Citrus Glazed Meatballs with Crispy Sweet Potato Noodles
Citrus Glazed Meatballs with Crispy Sweet Potato Noodles is a dish that presents a harmonious blend of sweet, savory, and tangy flavors with a delightful variety of textures. To begin with, the meatballs act as the protein centerpiece of this dish. They are typically prepared with ground meat—often pork, beef, chicken, or turkey—combined with binding agents like breadcrumbs or egg, seasonings, and sometimes finely chopped onions or garlic to enhance flavor.
Equipment
- 1 large skillet
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup coconut oil divided
- 1/2 large onion minced
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 tsp ginger ground
- 1 lb beef ground
- 1 tbsp thyme chopped
- to taste sea salt
- to taste black pepper ground
- 1/2 cup orange juice fresh
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos
- 2 large sweet potatoes peeled
Instructions
- In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the coconut oil on medium heat. When the oil is melted and the pan is hot, add the onion and cook, stirring for 8 minutes or until translucent. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring for a minute, just until fragrant. Remove from heat and place onion mixture into a bowl. Set aside to cool for a few minutes.
- When the onion mixture has cooled, add it to a large mixing bowl with the ground beef, thyme, and salt and pepper. Gently mix with your hands until everything is well incorporated. Form into 1-1/2 inch meatballs.
- Add 2 more tablespoons of the oil in the bottom of the skillet used for the onions on medium heat. When the oil is melted and the skillet is hot, add the meatballs. Brown for three minutes on one side, flip and add the orange juice and coconut aminos. Cook covered, for 10 minutes, or until cooked throughout. Remove meatballs from pan and set aside. Leave the remaining juices in the pan and turn up to medium-high heat. Let the sauce reduce to about half the amount, about 5-10 minutes. Set sauce aside.
- Using a vegetable peeler, peel the sweet potato into long, flat ribbons, or spiralize it with a vegetable spiralizer.
- In another skillet, heat 2 tablespoons coconut oil on medium-high heat. When the oil has melted and the pan is hot, add half of the sweet potatoes. Let them cook, stirring, for about 10 minutes, being sure not to stir them too often to ensure that they brown on the bottoms. Remove the first batch, then add the remaining oil and repeat with the second batch of sweet potatoes.