Sweet and tangy bliss.
My first goal was to make a meatball that was ACTUALLY delicious.
Now, before you start freaking out—WHAT? It’s a MEATBALL! It’s delicious by definition!—just take a minute and hear me out:
I grew up with meatballs that were dry and tough as hockey pucks, served between cottony hoagie rolls smothered in teeth-rottingly sweet barbecue sauce.
Now can you see why I wasn’t a fan?
I wanted to create meatballs that were moist and tender, accompanied by a rich aromatic sauce that was both tangy and sweet. And that’s how I wound up with these Char Siu Meatballs.
Moist, porky meatballs, dripping in an addictive sweet and sour Asian barbecue glaze. Soft and tender on the inside, delicious sticky on the outside, these Char Siu Meatballs will become an instant favorite. They’re perfect for weeknight dinners or a packed lunch—I recommend pairing them with some quick-cooking sushi rice and a handful of crisp matchstick veg to make a complete meal—but they’re equally delicious served solo, heaped in a serving bowl on a buffet table or speared with toothpicks as a knock-out passed hor’doeuvres. However you serve them, though, beware: NO one will be able to stop at just one!
A note about texture:
These meatballs will stay moist and soft if you follow a few basic guidelines:
1. Use fresh white bread in the meatball mix. Some recipes call for breadcrumbs, but fresh bread (and its soaking milk) adds crucial moisture into the meatball mix.
2. Don’t overwork the meat. You might notice that the recipe directs you to thoroughly mix in a quarter of the pork to begin with, before carefully adding in the rest and mixing JUST until combined. Resist the urge to continue working the mix: you’ll end up with tough, dense balls.
3. Cook the meatballs just until they reach 165 degrees F. Use a meat thermometer. Any meatball becomes dry if you overcook it!
A second note, this one about the sauce:
Char Siu (“fork-roasted”) is a Chinese barbecue technique where the meat (usually pork) is marinaded in a tangy sweet-and-sour sauce and then continually glazed as it’s roasted on a spit. I wasn’t going to try to cook these meatballs using the Char Siu technique—they’re so tender they’d probably fall apart immediately if you tried to thread them on a skewer!—but I took inspiration from the traditional glaze when creating my meatballs sauce. The combination of hoisin, honey, soy, garlic, and Chinese five spice creates a sweet, tangy, sour sauce that is truly addictive. Try it—I think you’ll agree!
Enjoy!
Char Siu Meatball Rice Bowls
Serves 4
For the sauce:
¼ cup hoisin sauce
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup dry sherry
3 tbsp honey
1 tbsp rice vinegar
2 small garlic cloves, minced
½ tsp Chinese five-spice
¼ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
1/8 tsp red pepper flakes
For the meatballs:
½ cup fresh white bread, roughly torn
¼ cup milk
1 egg, beaten
1 tbsp soy sauce
2 scallions, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1-inch piece fresh ginger, minced
1 tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt
¼ tsp black pepper
1 lb ground pork
1 tbsp vegetable oil
For the rice:
1 cup sushi rice
Diamond Crystal kosher salt
To assemble:
Carrot, daikon, and red bell pepper, thinly sliced
Persian cucumber, thinly sliced and cut into half-moons
Scallions, thinly sliced on a bias
Sesame seeds
Special equipment: cast iron or oven-safe pan.
Method
For the sauce:
Stir together ingredients in a pot. Bring to a boil and simmer until slightly thickened, 3-4 minutes. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
For the meatballs:
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
In a large bowl, combine bread and milk; let sit until milk is absorbed. Stir in beaten egg, soy sauce, scallions, garlic, ginger, salt, and black pepper, then add a quarter pound of the ground pork and mix by hand until the mixture is homogenous. Add in the rest of the ground pork and mix just until blended. Don’t overwork the mixture; overworking will make the meatballs tough. Roll into twelve 1-inch balls.
Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large cast-iron or oven-safe pan over medium high heat. Add meatballs and sear until browned on both sides, about 5 minutes total. Transfer pan to the oven and bake until a meat thermometer registers 165 degrees, about 5 minutes. Remove meatballs from the oven; transfer to a bowl and let cool slightly, then add the sauce and toss.
For the rice:
Pour rice into a large mixing bowl and cover with cold tap water. Swirl the rice in the water to rinse, pour the water off, and refresh with new water. Repeat three or four times, or until the water runs clear. Drain well.
Transfer rice to a medium-sized pot and add 1 cup cold water and a two-finger pinch of salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until all the water is absorbed and the rice is tender, about 15 minutes. Turn off the heat and let sit for 10 minutes with the lid on.
Remove lid from rice and fluff with a fork.
To assemble:
Spoon rice into bowls and top with glazed meatballs. Sprinkle meatballs with sesame seeds and garnish with carrot, daikon, red pepper, and cucumber. Serve with additional sauce, if desired.
Originally posted February 28, 2021.
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