Pineapple Meatballs
These tasty pineapple meatballs are easy to make and incredibly delicious! They’re a hit for the whole family!
Simple and delicious - this is my kind of meal!
We all love meatballs around our house and this new version I found on Blog Chef did not disappoint.
They were fabulous and are now relegated to the ranks of “make often!”
The main plus is that my kids gobbled them up (not to mention my husband and me). Fantastic!
A few notes on the recipe - You can halve the recipe and it will work great. In addition, if you only have a small can of pineapple and have less juice than you need, just make up the difference with water and it will still taste fabulous.
What to Serve With This
- Baked Brown Rice
- Steamed veggies like broccoli or peas
- Spinach Strawberry Salad with Homemade Creamy Poppyseed Dressing
Pineapple Meatballs
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- 2 pounds lean ground beef or lean ground turkey
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup dry breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Sauce:
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 ¾ cups pineapple juice, reserved from pineapple tidbits - use water to make up the difference if you don’t have enough reserved juice
- ¼ cup white vinegar
- 1 ½ tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 (14-ounce) can pineapple tidbits
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Make the meatballs by combining all meatball ingredients in a large bowl. Mix well and shape into about 1” meatballs.
- Brown Meatballs in a non-stick frying pan and drain on paper towels (or if you want to save time brown in the oven on a cookie sheet while you’re making the sauce).
- Make the sauce by combining cornstarch and brown sugar in a sauce pan. Then add 1 ¾ cup pineapple juice and blend until the mixture is smooth. Add vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce and stir. Simmer uncovered on medium low until thickened (about 8 minutes - mine only took about 4 minutes to thicken).
- In a casserole dish pour sauce over meatballs and add pineapple tidbits. Lightly mix meatballs until they are coated with the sauce. Bake in the oven for 30-40 minutes or until fully cooked.
Serving: 1 Serving, Calories: 524kcal, Carbohydrates: 66g, Protein: 33g, Fat: 15g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Cholesterol: 174mg, Sodium: 875mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 53g
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Recipe Source: Blog Chef
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Loved it. Great recipe
Mel, these might need a chance to be back in the spotlight under Recipes the World Forgot. I know their higher in sugar… Maybe that can be adjusted.
These are delicious. I doubled and used as a take-in meal.
I browned the meatballs in the oven at 350 for 25 minutes and then added sauce, pineapple, and green bell pepper to the pan.
I also made baked rice-which I rarely do. For every 1 cup rice, 1 3/4 cup water, & 2 TBSP of butter. Cover and bake at 350 for 30 minutes (then fluff with a fork).
It made it nice as a take-in meal as I used disposable pans for both the meatballs and rice and they spent the last 30 minutes side by side in the oven and were ready to go.
The sauce is amazing! I can think of half a dozen other ways to use it.
I thought this was a recipe I had made in the past and enjoyed. Now I don’t think it’s the right recipe. This recipe was really lacking in flavor even after adding a bunch more soy sauce. If you want a great Hawaiian or pineapple meatballs recipe, try another.
This is delicious ! Yes I made this recipe, that’s how I know it’s delicious! I corrected the web site so tried to repost comment as it didn’t process. Never mind I’m not going to bother posting a comment.
This is delicious !
My husband said he’d be so happy if I made this meal every day. Another great meal! Thanks so much!!
Great recipe! I used the air fryer for the meatballs and added them to the sauce afterwards, Chef’s kiss!
I make these with frozen meatballs. I half the sugar, and put it in my Crock-Pot on high for 4 hours. My kids love them.
if you do this in a croc pot do you have to add the starch at the end?
The cornstarch helps thicken the sauce.
This recipe is STILL a favorite of ours!! Growing up we called it Waikiki meatballs!
It’s my father in laws favorite, thanks for sharing as always!
This was delicious! I made this tonight and the whole family loved it. They weren’t sure at first.. ewww. ..pineapple and meatballs?? Lol they all asked for seconds! Thank you for a great recipe!
Can these be made for a crowd in a crock pot? Would I need to brown them first.
Yes, I would brown them first or cook them fully and them warm the with sauce in a crockpot.
We have never made anything like this at my house but I woke up one day with a CRAVING. Made this recipe tonight and it is phenomenal! Delicious, easy, dude the thick sauce is my spirit animal; I served the meatballs and sauce over a simple brown rice, just magnificent.
I just together the meatballs and 2 pounds seem like a lot. I would like to see some reviews for this recipe.
Making these tonight and just realized I’m out of Worcestershire. Any ideas on a substitute?
Soy sauce could work in a pinch!
I have made this for over 20 years, recipe passed down from my mother-in-law. That recipe called for one beef boullion cube instead of worchestershire and I now use one Knorr powder packet instead of that cube that I keep on hand for gravy anyway. Delicious.
I have made this recipe now several times and my family love it. Thanks
This sauce was so good. I used my own beef and pork meatballs and only a half recipe of the sauce since I only had about a dozen meatballs. I heated the meatballs in a frypan and then added the pre-mixed sauce and stirred until it thickened. While waiting for the rice to finish, I added the pineapple chunks and about a half cup chopped red pepper and let it simmer for about 5 min. So good!
I lost my recipe that was a favourite and I was very pleased to find your recipe, It was absolutely delicious and reminded me of how good meat balls can be. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
I have never written a review for recipes before, and I have tried MANY.
I just had to express that this recipe is definitely a keeper!! The sauce has the perfect Hawaiian tang, exactly what I was hoping for in my sauce. A little on the sweet side, but I loved it.
I used frozen meatballs and heated them in a pan first, transferred them to a baking dish and coated with the sauce and pineapple tidbits. I have a countertop convection oven, I cooked it with the convection fan on for 30 minutes. Served over rice.
As another comment said, would be great to try adding in some green bell pepper and sweet onion to give it more veggies, will do that next time.
Thank you!
Thank you, Catherine!
Thank you Mel….you hit the nail on the head….have been trying to get this recipe right for years….needed the vinegar….amazing….husband ate 2nds…..good chef!
These are so delicious! I don’t like soy sauce so I just substituted Worcestershire sauce.
I’ve made this recipe several times. It’s so good, and definitely a family favorite!
This recipe has been the “go-to” recipe in my family for 45 years! Try a little 5 spice powder in your meatballs to take it over the top! Thanks for all your comfort food on my dinner table Mel.
PS, eggs are expensive in Canada and add nothing to the recipe other than binding power. I skipped eggs, made the round meatballs and flattened them in the skillet to mini patty size. They would have flattened anyway and they cooked through very quickly because they were thin.
Eggs are expensive in Canada? I’m in Canada and it’s under $2.50 for a dozen.
Canada here too, eggs aren’t expensive. About $2.50 a dozen here in Nova Scotia
Oh how inflation has hit us. Eggs probably avg $4.99/dozen in Nova Scotia
I didn’t see how using an oven would add anything, except maybe increasing your utility bill. I made this in a skillet on a hotplate, cut down to 1/3 recipe to serve two adults. It was very good. Thank you.
I can’t wait to try these!!! Meatballs make my heart happy. I am curious about the pineapple flavor with them. Not a combination I would have ever thought of on my own. I always bake my meatballs without browning them on the stovetop first. I hate that step. Usually takes about 30 min at 350 and they’re prefect.
Big hit at the dinner table tonight! Thanks for the recipe.
I am planning on making this recipe tomorrow. Looking forward to dinner tomorrow. Hopefully I do it all correctly.
Ok…so I am extremely disappointed in myself. Your website is my go-to for all awesome recipes. I made the mistake of making a similar dish called “Hawaiian Meatballs” from another website. It turned out tasteless, out of curiosity I turned to your website and voila I found this recipe. Are you kidding me! Lol! I could have kicked myself! I need to redeem myself and will use your tried and true recipe. Thanks again for posting such wonderful food. I am incredibly grateful to you! Sending heaps of hugs of appreciation!