Home Recipes Pork Spicy Asian Meatballs
by: Sarah
48 Comments
Jump to Recipe
These are not your run-of-the-mill meatballs. These are special. I was inspired to make this Spicy Asian Meatball recipe after perusing the site for something to make on a weekend afternoon (yes, we do use our own blog sometimes!), and I rediscovered our old recipe for a Meatball Banh Mi that seemed to have gotten a lot of love from The Woks of Life readership.
Decidedly baguette-less, and feeling too lazy to walk the few blocks to the grocery store (it was THAT kind of weekend afternoon), I miraculously had all the ingredients I needed to do some meatball experimentation. Instead of doing a sandwich, however, I served these babies on top of rice.
Which was a good idea. (When is it ever a bad idea to serve something on top of rice?)
The key was making a quick and delicious sauce to roll these little spicy meatballs in. Spooned over steamed jasmine rice, with some leafy herbs mixed in, and a squeeze of lime, it was heaven in a bowl.
Serve Over Rice, as an Appetizer, or On Bread
Now, you don’t have to serve these the same way I did. You can also just serve them on their own, as an appetizer. Just add toothpicks. Or, if you DO happen to have a baguette in the house (or you’re simply not as lazy as I am), you can do a sandwich.
These Asian meatballs also do really well in the freezer. Simply freeze them solid on a parchment paper-lined tray, and then transfer to a freezer bag. You can take them out and fry them up whenever the meatball cravings strike.
Ok, enough talk. Let’s cook.
Spicy Asian Meatballs: Recipe Instructions
In a bowl, combine the ground pork, cilantro, Thai basil, scallions, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, cornstarch, 1 tablespoon fish sauce, and 2 teaspoons sugar.
Form into meatballs (you should get about 20). Place the meatballs on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and transfer to the freezer for 20 minutes.
After the meatballs have been chilled, heat a tablespoon of oil in a cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium high heat.
Fry the meatballs until browned on all sides and cooked through. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Put the skillet over medium heat, and immediately add the stock to deglaze, scraping up the bits at the bottom of the pan. Add the Shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, the remaining tablespoon of fish sauce, and remaining 2 teaspoons of sugar.
Bring to a simmer, and add the cornstarch slurry. Stir for a couple minutes, until thickened. Add the lime juice and the meatballs back into the pan. Simmer your spicy Asian meatballs until fully warmed through, and serve!
You can serve these Spicy Asian Meatballs by themselves as an appetizer (toothpick time), or in a bowl with rice with some extra herbs on the side.
Not gonna lie, the rice is a compelling option with these Asian Meatballs. Especially with all that extra sauce you have in the pan!
Looking for more authentic recipes? Subscribe to our email list and be sure to follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and Youtube!
5 from 9 votes
Spicy Asian Meatballs
These spicy Asian meatballs are not your run-of-the-mill variety. These Asian meatballs are delicious, unique and will redefine your meatball expectations!
by: Sarah
Course:Appetizers and Snacks
Cuisine:Asian
serves: 4
Prep: 45 minutes minutes
Cook: 20 minutes minutes
Total: 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes
Rate
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground pork
- 2 tablespoons cilantro (chopped)
- 2 tablespoons Thai basil (chopped)
- 1 scallion (chopped)
- 3 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce (divided)
- 4 teaspoons sugar (divided)
- ½ cup chicken or pork stock
- 3 tablespoons Shaoxing wine (or any rice wine or dry sherry)
- 2 teaspoons light soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon cornstarch (dissolved into 1 tablespoon water)
- 1 lime (juiced)
Instructions
In a bowl, combine the ground pork, cilantro, basil, scallions, garlic, crushed red pepper flakes, cornstarch, 1 tablespoon fish sauce, and 2 teaspoons sugar. Form into meatballs (you should get about 20). Place the meatballs on a parchment-lined baking sheet, and transfer to the freezer for 20 minutes.
After the meatballs have been chilled, heat a tablespoon of oil in a cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Fry the meatballs until browned on all sides and cooked through. Remove from the pan and set aside.
Put the skillet over medium heat, and immediately add the stock to deglaze, scraping up the bits at the bottom of the pan. Add the Shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, the remaining tablespoon of fish sauce, and remaining 2 teaspoons of sugar.
Bring to a simmer, and add the cornstarch slurry. Stir for a couple minutes, until thickened. Add the lime juice and the meatballs back into the pan. Simmer the meatballs until fully warmed through, and serve!
Tips & Notes:
Makes 20 meatballs.
nutrition facts
Calories: 362kcal (18%) Carbohydrates: 10g (3%) Protein: 21g (42%) Fat: 24g (37%) Saturated Fat: 9g (45%) Cholesterol: 83mg (28%) Sodium: 953mg (40%) Potassium: 402mg (11%) Fiber: 1g (4%) Sugar: 5g (6%) Vitamin A: 245IU (5%) Vitamin C: 4.3mg (5%) Calcium: 24mg (2%) Iron: 1.3mg (7%)
Did You Make This?Tag us on Instagram @thewoksoflife, subscribe to our email list, and be sure to follow us on social for more recipes!
You may also like…
Vegetarian Meatballs with a Southeast Asian Twist
Spicy Crispy Pork Noodles (Made with Spaghetti!)
Fried Pork Chops with an Asian Twist
Sliced Pork Belly with Spicy Garlic Peanut Sauce
About Sarah
Sarah is the older daughter/sister in The Woks of Life family. Creator of quick and easy recipes for harried home cooks and official Woks of Life photographer, she grew up on episodes of Ready Set Cook and Good Eats. She loves the outdoors (and of course, *cooking* outside), and her obsession with food continues to this day.
Subscribe
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
48 Comments
Newest
OldestMost Voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments