These heavenly Teriyaki Pineapple Chicken Meatballs are a homemade version of the popular chicken meatballs available at Costco. This version is healthier, tastier and surprisingly easy to make. Extra-soft and juicy, made with fresh ginger and garlic, they’re smothered in the best sweet and sticky pineapple teriyaki sauce.
These Sticky Soy Garlic Chicken Wings are another Asian-inspired favorite dinner at our house.
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The best Teriyaki Chicken Pineapple Meatballs Recipe
If you are an avid Coscto shopper like me, you likely tried the super convenient Aidells products, including their chicken sausage and meatballs. I've tried these products over the years because they have pretty good ingredients and I have to say that they can be a hit or miss.
I really loved the idea of Aidells Teriyaki & Pineapple Meatballs and I wanted to like them so badly but after trying them once, I was not too impressed. The texture is just plain weird, a bit grizzly and I find them to be overly salty. Way too salty to pair with any soy-based teriyaki glaze or sauce.
Long story short, I decided to create my own version of pineapple chicken meatballs that are meaty, tender, full of juicy pineapple and savory flavors. I then came up with the best homemade tariyaki sauce and smothered the meatballs for the most satisfying Asian-inspired dinner or saucy appetizer.
Making meatballs at home allows you to avoid additives, artificial ingredients, nitrates and excess sodium commonly found in processed foods. These homemade beauties are not only super flavorful but also made with whole, great tasting fresh ingredients, such as juicy pineapple (instead of dried pineapple), fresh ginger and garlic, panko breadcrumbs and some red bell peppers for extra color and sweetness.
Try these once and be hooked forever. These land on our dinner table regularly because everyone loves them so much!
Love meatballs? Try my Baked Chicken Parm Meatballs, these Polish-inspired Meatballs and Cabbage (aka unstuffed cabbage rolls) or my homemade Chickarina Soup (chicken meatball soup).
Ingredient notes
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Ground Chicken: usually made with both dark and white meat. If your local grocery store doesn't carry ground chicken, you can use ground turkey instead.
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Pineapple: you want tiny pineapple pieces so crushed pineapple works best. Make sure it's drained and pressed so it's not too wet before you add it to the meatball mixture.
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Pineapple Juice: reserved from the can of crushed pineapple. If you prefer, you can also use regular pineapple juice, such as Dole.
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Panko Breadcrumbs: used to add some body to the meatballs and soak up the moisture. Regular breadcrumbs will also work.
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Bell Pepper: you can skip this ingredient if you want but I like to sneak in some veggies into meatballs whenever I can. Finally chopped red bell pepper works great because it adds color, moisture and natural sweetness to the meatballs. Yellow or orange pepper can also be used.
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Ginger & Garlic: fresh ginger and garlic are used both in the meatballs and sauce.
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Soy Sauce: I like Kikkoman's Reduced Sodium Soy Sauce for this recipe. Tamari or Coconut Aminos will also work.
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Brown Sugar: to sweeten the sauce. You can also swap it for maple syrup, honey. To make it sugar free, use monk fruit or stevia.
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Scallions or Green Onions: for garnish and extra flavor.
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Starch: used to thicken the sauce. The recipe calls for corn starch but feel free to swap it for potato starch, tapioca flour or arrowroot powder.
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Water: to add more volume to the sauce (you want lots of sauce!) and to dilute the saltiness of soy sauce. If you prefer, you can use low-sodium chicken broth instead.
How to make Teryiaki Pineapple Chicken Meatballs
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and line a medium baking sheet (or glass baking dish) with parchment paper or spray it with oil.
- Open a can of crushed pineapple and pour the contents onto a small fine mesh strainer over a bowl or measuring cup. Drain well and press with a back of the spoon (Image 1) to separate the pineapple and the juice - both will be used in the recipe.
Note: An 8 ounce can of crushed pineapple will give you about ½ cup of juice and just over ½ cup of drained pineapple. You will only need ⅓ cup of pineapple for the meatballs but enjoy the rest mixed into cottage cheese (try my whipped cottage cheese) for a high protein snack.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine ground chicken, diced red pepper, drained and pressed crushed pineapple, panko breadcrumbs, scallion, garlic, ginger, salt, and pepper (Image 2). Mix well using a spoon or your hands.
- Divide the mixture into 22 portions (using a medium cookie scoop works well) and roll them into meatballs using wet hands. Place the meatballs on the prepared sheet pan (Image 4).
- Bake the meatballs in the preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. You can optionally spray the meatballs with oil before baking to help them brown, although it's not necessary.
- While the meatballs are baking, prepare Pineapple Teriyaki Sauce. In a bowl or measuring cup, whisk together reserved pineapple juice, ½ cup water, soy sauce, sugar, garlic, and ginger (Images 5 & 6).
- In a small bowl, mix 1 ½ tablespoons of corn starch with 2 tablespoons of cold water until dissolved (Image 7). Set aside. Pour the soy sauce pineapple juice mixture into a medium or large skillet and cook over medium heat, whisking until the sugar dissolves. Add the starch slurry and continue stirring until the sauce thickens (Image 8).
- Once the meatballs are baked (Image 9), transfer them to the skillet with the Teriyaki Sauce and toss to coat (Image 10). Serve immediately garnished with sliced green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
This recipe is featured in this roundup of 20 Healthy Recipes Using Ground Chicken.
Storage & freezing tips
- Fridge: store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freezer: these meatballs freeze well. After baking the meatballs and preparing the teriyaki sauce, allow them to cool completely. Then, transfer them to airtight containers or freezer-safe bags, making sure to remove any excess air before sealing. Store frozen for up to 3 months.
- To reheat: thaw the meatballs in the refrigerator overnight. You can then reheat them in the microwave, oven, or stovetop with the teriyaki sauce until heated through.
Serving suggestions
- My favorite way to serve these homemade meatballs is over steamy basmati rice with a side of shelled edamame or steamed broccoli. They will also go well with rice noodles, quinoa, farro, or your favorite grains. Rice noodles will also work great.
- For a low-carb version, use cauliflower rice or zucchini noodles (I love this zucchini spiralizer for turning veggies into noodles).
- As far as veggie sides go, I like to pair the sweet meatballs with savory green vegetables, such as sauteed spinach, bok choy, broccoli (or broccolini) or green beans.
- These saucy pineapple meatballs can also be served as an appetizer. If you want, once the dish is ready, transfer it to a slow cooker to keep them warm, especially if you're bringing the meatballs to a pot luck party.
Recipe FAQs
Not really. Aidell's brand meatballs are made with ground chicken, sugar, dried pineapple, vinegar, dried soy sauce, ginger, yeast extract, spices and added flavors. The homemade version uses only fresh ingredients, including pineapple, garlic, ginger, red bell peppers scallions
I wouldn't. Panko breadcrumbs help absorb the moisture and add body to the meat mixture, making it possible to roll it into meatballs. You can make this recipe gluten free by using gluten-free panko bread crumbs and swapping soy sauce for tamari.
Can I cook the meatballs in the airfryer or on the stove top?
Yes, you can.
For air fryer, spray both the bottom of your air fryer basket and the meatballs with oil and air fry for about 12-15 minutes in 370 degrees Fahrenheit, shaking the basket twice.
To make on the stove, heat up oil in a medium non stick skillet and cook the meatballs over medium heat searing them on all sides until golden brown.
Fresh ginger and garlic will give you best results but if all you have is dried ginger and garlic powder, swap ½ teaspoon per 1 garlic clove or a teaspoon of fresh grated ginger.
Can I use canned pineapple chunks or fresh pineapple instead of crushed?
Yes. Just chop the fresh or canned pineapple finely and use in the recipe. If using fresh fruit, you will also need some canned pineapple juice for the sauce.
More Asian-inspired dinner ideas
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Recipe
Ingredients
Chicken Pineapple Meatballs
- 1 lb ground chicken
- ⅓ cup crushed pineapple canned, drained and pressed, see Note 1
- ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup red bell pepper finely diced
- 1 scallion or green onion, sliced thinly
- 1 large garlic clove minced
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger grated or minced, See Note 2
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper ground or milled
Teriyaki Sauce
- ½ cup reduced sodium soy sauce See Note 3
- ½ cup water or low-sodium chicken broth
- 1 ½ tablespoon corn starch See Note 4
- 2 tablespoon water (for making a slurry)
- ½ cup pineapple juice reserved
- 1 garlic clove minced
- ½ teaspoon ginger grated or minced
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- sliced scallions and toasted sesame seeds as garnish, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the over to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a medium baking tray with parchment paper or spray with oil.
- In a medium bowl mix together ground chicken, diced red pepper, drained and pressed crushed pineapple, panko breadcrumbs, scallion, garlic, ginger, salt and pepper. Use a spoon or your hands.
- Divide the mixture into 22 parts (I used a medium cookie scoop) and roll uinto meatballs using wet hands. Place the meatballs on the prepared baking tray.
- Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes. If you want, you can spray the meatballs with some oil before baking (to help them brown), though it's not necessary.
- While the meatballs are baking, prepare the Teriyaki Sauce. In a bowl or a measuring cup whisk together reserved pineapple juice, ½ cup water, soy sauce, sugar, garlic and ginger.
- In a small bowl mix 1 ½ tablespoon corn starch with 2 tablespoons cold water until dissolved. Set aside.
- Pour the soy sauce pineapple juice mixture into a medium or large skillet and cook, whisking over medium heat, until sugar dissolves.
- Add the starch slurry and keep stirring (I use a silicone whisk) until the sauce thickens.
- Once the meatballs are baked, transfer them to the skillet with Teriyaki Sauce and toss to coat.
- Serve immediately garnished with sliced green onions and toasted sesame seeds.
Notes
Nutrition
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Meet the Author
Hi, I'm Agnieszka. I'm a mom of three and recipe developer, writer and photographer behind Wholly Tasteful. I love creating comforting, delicious, family-friendly recipes that you can feel good about.
Bogusława says
A very tasty dish!
Bogusia says
very good dish
Eileen Greenberg says
Love your recipe
Question, Could I use ground turkey?
Thanks
Agnieszka says
Hi Eileen. Yes, absolutely!
Sheralee says
The meatballs were dry, fell apart, tasted gummy. Followedthe exact recipe.
Even the sauce was salty and had to add twice the brown sugar and more pineapple juice. I don’t advise trying this recipe.
Agnieszka says
I’m sorry to hear that — that’s definitely not how these are supposed to turn out. I’ve retested this recipe (most recently with my family) and had great results, so I’d love to help troubleshoot. Sometimes meatballs can turn out dry if they’re overmixed or overbaked, and sauce saltiness can vary depending on the brand of soy sauce used. Perhaps the ground chicken you used was very lean? I appreciate you giving the recipe a try.