Loosely based on Chinese sweet and sour chicken, these sweet and sour meatballs are always an instant hit! I’ve made these when I wanted to make a quick tasty meal. Or, even if I’m going to a party and have to bring a dish to share. Just toss on top of some cauliflower rice for a complete meal, or serve the meatballs using some toothpicks for a snack.
I wanted to create a simple meatball recipe to go with the sauce. I kept the meatballs simple by using parmesan cheese and onion powder to flavor them. For the sweet and sour sauce, I opted to use apple cider vinegar in place of rice vinegar. And I added a little more sugar free ketchup to increase the tanginess. The sauce can be made by almost anyone – with common low-carb ingredients that are in most people’s kitchen!
To thicken the sauce, I whisked in a small amount of xanthan gum. You can use more or less depending on the consistency you desire. The trick is to slowly whisk in the xanthan gum, and wait a few minutes before adding more in. It will thicken faster than you know it, and you don’t want to over do it.
Yields 5 servings of Low Carb Sweet and Sour Meatballs
The Preparation
Meatballs:
- 16 ounces ground beef
- 1 large egg
- 1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
Sweet & Sour Sauce:
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons soy sauce, or coconut aminos
- 1/3 cup low-carb ketchup
- 1 cup erythritol
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
The Execution
1. In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, egg, parmesan, and onion powder. Mix together by hand.
2. Use a tablespoon to measure out and shape the meatballs.
3. Preheat a saucepan over medium heat. Add the meatballs and cook until browned on the outside (if they're still slightly pink in the middle, that's okay for now). Set aside.
4. In the same saucepan, add the water, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, sugar-free ketchup, and erythritol. Whisk until the sauce comes together. Slowly whisk in the xanthan gum. Add only a little at a time, waiting a couple minutes in between to make sure it thickens first. Lower the temperature and let the sauce simmer on low.
5. After a couple of minutes, check the sauce for the desired consistency. Run a spoon through the sauce to see whether it coats the back — a properly thickened sauce will not immediately run back together. Add the meatballs and let simmer on low for 10 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through.
6. Serve and enjoy!
This makes a total of 5 servings of Low-Carb Sweet & Sour Meatballs. Each serving comes out to be 293 calories, 20.6g fats, 1.9g net carbs, and 19.6g protein.
| NUTRITION | CALORIES | FAT | CARBS | FIBER | NET CARBS | PROTEIN |
| 16 ounce ground beef | 1152 | 90.7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 77.9 |
| 1 large egg | 79 | 5.2 | 0.4 | 0 | 0.4 | 6.9 |
| 1/4 cup parmesan cheese | 108 | 7.2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9.6 |
| 1/2 teaspoon onion powder | 4 | 0 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 0.1 |
| 1 1/2 cup water | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar | 13 | 0 | 0.6 | 0 | 0.6 | 0 |
| 3 tablespoon soy sauce | 25 | 0.3 | 2.4 | 0.4 | 2 | 3.9 |
| 1/3 cup low-carb ketchup | 48 | 0.1 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 1 cup erythritol | 38 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum | 8 | 0 | 1.8 | 1.8 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 1474 | 103.5 | 12.1 | 2.4 | 9.7 | 98.4 |
| Per Serving (/5) | 295 | 20.7 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 19.7 |
Low-Carb Sweet & Sour Meatballs
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 16 ounce ground beef
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese grated
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
Sweet & Sour Sauce:
- 1 ½ cup water
- ¼ cup apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoon soy sauce or coconut aminos
- ⅓ cup low-carb ketchup
- 1 cup erythritol
- ½ teaspoon xanthan gum
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground beef, egg, parmesan, and onion powder. Mix together by hand.
- Use a tablespoon to measure out and shape the meatballs.
- Preheat a saucepan over medium heat. Add the meatballs and cook until browned on the outside (if they're still slightly pink in the middle, that's okay for now). Set aside.
- In the same saucepan, add the water, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, sugar-free ketchup, and erythritol. Whisk until the sauce comes together. Slowly whisk in the xanthan gum. Add only a little at a time, waiting a couple minutes in between to make sure it thickens first. Lower the temperature and let the sauce simmer on low.
- After a couple of minutes, check the sauce for the desired consistency. Run a spoon through the sauce to see whether it coats the back — a properly thickened sauce will not immediately run back together. Add the meatballs and let simmer on low for 10 minutes or until the meatballs are cooked through.
- Serve and enjoy!
