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  • Jeeca Jeeca
  • - September 7, 2021
  • - 8:27 am

Vegan Sweet & Sour Meatballs (Filipino Bola-Bola)

📖 TABLE OF CONTENTS show
MEATBALLS OR BOLA-BOLA
SWEET AND SOUR SAUCE
FOR STIR-FRYING
WHAT TO DO
ENJOY YOUR SWEET AND SOUR MEATBALLS OR BOLA-BOLA
MORE FILIPINO VEGAN RECIPES
Vegan Sweet and Sour Meatballs (Filipino Bola-Bola)
Ingredients 1x2x3x
Sweet and Sour Sauce
For Stir-Frying
To Serve
Instructions
Sweet and Sour Sauce
Stir-Frying
WATCH Video
NUTRITIONAL INFO
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Growing up in the Philippines, one of my favourite dishes growing up was a Sweet and Sour Bola-Bola (Meatballs) dish packed with a delicious sauce, lots of bell peppers, onions, pineapple, carrot. I used my homemade bola-bola or meatballs and the sauce beautifully coats the fried balls for a super tasty meal.

A ceramic bowl of fried meatballs in a sweet and sour glaze with chunks of pineapple, bell peppers, onions

The sauce is a delicate balance of sweet, sour, and somewhat fruity flavours. It also has an acidic kick but you can of course adjust the measurements of the sauce to suit your taste.

A spoon scooping a meatball in a sweet and sour glaze with chunks of pineapple, bell peppers, onions

MEATBALLS OR BOLA-BOLA

Bola-Bola is literally ‘ball-ball’ that perfectly reflects the round shape of the meatballs. I made my own homemade Filipino Bola Bola or Meatballs (recipe here) that I used for this recipe.

SWEET AND SOUR SAUCE

  • sugar adjust according to desired sweetness
  • distilled white vinegar
  • pineapple juice ur syrup/liquid from the chunks
  • banana ketchup or tomato ketchup, I used a mix
  • soy sauce
  • water
  • cornstarch
  • Dash of ground pepper

See the full recipe below!

FOR STIR-FRYING

  • 1 medium onion sliced
  • 1 small carrot halved and thinly sliced
  • 1 small red bell pepper seeded and sliced into small squares
  • 1 small green bell pepper seeded and sliced into small squares
  • 1 cup pineapple chunks or tidbits in extra light syrup/juice, around 120g
A blue tray with sliced carrots, green and bell peppers, pineapple chunks, onions and pre-mixed sweet and sour sauce

WHAT TO DO

  • Once the pan or wok is hot, stir-fry the onion, carrot, and bell peppers for 2-3 minutes until the carrots are tender.
  • Add in the pineapple chunks and cook for 1 minutes
  • Lower the heat to medium. Give the sauce a good mix again since the starch tends to sit at the bottom.
  • Over medium heat, pour in the sauce to the pan.
  • Mix well and then leave the sauce to boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Continuously mix until the sauce thickens.
  • Once the sauce has thickened, add in the bola-bola or meat balls and immediately mix well in the sauce. Leave the meatballs to simmer in the sauce for 2-3 minutes.

ENJOY YOUR SWEET AND SOUR MEATBALLS OR BOLA-BOLA

These meatballs are best enjoyed with some rice for a really hearty meal!

A ceramic bowl of fried meatballs in a sweet and sour glaze with chunks of pineapple, bell peppers, onions
A bitten sweet and sour meatball with a meaty texture

MORE FILIPINO VEGAN RECIPES

  • Adobo
  • Tokwa’t Baboy
  • Filipino Kaldereta or ‘Meat’ Stew
  • Mushroom Tocino
  • Filipino Fried Garlic Rice
  • Filipino Lumpiang Gulay or Fried Vegetable Spring Rolls
  • Filipino “Pork” Barbecue
  • Crispy Tofu Sisig
  • Tofu and Mushroom Salpicao
A ceramic bowl of fried meatballs in a sweet and sour glaze with chunks of pineapple, bell peppers, onions

Vegan Sweet and Sour Meatballs (Filipino Bola-Bola)

5 from 5 votes
Growing up in the Philippines, one of my favourite dishes growing up was a Sweet and Sour Bola-Bola (Meatballs) dish packed with a delicious sauce, lots of bell peppers, onions, pineapple, carrot. I used my homemade bola-bola or meatballs and the sauce beautifully coats the fried balls for a super tasty meal.
Print Recipe Pin this Recipe Rate this Recipe
Prep Time 10 minutes mins
Cook Time 15 minutes mins
Total Time 25 minutes mins
Course Main Course
Cuisine Asian, Chinese, Filipino, Fusion, Southeast Asian
Servings 4 people
Calories 141 kcal

Ingredients
  

  • 20 pieces bola-bola or meatballs , see homemade recipe here

Sweet and Sour Sauce

  • 1/4 cup sugar adjust according to desired sweetness
  • 1/3 cup distilled white vinegar
  • 1/2 cup pineapple juice from the chunks see notes
  • 5 tbsp banana ketchup or tomato ketchup, I used a mix
  • 1 tbsp soy sauce
  • 1/4 cup water
  • 1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
  • Dash of ground pepper

For Stir-Frying

  • 1-2 tbsp neutral oil
  • 1 medium onion sliced
  • 1 small carrot halved and thinly sliced
  • 1 small red bell pepper seeded and sliced into small squares
  • 1 small green bell pepper seeded and sliced into small squares
  • 1 cup pineapple chunks or tidbits in extra light syrup/juice, around 120g

To Serve

  • Steamed Rice

Instructions
 

Sweet and Sour Sauce

  • Mix all the ingredients for the sauce in a large bowl or measuring cup. Mix until the cornstarch is dissolved. Set aside.

Stir-Frying

  • Heat a pan or wok over medium high heat. Add 1-2 tbsp neutral oil.
  • Once hot, stir-fry the onion, carrot, and bell peppers for 2-3 minutes until the carrots are tender.
  • Add in the pineapple chunks and cook for 1 minutes
  • Lower the heat to medium. Give the sauce a good mix again since the starch tends to sit at the bottom.
  • Over medium heat, pour in the sauce to the pan.
  • Mix well and then leave the sauce to boil for 2 to 3 minutes. Continuously mix until the sauce thickens.
  • Once the sauce has thickened, add in the bola-bola or meat balls and immediately mix well in the sauce. Leave the meatballs to simmer in the sauce for 2-3 minutes.
  • Turn off the heat then serve the sweet and sour bola-bola or meatballs immediately. Enjoy this while hot with some steamed rice.

WATCH Video

NUTRITIONAL INFO

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 141kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 278mg | Potassium: 95mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 21g | Vitamin A: 30IU | Vitamin C: 6mg | Calcium: 15mg | Iron: 1mg
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?Please leave a rating or comment and share a photo on Instagram, and tag me @thefoodietakesflight or use #thefoodietakesflight 🙂

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This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. Kaitlin April 22, 2023 Reply

    5 stars
    These were SOOO good. On a whim, we made these for an appetizer party so I didn’t make the rice. We are NOT Filipino so we really went in blind but sweet and sour meatballs sounded good. We followed your Bola-Bola recipe to a T. We really had to trust the process. Ours were pretty wet so we struggled “balling” them but an ice cream scooper helped. They were also pretty white so looked unappetizing. But, we went for it anyway. We are SOO happy we did. They fried a nice golden brown after 4.5 minutes. We tasted one and said it actually tasted a little plain and wished we seasoned it more. I made the sauce by sautéing red bell pepper and carrot until just under firm (I don’t like a mushy carrot). I added the sauce and really questioned whether it would thicken. It turned out great! I accidentally purchased crushed pineapple instead of tidbits but it worked very well too! I added and covered the meatballs once the sauce thickened. Instead of the green bell pepper in the saute, I sprinkled the top with finely chopped scallion to serve. It was a HIT at the party. We all loved it and will definitely make again!

    1. Jeeca April 23, 2023 Reply

      Hi Kaitlin! Made me so so happy reading this. Thank you so much too for giving my recipe a try! ✨

5 from 5 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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I’m Jeeca, a food content creator and recipe developer passionate about creating easy yet tasty and flavour-packed vegan recipes. I share a lot of Asian recipes inspired by my travels and those I grew up enjoying.

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