Vietnamese Lemongrass Meatballs

Description

We enjoy these tasty meatballs served over a bowl of rice or wrapped in lettuce cups. They’re balanced with flavors of spicy, salty, tangy, and sweet, and also make wonderful appetizers. Leftover meatballs may be stored in the freezer in a resealable plastic bag.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound lean ground pork
  • ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 large shallot, minced
  • 2 tablespoons lemongrass paste (such as Gourmet Garden®)
  • 1 tablespoon finely chopped mint
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1 teaspoon finely grated ginger root
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ cup water
  • 3 tablespoons fish sauce
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
  • 1 tablespoon white sugar, or more to taste
  • 1 teaspoon rice vinegar
  • 1 small Thai chile pepper, minced
  • 1 small garlic clove, finely chopped

Instructions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. Combine ground pork
  3. bread crumbs
  4. shallot
  5. lemongrass paste
  6. mint
  7. fish sauce
  8. brown sugar
  9. garlic
  10. ginger root
  11. and salt in a large bowl. Using a 1-tablespoon cookie scoop
  12. shape mixture into meatballs
  13. and place on the prepared baking sheet.
  14. Bake in the preheated oven until meatballs are no longer pink in the center and cooked through
  15. about 15 minutes.
  16. Meanwhile
  17. prepare the dipping sauce by mixing water
  18. fish sauce
  19. lime juice
  20. sugar
  21. Thai chile
  22. and garlic in a small bowl.
  23. Set an oven rack about 6 inches from the heat source and preheat the oven’s broiler.
  24. Place meatballs under the hot broiler just until the tops start to turn brown to get a little color and crispness
  25. about 2 minutes. Serve with the dipping sauce.

Servings: 4

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