Sweet and sour is one of my favorite combinations. It is so appetizing to the taste buds tastes great. Making this instant pot sweet and sour meatballs recipe is nostalgic to my childhood, when my family made sweet and sour pork growing up. This isn't your traditional tomato sauce Italian meatball, but it's a great way to have some Asian flavors on the weekly menu. My family loved this great recipe.
Ground Meat is Affordable. My boys eat a ton and I always feel like I don't cook enough unless it's pasta of course which I feel like I cook enough for an army. Ok, I digress. But it gets pretty expensive to feed boys who eat me out of my house and home. Ground meat is affordable and is a great way to feed big appetites.
Why You'll Love This Meatballs With Veggies Recipe
- Hidden Veggies - Parents with picky eaters rejoice! Cut your vegetables finely enough and your little one may not notice.
- Healthier ingredients - I swapped out arrowroot starch instead of cornstarch and liquid aminos instead of soy sauce. All better for you ingredients. These don't have breadcrumbs and you won't need to look high and low for any gluten free breadcrumbs either. This isn't grain free though.
- Instant Pot Friendly - you won't need to preheat your oven, just cook them in your pressure cooker.
How to Make These Gluten Free Meatballs
First, grab all your ingredients, so you won't miss an ingredient. This step is optional, but it saves me time and the headache of forgetting something.
Now you'll want to grab a large bowl and mix together arrowroot starch and the vinegar. See substitutions below for arrowroot starch.
Next, in another bowl add honey, garlic powder, orange juice and aminos and set aside.
After that, in a separate mixing bowl, combine the ground pork and ground beef. For those not wanting to add pork, just use ground beef or even ground turkey.
Then you'll want to fold in the oats and broccoli. Tip: Make sure the broccoli floret is finely chopped and free of the stalk portion. This is my secret to moist meatballs without having to search for gluten free bread crumbs. Mix until just combined.
Finally, you'll want to add the eggs until thoroughly combined and well incorporated.
Now comes the fun part! Form the ground meat mixture into balls. I make my meatballs roughly 2 ounce portions. I like to use a cookie scooper to make equal size meatballs.
Turn your instant pot on sauté mode and brown the meatballs in the coconut oil.
It's time to make things saucy. Pour orange juice into the instant pot with meatballs, along with the sliced bell peppers and green onions. I added ¼ cup onions, but you may increase it to ½ cup if you like them!
Lastly, cover the pot with the lid and cook on pressure cook setting for 8-9 minutes.
After venting, remove lid and cook on the sauté setting for another 2-3 minutes or until the sauce is reduced to desired thickness. Garnish with fresh green onions and sesame seeds. Serve over rice or spaghetti squash and enjoy!
Cook's Tips To Make Gluten Free Meatballs
- Add additional finely chopped vegetables like spinach or carrots for even more nutrition
- Feel free to omit ground pork if you prefer.
- Split these meatballs in half, and top them with marinara sauce and parmesan cheese.
- You can also put these cooked meatballs in the slow cooker on low for an hour or less with some barbeque sauce.
FAQ:
- What is arrowroot powder?
- It is a white, flavorless powder used to thicken sauces, soups and other foods.
- It is gluten free and paleo
- What can I substitute arrowroot powder with?
- You can use cornstarch
- Can I substitute the pork and beef with ground turkey?
- Yes you can, just make sure the internal temp is 165F to assure doneness.
- What can I use instead of aminos?
- Yes, you can use tamari or soy sauce, but as you probably already know aminos has no gluten.
Instant Pot Sweet and Sour Meatballs
Equipment
- Pressure Cooker
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot starch or cornstarch
- ¼ cup vinegar
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 cup orange juice
- ¾ cup liquid amino’s or soy sauce
- 8 ounces ground pork sausage
- 16 ounces ground beef 90/10
- 1 ¼ cup raw broccoli florets finely chopped
- ⅓ cup oats
- 2 eggs
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 yellow bell pepper sliced
- 1 red bell pepper sliced
- ¼ cup green onions chopped
- Green onions for garnish
- Sesame seeds for garnish
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl whisk together the arrowroot starch and the vinegar.
- Next add honey, garlic powder, orange juice and amino’s. Set aside.
- In a separate mixing bowl combine the ground pork sausage and ground beef.
- Fold in the oats and broccoli. Make sure the broccoli floret is finely chopped and free of the stalk portion.
- Add eggs and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Form into meatballs. I did roughly 2 ounce portions.
- Brown meatballs in the coconut oil on ‘sauté mode’.
- Pour orange juice mixture into the instant pot with meatballs, along with the sliced bell peppers and green onions.
- Cover with the lid and cook on the ‘pressure cook’ setting for 8-9 minutes.
- After venting, remove lid and cook on the sauté setting for 2-3 minutes or until the sauce is reduced to desired thickness. Garnish with fresh green onions and sesame seeds. Serve over rice and enjoy.
Notes
Nutrition
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