The Book Club was coming over, and I was in search of fresh ginger at the mobbed market. The always helpful produce guy pointed it out to me, then assured me it was fine if I just broke off what I needed from the huge hunks o’ ginger in the bin. I thanked him, mumbling that I really “didn’t need all that much for the meatballs”, and he was intrigued.
“Meatballs?” he asked.
“Yep, shrimp and pork meatballs.”
“?”
I gave him a buzzyfoods.com card, told him to check the site some time this coming week, gathered my ginger while I may, and headed home to prepare for The Book Club.
Long story short; these balls are da boss!
I served them plain, but with three different sauces for dipping; one, a Sriracha and chili paste combo that is nice, but almost breathtakingly hot (recipe to come). Second, my old standby honey mustard, which Barb was kinda liking. And, lastly (and most popular), Sherry Peppers Sauce.
I tried all three, and agree that the best combo is meatball and sherry peppers – preferably with the meatballs slathered in the stuff!
Of course, a dab o’ plum sauce might could be good here, too, but back to the meatballs, which you will want to be making.
INGREDIENTS
•12 oz shrimp, peeled and deveined
•1 lb ground pork
•2 tbsp Tamari
•4 large eggs, lightly beaten
•1 (8 oz) can water chestnuts, drained
•1 (8 oz) can bamboo shoots, drained
•10 roasted garlic cloves, minced
•2 tbsp fresh ginger, chopped
•1/2 tsp dried ginger
•1/4 tsp dried lemon grass
•1/4 tsp Sichuan peppercorns
•1/4 tsp salt
•1/4 tsp black pepper
•4 green onions
(white and light green bits only), sliced
Line a rimmed baking pan with foil and heat your oven to 400º.
Add the fresh and powdered ginger, roasted garlic, lemon grass, Sichuan peppercorns, salt and pepper to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade and give it a good pulse to blend.
Add the water chestnuts bamboo shoots, Tamari, and eggs and pulse to chop well. Turn out into a large mixing bowl.
Add the shrimp and the pork to the food processor and pulse to chop together.
Add to the seasoning blend in the mixing bowl, sprinkle with the sliced scallion, and blend to together with your hands (messy, yes, but it really is the best way).
Once nicely mixed, shape into meatballs and arrange on the foil lined pan. I used a one tablespoon scoop for help in shaping the kinda gooey mixture and ended up with 40 nicely sized meatballs.
Pop into the oven and bake for 30 minutes, or until an instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest bit of one of the meatballs reads 165º.
Remove from the oven and serve warm. I made these a day ahead, so allowed them to cool, then covered and stashed ’em in the fridge until needed, then reheated them in a low oven.
I was serving these to a group that included a friend on a specialized diet, so served them with the sauce(s) on the side; if you don’t have that concern when you make these, by all means just place the cooled meatballs in a slow cooker with sherry peppers sauce to cover, heat thoroughly, and serve.
Yeah, baby, that’s what I’m talkin’ about!