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Home ยป Easy Chicken Dishes and Recipes

How to Make Thai Meatballs with Curry Sauce

Published: Apr 4, 2019 ยท Modified: Feb 13, 2024 by Madalaine ยท This post may contain affiliate links ยท

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These Thai meatballs are inspired by the Firefly Grill's chicken curry meatball appetizer.  They have them on the menu from time to time.

You can make these with either ground turkey for Thai turkey meatballs or ground chicken for Thai chicken meatballs. Either one is a great choice.

These Thai meatballs are inspired by the Firefly Grill's chicken curry meatball appetizer. Great Thai flavors with a touch of heat and coconut curry spices. So good! | www.lakesidetable.com
When the Firefly has these on the menu, I don't bother making them. I order double and take home the extra.

What You'll Find in this Post

  • How to Make Thai Meatballs
  • When to use fresh herbs and when to use dry herbs?
  • Can you Freeze Thai Meatballs?
  • Variations
  • Other EASY Asian Dishes You'll Love

Actually, this recipe is a little more than inspired.  Firefly's sous chef, Corey, shared his recipe for Thai chicken meatballs with me and I kept this recipe as close to the original as possible. 

I adjusted the quantities since most of us cooking at home find it easier to use recipes that serve 4-6 people rather than 92-100.

These meatballs capture the delicate Thai flavors really well. Serve them over rice with the following curry sauce recipe or splash them with a little soy sauce if you're in a hurry. I've also served them with toothpicks and a side of peanut sauce on Superbowl Sunday.

How to Make Thai Meatballs

Most meatball recipes call for panko breadcrumbs. This recipe does not. It uses oats instead, making this a wonderful gluten-free dish.

Ingredients For the meatballs~ 

  • 3 lbs. ground chicken
  • 3 eggs
  • โ…“ cup dried parsley
  • โ…“ cup dried cilantro
  • 10 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 tablespoons dried thyme
  • 1 ยฝ tablespoons red pepper flakes
  • 2 tablespoons ground coriander
  • 2 tablespoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons ground pepper
  • 2 cups oats

Instructions

  1. Pour 1-inch chicken broth (about 3 cups) into a slow cooker, cover, and turn on high. 
  2. Put the ground chicken, eggs, parsley, cilantro, garlic, thyme, red pepper flakes, coriander, salt, pepper, and oats in a large mixing bowl.
  3. Use your hands or a wooden spoon to mix the ingredients together until everything is completely incorporated.
  4. Portion the meatballs into the desired size.  Place meatballs in the slow cooker, cover, and steam until they are cooked through, approximately 25-40 minutes.

Meatball Recipe Notes: To add a little more depth of flavor, brown the meatballs in a skillet before steaming them in the slow cooker.

If you don't have a slow cooker or crock pot on hand, arrange the meatballs on a baking sheet and bake them in the oven at 350F until they are 160F in the middle. This usually takes about 30-40 minutes depending on the size of the meatballs.

These Thai meatballs are inspired by the Firefly Grill's chicken curry meatball appetizer. Great Thai flavors with a touch of heat and coconut curry spices. So good! | www.lakesidetable.com
1) Meatball ingredients, 2) Ingredients in a bowl ready to be mixed, 3) oats added to ingredients, 4) portioned meatballs, 5) meatballs browning in pan, 6) steaming in crock pot

Curry Sauce Ingredients

  • 6 ounces of fresh spinach
  • 2 medium onions, diced
  • 2 cups carrots, chopped
  • 2 cups celery, chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper, chopped
  • 1 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon white pepper
  • 2 tablespoons green curry paste
  • 1 tablespoon curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 cans of coconut milk, full fat, and unsweetened
  • 1 lime, cut into wedges

Instructions

  1. Mix together the spinach, onions, carrots, celery, red bell pepper, cilantro, fish sauce, salt, white pepper, green curry paste, curry powder, red pepper flakes, and coconut milk in a soup pot over medium heat.
  2. Bring the sauce to a boil, then immediately reduce heat to a simmer, and cover.
  3. Simmer for 1 hour. 
  4. Puree with a hand immersion blender until smooth.
  5. Strain through a fine sieve for an extra smooth sauce. (Optional)
  6. Server over white rice and finish with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
These Thai meatballs are inspired by the Firefly Grill's chicken curry meatball appetizer. Great Thai flavors with a touch of heat and coconut curry spices. So good! | www.lakesidetable.com

Serve the Thai meatballs over rice and liberally pour sauce over them.  Enjoy!

These Thai meatballs are inspired by the Firefly Grill's chicken curry meatball appetizer. Great Thai flavors with a touch of heat and coconut curry spices. So good! | www.lakesidetable.com

Not only are these Thai meatballs delicious but they're easy to make too!  I've pared down the recipe to make 12-14 very large meatballs.  I find that 1 or 2 are just right for serving one person. 

If you have a hearty appetite, like our son and two sons-in-law, 4 meatballs over a huge mound of rice with plenty of sauce are just about right.

When to use fresh herbs and when to use dry herbs?

Nothing brings a meal to life than fresh herbs.  They are a chef's secret weapon.  Not only do their flavors enhance a dish, but fresh herbs also add vibrant color and a wild array of olfactory elements to the party. 

So why not always use fresh herbs?  Why should you ever use dried herbs?  Keep reading or check out my little 1 Minute with Madalaine video:

Dried herbs are best used when they are added in the beginning and cooked or simmered for a length of time.  Heat and time unlock their flavors and allow them to fully realize their potential. 

To really get the most out of your dried herbs and seasoning, toast (or bloom) them in a dry skillet until they are fragrant and lightly toasted.

Fresh herbs are best utilized at the end with little to no heat.  A little heat is great, but too much heat can break down and destroy the essence of fresh herbs.

Can you Freeze Thai Meatballs?

If you don't think you'll be devouring all these Thai meatballs in one sitting, not to worry, they make great leftovers!  They keep beautifully for 3-4 days in the refrigerator.  You can also freeze both the sauce and the meatballs for up to 5 months. 

I recommend freezing the meatballs in a ziplock freezer bag and the sauce in a separate air-tight container. 

For a quick and tasty dinner, take them out of the freezer and warm the meatballs and sauce in the microwave or steam them until they're hot all the way through.  Steaming is easy to do and it keeps the meatballs from getting tough.

These Thai meatballs are inspired by the Firefly Grill's chicken curry meatball appetizer. Great Thai flavors with a touch of heat and coconut curry spices. So good! | www.lakesidetable.com
With or without sauce, Thai meatballs have tons of flavor!

Variations

  • Use a combo of green & red bell peppers
  • Switch out the green curry paste for yellow or red curry paste

I used green curry paste instead of yellow because as much as I love our small town, our culinary resources are quite limited.  The sauce was excellent with green curry paste and, quite frankly, it's excellent with red and yellow curry paste too.

  • Instead of serving with white rice, try pairing the Thai meatballs and sauce with zucchini noodles, soba noodles, rice noodles, brown rice, or riced cauliflower.
  • Use ground turkey or a combo of pork, turkey, and chicken
  • Make smaller meatballs and serve with the sauce on the side with toothpicks for a fun appetizer
These Thai meatballs are inspired by the Firefly Grill's chicken curry meatball appetizer. Great Thai flavors with a touch of heat and coconut curry spices. So good! | www.lakesidetable.com

Lately, the Firefly has been offering chicken curry meatballs as an appetizer.ย  If you're passing by, definitely pop in and give them a try!ย  Then give this recipe a go and let me know what you think.

Other EASY Asian Dishes You'll Love

Moo Goo Gai Pan

moo goo gai pan on a white plate with a ball of white rice and chop sticks

Red Curry Soup

Teriyaki Sauce

teriyaki close up

Ramen

Spicy Sesame Ramen Soup
These Thai meatballs are inspired by the Firefly Grill's chicken curry meatball appetizer. Great Thai flavors with a touch of heat and coconut curry spices. So good! | www.lakesidetable.com
5 from 2 votes
Print

Thai Meatballs with Curry Sauce

These Thai meatballs with coconut curry sauce burst with flavor and have just a touch of heat.ย  Serve this duo with rice, zucchini noodles or all on their own.ย  This recipe makes a lot, so freeze some for a rainy day.ย  Yum!

Course Appetizer, Dinner
Cuisine Asian
Keyword crockpot, easy recipe, make ahead
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes
Servings 14 servings
Calories 378 kcal
Author Madalaine

Ingredients

Meatballs

  • 3 pounds ground chicken
  • 3 eggs
  • โ…“ cup dried parsley
  • โ…“ cup dried cilantro
  • 10 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 Tablespoons dried thyme
  • 1 ยฝ Tablespoons red pepper flakes
  • 2 Tablespoons ground coriander
  • 2 Tablespoons salt
  • 2 teaspoons ground pepper
  • 2 cups old fashion oats

Curry Sauce

  • 6 ounces spinach fresh
  • 2 medium onions diced
  • 2 cups carrots chopped
  • 2 cups celery chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper chopped
  • 1 Tablespoon fish sauce
  • 1 Tablespoons salt
  • 1 teaspoon white pepper ground
  • 2 Tablespoons green curry paste
  • 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 cans coconut milk full fat & unsweetened

Instructions

Thai Meatballs

  1. Add enough chicken stock to the bottom of a soup pot or slow cooker.  Turn the slow cooker on high and cover.  If using a soup pot, bring the chicken stock to a simmer and cover. 

  2.  Combine all the meatball ingredients together until thoroughly mixed.  

  3. Portion out meatballs to desired size and steam until cooked through, approximately 25-30 minutes.

Curry Sauce

  1. Put all ingredients into a large soup pot.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and cover.

  2. Simmer for 1 hour and puree with blender or hand immersion blender.

  3. Pour sauce over meatballs and serve with rice.

Nutrition Facts
Thai Meatballs with Curry Sauce
Amount Per Serving (1 meatball and sauce)
Calories 378 Calories from Fat 219
% Daily Value*
Fat 24.3g37%
Saturated Fat 16.1g101%
Trans Fat 0g
Carbohydrates 19g6%
Fiber 4.7g20%
Sugar 4g4%
Protein 23g46%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Comments

  1. Surya says

    June 19, 2020 at 5:45 am

    5 stars
    Thai meatballs look and sound delicious!

5 from 2 votes (1 rating without comment)
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Hi Iโ€™m Madalaine and I love helping people have FUN in their kitchen. You'll find lots of easy-to-follow gluten-free recipes and tons of tips I learned in culinary school.ย  Most of my recipes are French-inspired butย allย of my recipes are family favorites.

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