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Coconut Meatballs with Sweet-Sour Sauce

This recipe for Coconut Meatballs with Sweet-Sour Sauce is the kind of dish you can serve for a festive family party during the holidays or just be a meal by itself on weekends. This recipe used slivers of coconut meat mixed into the meatballs. Typically, in the Philippines, it is easy to find fresh coconuts and grate the fresh meat for use in this recipe. But since I live in suburban New Jersey with no fresh coconut trees around me, then I used the frozen coconut meat, which are easy to find in Asian markets. The familiar favorite agrio-dulce or sweet-sour sauce poured all over the baked meatballs makes this an enticing-looking entrée that will be forever on your holiday menu. This recipe was adapted from the Coconut Kitchen Appetizers and Main Dishes Cookbook by Regina Tolentino Newport (Anvil Publishing Philippines). Serves 4 to 6. This recipe makes about 30 pieces of one-inch sized meatballs.
Cook Time45 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Course: Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
Cuisine: Asian, Filipino
Keyword: Coconut Meatballs Sweet-sour Sauce
Servings: 4 people
Author: Asian in America

Equipment

  • Large sheet pan
  • Large sauce pan: 12 to 14 inches diameter

Ingredients

  • 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 1/2 pound ground pork
  • 1/2 cup shredded coconut meat fresh or frozen (if using frozen, thaw and drain liquid)
  • 1/2 cup diced onion
  • 3 stalks scallion whites chopped
  • 3 whole eggs beaten
  • 1 Tablespoon breadcrumbs regular-flavored
  • 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper powder
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup coconut vinegar
  • 1/2 cup pineapple juice
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 1 Tablespoon coconut or vegetable oil
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon fresh grated ginger
  • 1/2 cup sliced onions
  • 1/2 cup sliced carrots sliced in strips
  • 1 cup sliced red or green bell peppers sliced in strips
  • 10 whole cherry tomatoes sliced in halves
  • 1/2 cup pineapple chunks fresh or canned (if canned use the juice for the sauce)
  • 1/4 cup tomato ketchup
  • 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
  • 2 Tablespoons water for dissolving cornstarch
  • 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh parsley for garnish
  • 4 to 6 slices fresh cucumber for garnish
  • for serving: boiled rice

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 F. Prepare a large baking sheet or a half sheet pan measuring 18 x 13 inches with a 1/2-inch height on the sides ( or use 2 quarter sheet pans of 9 x 13 inches) and line each pan with parchment or baking paper. Set aside.
  • To make the meatballs: In a large mixing bowl, combine the meatball ingredients: ground beef and pork, shredded coconut, onion, scallions, eggs, breadcrumbs, flour, salt and black pepper. Incorporate ingredients well. Shape the meat into 1-inch sized meatballs and arrange them in rows, half an inch apart, on the baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes till meatballs are cooked. Take out of the oven and set aside.
  • To make the sweet-sour sauce: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, whisk together the sugar, vinegar, pineapple juice and water. Mix well and set aside.
  • Over medium heat, in a large-sized saucepan, sauté the garlic and ginger for two minutes. Add the onions and carrots. Continue cooking for four minutes more. To this mixture, add the bell peppers, tomatoes and pineapple chunks. Stir and cook for 2 minutes more.
  • Add the ketchup into the saucepan. Combine with the rest of the ingredients.
  • Pour the vinegar-flour mixture. In about 3 to 5 minutes, the whole sauce mixture comes to a boil. Add the cornstarch mixed with water. Lower heat to a simmer and cook for 2 minutes more. Stir to make sure there are no lumps and sauce is smooth but thick.
  • Place the baked meatballs into this saucepan with the sweet-sour sauce. Simmer for about 2 minutes. Turn off heat and plate the dish on a large serving platter. Garnish with sprigs of fresh parsley and cucumber slices. Serve warm with rice.
  • Cook's Comments: You can also bake the meatballs ahead and freeze them. On the day you serve it, thaw then heat the meatballs into the simmering sweet-sour sauce. In the original recipe, the author used coconut flour (for the meatballs) and coconut sugar (for the sweet-sour sauce). Feel free to use these coconut-based ingredients if available. I have added these ingredients to my Amazon affiliate links above the recipe for your shopping convenience.
  • About the Author and her cookbook: Maria Regina "Regee" Tolentino Newport is a Cordon Bleu graduate (summa cum laude) of the Orlando Culinary Academy in Florida. Her decision to attend culinary school was a huge career change after retirement from the International Monetary Fund in Washington D.C. Regee founded and served as the first president of the Culinary Historians of the Philippines (CHOP), a Manila-based non-profit organization dedicated to the study, preservation and promotion of the culinary heritage of the Philippines. She divides her time between Manila and Washington D.C. Ms. Newport's cookbook "Coconut Kitchen" brings many ways to make appetizers and main dishes healthy and delicious. Her cookbook features coconut-based recipes the author developed as well as from prominent personalities in the Philippine culinary world.
  • How to purchase this cookbook: If you're in the Philippines, this cookbook is available where most books are sold. If you live in the United States, please email the author at [email protected] to purchase a copy.
  • Disclosure: This is not and ad and I was not paid to review this cookbook. This was a personal purchase I made. I will gladly recommend this cookbook to anyone who enjoys coconut-based recipes of Filipino dishes. Photographs of the book and the recipe are by me.
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  • Disclosure: As a participant in the Amazon Affiliate program, some blog posts contain links to products used in the recipe and sold on Amazon. The price stays the same for the readers who wish to purchase these products on my links. I earn a small commission from Amazon which helps maintain the blog expenses. Thanks in advance for your support.