Sweet and Sour Waikiki Meatballs – These tasty meatballs have been a family favorite dinner recipe at my house for years!
My good friend and neighbor brought us these sweet and sour meatballs when I had my son Tyler. He is almost eight years old now, and it has been a family favorite since then!
Some recipes just stand the test of time, and this is one of them. We love the combination of salty meatballs with the sweet sauce. I usually serve them over fluffy white rice, but brown rice is pretty fantastic too.
I usually add my green peppers at the very last minute because I don’t want them to cook, just get warm. I sometimes cut them into large slices so they are easier to pick out. That way the three who don’t like green peppers can give theirs to the three of us who do. 🙂
These meatballs freeze really well. I like to make a double batch, brown all of them, and freeze half in a ziplock bag for another day. On crazy days, I can just pull them out and heat them up for a quick meal.
Here are a few more tasty meatball recipes to try:
MORE GROUND BEEF RECIPES:
- Sweet and Sour Ground Beef
- No Boil Lasagna
- Mexican Ground Beef and Cabbage
- French Bread Sandwich
- Goulash with Rice
- Crockpot Spaghetti Sauce
- Skillet Lasagna
- Ground Beef Stroganoff
- Bacon Cheeseburger Pie
SWEET AND SOUR MEATBALLS WITH PINEAPPLE
Waikiki Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Equipment
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 1 ½ pounds lean ground beef
- ⅔ cup cracker crumbs I use saltines
- 2 Tbsp dry minced onion
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ tsp salt
- ¼ cup milk
Sauce:
- 2 Tbsp cornstarch
- ½ cup brown sugar
- ⅓ cup vinegar
- 1 Tbsp soy sauce
- 1 20 oz can pineapple chunks - save juice
- 1 green pepper sliced or diced
Instructions
- Combine all meatball ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Shape into balls and place on a greased cookie sheet. I like to use a cookie scoop so they all turn out the same size.
- Bake at 400° for about 15-20 or until brown.
- For sauce: Mix cornstarch and sugar in a large pan. Whisk in vinegar, soy sauce, and pineapple juice. Cook and whisk till thickened and boil for 1 minute.
- Add meatballs, and pineapple and heat through. Add green peppers just before serving. Serve over rice.
Nutrition
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I started making these in the mid 70s. Always a great hit. If I recall correctly, I put a small amount of ginger in the meat mixture as well. I wanted to make these again for a gals gathering and just wanted to refresh my memory of the sause. Thank u.
I love the idea of adding a bit of ginger to the meatballs. I’ll have to try that!
How much pineapple juice do you use? It just says add juice.
I just use all the juice I drained from the can of pineapple.
If you bake your meatballs at 325 on parchment paper for for 15 -20 minutes your meatballs will be perfect!
Thanks for the tip Roxanne!