My hoisin glazed meatballs are an Asian spin on the more western style meatballs I typically make. When I was testing out my Asian style meatballs a few weeks back, I made some simple alterations to the meatball recipe I make in my baked meatballs and spaghetti by replacing some of the ingredients with Asian ingredients. I didn’t know whether or not the meatballs would be received well by Kevin, but it turns out, he absolutely loved them. Just this past weekend, he requested I make Asian style meatballs again. When I made my Asian style meatballs again this weekend, I made sure I captured all of the steps. My hoisin glazed meatballs used ground pork, red onion, and cilantro instead of ground beef, white onion, and parsley. The replacements worked well and yielded some savory, succulent meatballs. We enjoyed eating the meatballs over the weekend as we anticipated the start of spring. It’s officially April, but the weather seems to be playing tricks on us. One day is warm. The next day is cold again. Aside from the fluctuations in temperature, I am excited for April to finally be here. This month marks the home stretch of my Spring semester classes. Mid-May is when all of my classes for the Spring semester will end. The end of Spring semester means I am halfway through my two certificate programs. I’ve truly enjoyed going through this learning journey to understand the science behind baking. I can’t even remember how many moments I’ve had in class where I got just a little bit excited when I learned why certain leavening agents are used in baked goods or how the different components contribute to the end product of baked goods. Whenever I learn something new, I get excited to experiment even more in the kitchen. I have shifted away from more time-consuming cooking and baking to quicker recipes as my work load has increased. My hoisin glazed meatballs were definitely what I needed to help me get through my endless hours of readings, assignments, and group projects. These meatballs were wonderful right out of the oven, but they still tasted good even after a couple days.
For the meatballs:
· 4 tablespoons of vegetable oil (or less depending on how many meatballs your skillet can accommodate at once)
· ½ small red onion, diced
· 3 cloves garlic, minced
· ½ inch piece of ginger, minced
· 2 stalks scallions, minced
· 1 pound ground pork
· ½ cup panko bread crumbs
· 6-8 sprigs fresh cilantro, stems trimmed
· ½ teaspoon kosher salt
· ¼ teaspoon white pepper powder
· ½ teaspoon confectioners’ sugar
· ½ tablespoon Shaoxing wine
· ½ tablespoon soy sauce
· ½ tablespoon hoisin sauce
· 1 large egg
For the hoisin glaze:
· 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
· 1 tablespoon soy sauce
· 1 tablespoon Shaoxing wine
· ½ cup orange juice
· Cornstarch slurry (1 tablespoon of cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon of water)
Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 375°F. Set aside a baking dish.
2) In a large bowl, combine the onion, garlic, ginger, scallions, ground pork, panko, cilantro, salt, white pepper, sugar, wine, soy sauce, hoisin sauce and egg. Mix thoroughly with your hands and roll portions of the mixture into 1-inch wide meatballs. Wash your hands after all portions are rolled into meatballs.
3) Heat a skillet on medium heat. Add a tablespoon of oil. Cook 6-8 meatballs at a time until meatballs are browned on all sides. Feel free to cook more meatballs at a time if your skillet can accommodate more meatballs. Remove browned meatballs to a plate. Repeat process with another tablespoon of oil and another 6-8 meatballs until all meatballs are browned on all sides. Place meatballs in one layer in the baking dish.
4) Bake the meatballs in the oven for 20-25 minutes. When time is up, remove the meatballs from the oven and let the meatballs rest for another 5 minutes before serving.
5) To make the hoisin glaze, heat a sauce pan on medium heat. Once hot, add the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, wine, and orange juice to the sauce pan. Cook until warmed, about 3- 5 minutes. Add the cornstarch slurry and cook until the sauce starts to thicken up, about 30 seconds to one minute. Toss the meatballs in the hoisin glaze right before serving.
Takeaways: My hoisin glazed meatballs can be served by themselves for a snack or placed on a sliced baguette or rolls with some carrot and daikon slaw to make sliders. You can also make a simple noodle dish like my chili oil cold noodles to serve alongside the meatballs.