This quick and easy recipe of Vietnamese Meatballs is so simple yet flavourful. You can have it with rice as per the recipe or have it on a fresh baguette for lunch (like I did with my leftovers today). My house is smelling pretty amazing right now!
My trip to Vietnam, and in particular Hanoi, has always been my most memorable trip. I took a solo journey there as a fresh-faced 23-year-old, which opened up my eyes and, most importantly, my mind. It sent me on a journey of travel discovery for the next decade! These Vietnamese meatballs take me back to the many fragrant dishes that filled my tummy on that trip.
The Humanitarian Services for Children of Vietnam (HSCV), a charity dear to my heart, were so kind to provide me with this recipe. This fantastic charity based in Hanoi provides relief for children living in poverty by giving them access to education, food and shelter. For information about partnering up with a family, click here.

Quick and Tasty Vietnamese Meatballs
Ingredients
FOR THE MEATBALLS
½ pound ground pork (minced pork)
2 ½ grams mushrooms - I used dried Shitake mushrooms
1 clove garlic - crushed
1 teaspoon ginger - finely grated
1 small yellow onion - about 90 grams
FOR THE SAUCE
1 clove garlic - crushed
1 teaspoon ginger - grated
1 tablespoon white wine - or rice wine
1 tablespoon soy sauce
½ teaspoon cornflour
½ teaspoon sugar (white sugar)
Instructions
- Pre-soak mushrooms for 15 minutes if using dried mushrooms.
- Mince garlic, onion, ginger, carrot and mushrooms (I use the mini-processor that comes with my stick blender) and then combine with the pork in a bowl and mix well.
- Make 1-inch meatballs. I made about 25 meatballs.
- Fry the meatballs in a bit of oil until browned and well cooked.
- Put meatballs aside.
- To make the sauce, fry garlic and ginger, then add wine, soy, sugar and flour for a minute, then add back the meatballs. This sauce is more of a glaze over the meatballs.
- Serve with steamed rice or noodles and a side salad of herbs and lettuce.