!
What do you think about substituting ground oatmeal for the panko? Thanks.
Sure, Dianne, I think that should work. Enjoy!
Amazing ! Thank you for this recipe, even my husband loved it and he normally do not like asian dishes. This is a new favorite! I left the mint out since I am normally not a fan of that in cooking but I will try it next time.
Amazing. Made them as written with the exception of the peanuts. Great, as usual. If I wanted to omit the pork, what is the best meat option?
Glad you enjoyed! I’d use more beef. 🙂
These meatballs are wonderfully flavorful. I made smaller meatballs as an appetizer for a holiday party. I served them in a mini crock pot with some of the sauce in the bottom of the pot and more on the side for dipping. It was a huge hit!
Absolutely delicious recipe! I prepared it exactly as written. I served mine with roasted riced cauliflower ( to sop up all the amazing sauce). I also roasted green beans in olive oil, tossed them in a bit of the sauce when I removed them from the oven, and added them to our bowl of meatballs and cauliflower rice. So so good!!
This was outstanding! My kids are half Vietnamese and they said “this tastes just like Grandma and Grandpa made it”! Couldn’t find mint so didn’t use it. Served with eggrolls and jasmine rice. This is a 5 star recipe. I will double it next time.
So am I correct in saying that you don’t heat the sauce up. You just serve as is over warm meatballs and rice
Correct! (Although feel free to heat it up if you’d prefer it warm.)
Delicious! I made this tonight for me and my husband and I wish I doubled the recipe so we could have more. I could not find fish sauce at our local grocery so I used oyster sauce instead, gave it a sweet flavor.
Also I cheated a little and used a garlic hosin VH sauce to drizzle on top of the meatballs instead of the recipe sauce which I’m sure is delicious.
I found these meatballs dry. could i use less panko?
Hi Pat, you could decrease the panko a little, but if you decrease it too much, the meatballs won’t stick together and will get tough. Try cutting it back by a few tablespoons and see if that helps. You may also want to remove the meatballs from the oven a minute or two earlier. Hope that helps!
Don’t use lean meat. That’s probably why they were dry.
Delicious! I do add Sriracha, extra nam pla and homemade lemongrass paste to mine. I love them over jasmine rice topped with the mint/cilantro/scallion/jalepeno slices/crushed peanuts and a homemade Sriracha Lime mayo!
I make these about once a month, I’m always craving them!
Oh, I also add Vietnamese pickled carrot and daikon to my bowl as well!
These were delicious! I don’t usually like bothering with so many ingredients with my little kiddos whirl wind around the house but it was worth it! I did not have fresh ginger so I substituted about of teaspoon of dried. Probably could have used more dried ginger as I didn’t detect much. I had to be careful to measure the sauce ingredients; I have to take extra care to not be sloppy with tart / sugar combinations it or needs tweaking. So be sure to measure lime and sugar exactly! I used RedBoat fish sauce this time; I’ve used Dynasty brand in the past which smelled foul fishy rather than dank fishy ( I mean dank in a good way ;)) so buy the better fish sauce! Will make these again and double the recipe next time.
This was awesome. I made it with the recommended side dish – the fruit in ginger sauce thingy shown in the pics. My wife took one bite of the first meatball and said, “This is an 11”, which reminded me of Spinal Tap. She was so jazzed that she tweeted a pic of the meal, with a link to this website to be polite about it LOL Well, here it is: https://twitter.com/blitherbabble/status/1080988355255590912 . Anyway, I made the dish precisely to the recipe, which I rarely do, and it came out perfectly. Like, seriously perfectly. I wouldn’t change a thing. Can’t wait to have it again.
These were really good. I was a bit alarmed at the amount of fish sauce because i usually only use very little in other recipes(1/2-1tsp) and its well, pungent, but i proceeded lol and did not regret it. I love big flavor and these babies brought it. I used a Leaner ground beef because thats all i had but mixed with the pork ,i think,helped it not come out too dense or dry.
I have made these meatballs several times. I love the fresh mix of flavors! I recently made these meatballs slightly smaller and served them along with the dipping sauce as an appetizer. It was the hit of the party!
Can these be made with other meats than pork?
Sure, Jennifer – you could use veal, beef or chicken.
Made the meatballs and they are delicious. The sauce however, was so. salty. it couldn’t be used. Even tried boiling it with potatoes to reduce the saltiness with no luck. Any thoughts on why this could have been? Would tripling the recipe have made a difference?
Hi Diana, Sorry you found the sauce too salty. I don’t think you did anything wrong; this is a salty, strongly flavored sauce and it is meant to be used sparingly – a drizzle is all you need.
So so yummy and full of flavor! I was excited for leftovers!
We have served these wonderful meatballs over rice and also as part of a “banh mi” bar at parties – with pickled veggies, sriracha mayo, fresh jalapeno, cilantro, etc. Always a huge hit! We love “big” flavors” and the only changes we generally make are to increase the garlic and ginger as well as adding fresh chopped basil to the meatballs. Basil, mint, and cilantro are kind of a trinity for us when cooking with this flavor profile.
Just made these… I had to improvise a little because i didnt have all the ingredients, but it still turned out DELICIOUS…. I used lemon juice instead of lime, dried parsley and dried coriander for cilantro, jarred ginger, red onion instead of green onions, and I only used beef, no pork. So yummy even without the sauce.
Utterly awesome. Made the recipe as offered. Couldn’t have been more pleased. Truly “flavor bombs.” Thank you for another new item in our regular rotation. I am thrilled with this new recipe!!
so I loved all of the flavor in these meatballs but my family wasn’t wild about them because they were dry. Did I cool them for too long? The ground meat I used was the ground by my husband so I don’t know the fat content. Would adding some whole milk yogurt help?
The ground beef could’ve been the culprit if it didn’t have enough fat. Also, if you left the meatballs out uncovered for a while, that may have contributed to their dryness. (I don’t think adding yogurt is necessary.) Hope that helps!
Oh Fish Sauce. How I loathe you. Every brand I try, every bottle I open… sigh. (Or don’t, as the smell… it just creeps me out.)
This recipe is, as all of your recipes are, wonderful.
However: Fish Sauce. Do you have a recommended brand because Thai Kitchen, Tasty Thai… three other bottles from the local import store written in the appropriate language which I am not learned enough to read and asked what was a best fish sauce… yeah… none of them seem to add the depth and saltiness you are going for without the overpowering dead fish smell I seem unable to shake.
That said, don’t be deterred anyone else. These are awesome, my spouse and KIDS gobbled them up, but they weren’t here when I made them and perhaps that is my entire problem.
FISH SAUCE. I KNOW WHAT YOU ARE.
Hi Karin, They are all pretty stinky but if you can find Red Boat, that’s the best one. I just saw it at Whole Foods. 🙂
Word of the Day: Judicious
I love it! Great recipe! I’m happy I was and used low sodium soy sauce. Came out great for us high blood pressure ridden lot. Thank you for a new dish to put in rotation.
Ha!
Very flavorful and tasty! Would make double and freeze half next time. Only negative would be that we found them a bit salty. Maybe will try with low sodium soy next time, or a different brand fish sauce.
This recipe is so bomb! Thank you for sharing with us chef. I was wondering if there’s any way to incorporate the sauce into the meatballs?
Glad you like these, Santiago! I don’t really think there’s a way to incorporate the sauce into the meatballs – I’d just stick with drizzling it on top.
Any tips on making these meatballs in bulk and more importantly, in advance? Would love to make these for a potluck!
Hi Jamie, Depending upon how far in advance you want to make these, they can be refrigerated or frozen. They can be made completely ahead of time and refrigerated in a tightly sealed container for 2 to 3 days. Reheat them in the microwave. They can also be frozen for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to serve them, reheat them in the microwave.
My husband made a declaration that these meatballs were the best thing ever to be cooked in our kitchen! Thank you for restoring my spouses faith in my cooking. Sometimes I hit, sometimes I miss, and I’m delighted to say that everything I’ve made off of this website has been a hit out of the ballpark. I’m loving cooking again. Much appreciated.
☺️
My grocery store doesn’t have Asian chili sauce and I’m dying to make this recipe! Do you think I could use sweet chili sauce instead?
Actually, I think I better substitute would be sriracha (and you could also add some red pepper flakes for heat. Hope you enjoy the meatballs!