Honestly, although I made these with venison, pork is more traditional. And you can basically use any ground meat here. But, the ground meat needs to be fatty, at least 15 percent fat (20 percent is better), and it should be ground relatively fine. A coarser ground meatball will still taste great, but it won't be as refined. Your choice.
Prep time: PT25M
Cook time: PT20M
Total time: PT45M
Rating
5 stars (26 reviews)
Keywords
meatballs, teriyaki, venison
Ingredients
2 pounds finely ground venison, (pork or wild boar)
3 tablespoons minced green onions
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
2 eggs
2 tablespoons sake
1/2 cup mirin
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 teaspoons potato or corn starch
Toasted sesame seeds, (for garnish)
Categories
Appetizer
Main Course
Cuisine
Japanese
Steps
Mix all the meatball ingredients together in a bowl. Mix all the sauce ingredients in another bowl.
Form meatballs anywhere from the size of a walnut to the size of golf ball. For best results, set the meatballs on a baking sheet and put it into the fridge for an hour to firm up. But you can cook the meatballs straight away if you'd like.
Cook the meatballs. You can deep fry them at 360°F for about 5 minutes, or you can poach them in simmering water for about the same amount of time (they're ready when they float); or you can bake the meatballs at 400°F for about 20 minutes.
Glaze the meatballs. Whisk the sauce together so the starch doesn't stick to the bottom of the bowl, and pour it into a large saute pan. Bring it to a boil and add the cooked meatballs. Roll them around in the hot sauce to glaze for 30 seconds or so. Move the meatballs to a serving plate and sprinkle sesame seeds over them. Serve hot as an appetizer or with rice.
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 serving
Calories: 362 kcal
Carbohydrates: 20 g
Protein: 39 g
Fat: 13 g
Saturated Fat: 6 g
Cholesterol: 176 mg
Sodium: 2162 mg
Sugar: 8 g
Reviews
dawn on 2025-11-11 (5 stars): Can't tell you how many times I've made this recipe. Big family favorite!
Donna L. on 2025-03-29 (5 stars): Perfection. Gonna make these over and over.
Lori on 2025-01-27 (5 stars): Excellent excellent excellent! Delicious dish! Whole family (including kids) approved! Thank you!
William Corbitt on 2024-03-19 (5 stars): These are a favorite with my kids. we often make them with butter noodles and mix everything together. Excellent.
Andy French on 2023-01-01 (5 stars): Absolutely perfect. I used some trim from this year’s whitetail and a half pound of pork fat. My wife doesn’t let me deep fry anything in the house, so I baked them in the oven and finished under the broiler for some texture. I didn’t have any sake, so I added a splash or two of rice vinegar in the sauce. Two and a half pounds were devoured by my wife, three daughters, and myself. Thanks, Hank!
Chris on 2021-09-22 (5 stars): Made these again! yum. Even tracked down Mirin sauce and used it this time.
Reagan on 2021-05-27 (5 stars): Delicious recipe! Really scratches the "salty, sweet, sticky Asian food" itch.
Mike on 2021-05-27 (5 stars): These are amazing! Both my girlfriend and I cannot get enough of Hank's balls!
Chris on 2021-02-11 (5 stars): Really fast to make and tasty. We'll be taking to potlucks when COVID allows. Oven baked, glazed, then sprinkled chopped green onion over them as well as the sesame seeds.
Jon Hodge on 2020-02-03 (5 stars): I made these for a Super Bowl party and they were AWESOME. Liquor stores were closed here so I used a local teriyaki sauce and kept them warm in the slow cooker. In addition to sesame seeds, I added a sprinkle of sliced green onions and chopped cilantro to add a little color.
Douglas Palmer on 2020-01-22 (5 stars): Another wonderful recipe that’s become a staple in our house.
Danielle on 2019-07-28 (5 stars): My favorite venison recipe!
We make them bigger for meals at home, and we make smaller ones for parties. I haven't met anyone who doesn't love them!!!
Kevin on 2019-02-28 (5 stars): We made these last night. Delicious. They are definitely being added to the regular rotation.
I noticed that the meatball mixture on the website here has 1 tsp salt, and no black pepper; and in Buck, Buck, Moose the mixture has no salt, but a 1/2 tsp black pepper. I followed the book recipe. Is there one version that you prefer?
Thanks.
