Chinese Four Joy Meatballs in Brown Sauce, No Added Refined Sugar
International dishesBraised DishesChinaabout 60 minutes
These are large, juicy pork meatballs sitting in a glossy brown sauce. The work is in the mixing, because an under worked mixture crumbles and breaks in the fryer.
Chop the pork by hand, then stir it in one direction, lifting handfuls and slapping them back down until the mixture is springy. Crushed tofu folded in keeps the meatballs soft while still holding together. Deep fry them for about 4 minutes until evenly golden before braising.
This batch weighs about 712g, at roughly 289 calories per 100g.
Method
Cut the pork belly into small pieces and chop it with 20g of ginger, keeping the texture slightly coarse.
Cut the water chestnut or lotus root into fine dice, and rinse and finely chop the shiitake mushrooms.
Set aside a bowl with the shredded ginger, spring onion whites, star anise, cinnamon, dried chilies and Sichuan peppercorns.
Add the meat seasoning of 1/2 teaspoon of salt, a pinch of ground pepper, 1.5 teaspoons of Shaoxing wine, 1.5 teaspoons of soy sauce and 1 egg to the pork, and stir in one direction by hand for about 3 minutes.
Crush 50g of tofu into the mixture and stir for another minute, then fold in the water chestnut, mushrooms and spring onion for another minute.
Add 20g of potato starch and work the mixture for about 4 minutes, lifting handfuls high and slapping them back down until it becomes smooth and springy.
Divide the mixture into 4 or 5 portions and roll them into round balls.
Deep fry in hot oil for about 4 minutes each until evenly golden.
Put a little of the frying oil into a large pan, heat it, then fry the ginger, spring onion, star anise, cinnamon, chilies and Sichuan peppercorns until fragrant.
Add the braising liquid of 1.5 teaspoons of oyster sauce, 1.5 teaspoons of soy sauce, 1.5 tablespoons of dark soy sauce, about 250ml of water, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of chicken bouillon powder, 1/4 teaspoon of kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and a little ground pepper, bring to a boil, lower in the meatballs, cover and cook over high heat for about 30 minutes, turning them now and then.
Lift the meatballs onto a plate, strain the aromatics out of the pot and taste the liquid.
Mix cornstarch with a little water, pour it in gradually while stirring until the sauce thickens, then spoon it over the meatballs.
Tips
Pork chopped by knife keeps its texture and beats machine mincing.
Choose pork belly or a half lean half fat cut, as this dish needs some fat to stay juicy.
Work the meat in one direction, then lift it and slap it down, and the balls turn springy and hold together in the pan.
Water chestnut can be swapped for lotus root, both giving a crisp nutty bite.
Boiled greens arranged around the plate suit this well.
Brown the meatballs before braising, since braising them raw leaves them crumbly and the sauce cloudy.
Need kOBE Monk Fruit Blend?
The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.