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These Asian Pork Meatball Bowls are packed with umami flavor! The tender pork meatballs are drizzled with a sticky, slightly sweet glaze and served over a delicious fried “rice”. This entire meal comes together in less than 30 minutes!
I love a good fake-out takeout meal, and this one may be on top of my list after trying it out this week! The ingredient list may look long, but I bet you already have most of the spices and sauce ingredients in your pantry. There are a couple different moving parts involved here, but I promise this meal comes together quickly. I’ve tried to write out the instructions in the most efficient, multi-tasking way possible 🙂
What Ingredients do I need to make these Asian Pork Meatball Bowls?
Chances are you already have a lot of this in your freezer and pantry! You can also serve the meatballs over rice noodles, regular rice, or anything else that you want! I get a lot of my pantry staples at Thrive Market (all linked below) – it’s a great way to save on everyday healthier items. Think Whole Foods meets Costco!
- Ground Pork
- Almond Flour – I like to get a big bag of certified gluten free almond flour at Costco, or on Thrive Market.
- Coconut aminos – this is a gluten free/Whole30 friendly soy sauce replacement. It is slightly sweet and delicious when used in Asian-inspired dishes.
- Rice vinegar – also sold in most stores!
- Toasted sesame oil – I absolutely love the flavor of this! you can also use regular sesame oil if it’s all you can find.
- Red Boat Fish Sauce – you can substitute salt if you can’t find this, but I think it adds amazing flavor to Asian dishes. It can be found in most stores!
- Honey – omit this for Whole30. I love the sweetness this adds to the sauce!
- Arrowroot Powder – This acts as a Whole30 and paleo approved thickener. It’s a great substitute for corn starch!
Stocking up on these essentials and having them on hand makes it really easy to whip together a fun, quick Asian inspired meal any night of the week!
You can also use ground turkey, chicken, or beef to make these meatballs.
Can I make these into an appetizer?
You sure can! Double the meatball and sauce portion of this recipe and you’ve got yourself a great Super Bowl appetizer this weekend!
Looking for some other fun Whole30 meatball recipes? Check out my Whole30 Meatball Stroganoff or Oven Baked Prosciutto Meatballs!
Ok, let’s get cookin’!
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Asian Pork Meatball Bowls (Whole30, Paleo)
Ingredients
Asian Pork Meatballs
- 1 lb ground pork , I like Butcher Box
- 1 egg
- ¼ cup almond flour
- 1 tbsp coconut aminos, 1
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp crushed red pepper
Fried "Rice"
- 2 tbsp sesame oil
- ½ onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 12 oz bag frozen cauliflower rice, pound on it so there are no large chunks!
- 1 bag coleslaw mix , (green cabbage, purple cabbage, carrots)
- ¼ cup coconut aminos
- ½ tsp sea salt, more or less to taste
Sticky Sauce
- ¾ cup coconut aminos
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
- ½ tsp Red Boat Fish Sauce
- ½ tsp ground ginger
- 1 tbsp honey, omit for Whole30
- 2 tsp arrowroot powder
- 2 tbsp water
Garnish
- diced green onion
- sesame seeds
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine all of the meatball ingredients in a large bowl and mix well using your hands. Form into 2 inch meatballs. You should have 12 total per lb of pork. Place the balls on the baking sheet, and bake for 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, gather your fried "rice" ingredients. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and add in the onion and garlic. Saute for 2-3 minutes until fragrant. Add in the frozen cauliflower rice, coleslaw mix, coconut aminos, and salt. Stir to combine. Cover and let it cook, stirring occasionally, for 5-7 minutes.
- While the fried "rice" is cooking, add all of the sticky sauce ingredients (except for the arrowroot/water mixture) to a small saucepan. Mix the arrowroot powder and water together in another small bowl. Bring the sauce ingredients to a boil, then whisk in the arrowroot slurry mixture. Keep whisking for approximately 1 minute until thickened. Set aside until you're ready to use it.
- Take the meatballs out of the oven and serve them over the fried "rice" with the sauce spooned over top. Add green onions and sesame seeds, if desired!
Notes
Nutrition
All nutrition facts are an estimate and automatically calculated. While I fact check them using My Fitness Pal, please note that they may not always be 100% accurate and depend on ingredients used. Weigh your total and divide by the number of servings for the most accurate grams per serving size.
So good. The sauce is delicious. The meatballs are so tender. You won’t believe it’s whole 30. I make this even when we’re not doing whole 30 because it’s that good.
I’m so confused on the portion size. It says one serving is one meatball?? That doesn’t seem right. Does that include the rice. I haven’t tried the recipe yet, but it looks amazing. I have to eat a very strict low carb diet and I’m just not quite sure how to calculate this one.
Hi Brenda – So sorry about that! It was an error. I have calculated it correctly so the nutrition facts now reflect 1/4 of the total recipe. So, one serving is approximately 3 meatballs, 1/4 of the total sauce, and 1/4 of the total rice mixture.
So delicious 😋 I love Asian flavors but so unhealthy to eat out. This recipe is so much better than any restaurant! Easy to make and so much flavor
Thanks Nicole!
Quick, easy and yummy!
Thanks Maggie!
Delicious! We loved the sticky sauce.
Oh wow! This has so much flavor! EXCELLENT!
The meal was yummy. Not a huge fan of the sticky sauce. It was too intense for me.
I liked the cauliflower rice with the slaw. It was a nice texture and lighter than rice.
I made it basically as written. Easy and yummy! Thanks!