Growing up, my grandma took care of me, my brother, and my cousins while our parents worked during the day. She was and still is a very practical woman. She would cook up a month worth of meatballs (동그랑땡) at a time, and our lunch boxes had those meatballs for 30 days straight. I don’t know the exact recipe, but I remember them being delicious for the first few days. Then I would just trade banchan (side dishes) with my friends; thank goodness, they were quite popular. Now, these meatballs became a funny memory we share with my father because he also had his fair share of meatballs while growing up.

I promise myself that I won’t serve the same food for Munchkin several days straight. Having said that, I think meatballs are great to stock up in the freezer; they freeze well, taste good, and are perfect when I want to add some meat to Munchkin’s diet.

(full recipe at the bottom of the post)

Main Ingredients

Ground beef, micro-chopped broccoli, pureed onion, breadcrumbs, egg, parmesan cheese

Seasoning Ingredients

Soy sauce, honey, garlic, sesame oil

Sidenote: I briefly soak the ground meat in water (about 10 minutes) and drain out the water. I started doing this when munchkin was younger and had no seasoning in her food. The meaty/bloody smell was noticeable without any seasoning, and munchkin refused to eat it. I still soak ground meat in water before cooking, which is quite common in Asian culture, but a no-no in western culture. I guess, it all depends on taste preference.

Once the ingredients are ready, all you need to do is mix them up, marinate, form into little balls, and bake.

Soy Sauce Honey Meatballs

Soy sauce and honey marinated meatballs with broccoli. Toddler-friendly. Great to stock up in the freezer.

Servings 5

Author whiteblankspace

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef
1/4 onion pureed
1 cup broccoli finely chopped
1/2 cup breadcrumb
1 egg whisked
1/4 cup parmesan cheese grated
2 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 tbsp honey
2 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp garlic minced

Instructions

In a large bowl, mix all ingredients and let the mixture marinate in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to broil. Form the mixture into little balls and place them on a sheet pan.
Broil for about 8 minutes on the middle rack. Turn the meatballs, and broil for additional 3~4 minutes.

Recipe Notes

Divide the meatballs into one serving size and freeze. Just microwave for a minute or two before serving.