Week 32: Recipe #3--Saucy Asian Meatballs

These are technically an appetizer, but I thought I'd make these for dinner and serve them over rice.  They were pretty tasty!  I found these on a site called Gimme Some Oven (see link below).  They were super easy to make, and I already had everything in my pantry/fridge, except for the green onions, which I left out.  I'd like to try them next time, but the meatballs were still really good.  I served these over rice with green beans and applesauce.   Makes about 35-40 meatballs.

Photo from www.gimmesomeoven.com

You'll Need:

For the meatballs:

• 2 lbs. ground pork or ground beef
• 2 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 c. Panko or breadcrumbs
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger
• 2 eggs
• 3 tsp. minced garlic
• 1/2 c. thinly-sliced green onions
• optional garnish:  toasted sesame seeds, sliced scallions

For the Asian sauce:

• 2/3 c. hoisin sauce
• 1/4 c. rice vinegar
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tblsp. soy sauce
• 1 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 tsp. ground ginger

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, mix together meatball ingredients until well-combined.  Shape into balls (about 1 to 1 1/2 inches) and place on a greased baking sheet or in a 9 x 13 baking dish (I found they fit better on a baking sheet).  Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until meatballs are golden on the outside and no longer pink on the inside.
3. While the meatballs are baking, whisk together all of the sauce ingredients until blended.  Once meatballs have finished cooking, you can either dip each meatball individually (using a toothpic) in the sauce mixture.  Or you can pour the sauce over the meatballs and gently stir them until covered. (I did the latter, and then served them over rice--yum!)

Recipe and link:  http://gimmesomeoven.com/saucy-asian-meatballs/