Pineapple Meatballs

  • Prep Time: 25 mins
  • Total Time: 1 hrs 25 mins
  • Servings: 6
  • About This Recipe

    “This is a family favourite; my teenage son eats at least 2 servings himself. Cooking time includes the browning of the meatballs, although you can brown them in the oven on a cookie sheet and make the sauce at the same time, saving yourself a little time.”

    Ingredients

    Meatballs

  • 2lbslean ground beef
  • 2largeeggs
  • 1/2 cupfine dry breadcrumb
  • 1teaspoonsalt
  • 1/4 teaspoonfreshly ground black pepper
  • 1 1/2 teaspoonsWorcestershire sauce
  • 1/4 teaspoongarlic powder
  • Sauce

  • 1cuppacked brown sugar
  • 3tablespoonscornstarch
  • 1 3/4 cupsreserved pineapple juice, plus water if necessary to measure( it will be)
  • 1/4 cupwhite vinegar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoonssoy sauce
  • 1 1/2 teaspoonsWorcestershire sauce
  • 1 (14ounce) cans pineapple tidbits, juice drained and reserved( see above)
  • Directions

  • Preheat oven to 350F degrees.
  • First, make the meatballs: combine all meatball ingredients (there’s 7, beef to garlic powder) in a bowl and mix well; shape into 1-inch balls.
  • Brown them in a nonstick frying pan (I do it in 3 batches) until browned all over; drain on paper towel then place in a large ungreased casserole dish.
  • To make sauce, combine brown sugar and cornstarch in a large saucepan, then whisk in the 1-3/4 cup pineapple juice/water combination until mixture is smooth.
  • Add vinegar, soy sauce and worcestershire sauce; stir.
  • Simmer, uncovered, on medium-low heat for about 8 minutes, or until thickened.
  • Pour sauce over meatballs and add pineapple tidbits; stir gently to combine until meatballs are coated with sauce.
  • Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes.
  • If you want a lot, this recipe doubles well.
  • Reviews

  • “Looked for something quick to fix as I was distracted with the “chatroom grand opening” and this really fit the bill. It was easy, fast and tasty. Cooked meatballs on cookie sheet as suggested and it worked out great.Made exactly as written except I added 1/4 tsp. red chili flakes to the sauce.Served with jasmine rice and a simple spinach salad.Next time I think I will cut back on the sugar a little and add diced and sauteed green and red bell peppers.Great addition to my stash of quick and easy recipes.Thanks Lennie!”

  • “A great recipe, my family loved it!Next time I will add a little more pineapple juice and I would cook it for about 35-40 minutes.”

  • “I found these very easy to make, and everyone loved them. I made smaller meatballs to take to a party. They didn’t last long. If serving as a main course, I would serve with rice. Definitely a nice change.”

  • “Fabulous!!! No leftovers… we cleaned it right up!! This is a dish I’ll be making often!!”

  • “Very good – made with frozen meatballs and served w/ jasmine rice.Easy, quick and good.I would say frozen meatballs cut prep time down to 10 minutes.”

  • “I followed the recipe, doubling everything, through the browning/draining step.I then put the meatballs into a crockpot, added the pineapple (I used chunks, instead of bits), and poured the sauce over. I doubled the sauce too. I turned it to high for about 4 hours, stirring a few times, and it was perfectly done.I brought it in the crockpot to a New Year’s Eve party, and we plugged it in and kept it on low, so people could eat it over several hours.Hosts made a big pot of rice.It was really good; not too sweet.This is a great no-fuss dish to make for a party.”

  • “I just don’t think I have the time or space to tell you how much I enjoyed this recipe.I cut it in half, with no problem.I was also very pressed for time and a little worried that DH wouldn’t like the sauce, so I cheated a little.I made the meat up into hamburger patties, cooked them and set them aside.I then cooked the sauce according to your directions except that I added the pineapple and simmered for an additional 10 minutes.I then spooned the sauce over the hamburger patties, served with mashed potatoes.It was wonderful.The balance of the sauce is in the fridge right now.I am going to use it on some ham I have in the freezer.I didn’t change a thing about the recipe, I just changed up the cooking process a little. Thanks for the great recipe.”

  • “This recipe was absolutely delicious!I followed the recipe exactly as written and served with mashed potatoes and french bread.My children love pineapple, so this recipe really went over well with them.Thanks for a great recipe!”

  • “Made these today for my neices hawaian bithday party. They were REALLY GOOD! I used all pineapple juice (no water) and pineapple chunks. Thank You for sharing this recipe.”

  • “excellent, excellent, excellent! These were so delicious that no one was talking while eating! I thought that it might be too sweet but still i didn’t adjust the recipe, and it wasn’t too sweet at all. Just right 🙂 Thanks Lennie!”

  • “Love this recipe. It’s quick and so delicious. By far one of my favorite meatball recipes.”

  • “I was just about to post this exact recipe! We keep pineapple chunks and single serve pineapple juice around just to have this whenever we want. I do put it in the slow cooker rather than the oven, but that is mostly to conserve energy and make it easier to prepare when I have school or if I am making a bunch for a party. We serve it over plain rice.”

  • “Tasty meatballs.Made for euchre and served as an appetizer…I threw the pineapple tidbits in to the sauce…”

  • “Very easy to make, the recipe easily doubles for a crowd or divide in half just for 2-3 servings.
    I serve with rice and fresh made pita bread.”

  • “Awesome recipe!!!! I will make this again and again!!!! Thanks for sharing.:)”

  • “This was really good, I think the addition of some bell peppers would be great in this.I did follow instructions to brown the meatballs in the oven, it turned out well and definitely saves some time!I served this over rice and it was more than enough to feed my 6 person family.Thank you :)”

  • “I didn’t have any pineapple, so used mandarin oranges in its place.It turned out great!Everyone loved it, even the picky kids.Super easy, too.New Fave.”

  • “The meatballs and sauce are both great!I used a 20 oz. can of pineapple, but other than that, no changes.Thanks!”

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