Healthy Baked Turkey Meatballs With Hot Honey

These healthy baked turkey meatballs are weeknight dinner gold. They’re loaded with ginger and garlic, and finished with a sticky, spicy-sweet hot honey glaze that hits all the right notes. Fast, flavorful, and totally addictive.

Prep Time15

Cook Time15

Total Time30

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Asian-Inspired

Servings: meatballs

Ingredients

Meatballs:

1 lb lean ground turkey (93/7 blend)
2 garlic cloves, grated or finely minced
1/4 cup panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup thinly sliced scallion, white parts only
1 TBSP low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper

Hot honey glaze:

2 TBSP raw/unfiltered honey
2 TBSP sesame oil
2 tsp low sodium soy sauce
1 tsp freshly grated ginger
1 tsp sambal oelek More or less to taste, depending on how much heat you like.

Garnishes:

Sliced scallions
Sesame seeds

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375º F. (Position the rack in the center.)
Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper; set it aside.
Transfer ground turkey into a large mixing bowl, then add the onion powder, sea salt, black pepper, soy sauce, garlic, scallions, and panko breadcrumbs. Mix it all together with your hands until the mixture is blended.
Rub a bit of olive oil onto your hands to prevent the mixture from sticking. Start forming the meatballs using about 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture. Place the meatballs onto the parchment-lined baking sheet and pop them into the oven to bake for about 15 minutes, or until they reach an internal temperature of 160-165º F. (Check this with a meat thermometer.)
While the meatballs bake, make the glaze by mixing the honey, sesame oil, soy sauce, ginger, and Sambal Oelek. Whisk until blended.
When the meatballs are done, remove them from the oven and let them sit for 3-5 minutes, then transfer the meatballs to a large bowl and drizzle them with the hot honey glaze. Toss to coat.
Garnish with more sliced scallions and sesame seeds, and serve.

Notes

The meat mixture’s going to be a little sticky—don’t panic. That’s normal. Just rub a bit of olive oil on your hands before rolling to keep things smooth.

Hold off on glazing until after baking—brushing them with hot honey too early will only lead to burnt sugar, not that perfect sticky-sweet finish you’re after. Toss them post-bake and let the magic happen.

Nutrition