Potluck Secrets: Magical Mini Meatballs
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
These mini meatballs can morph themselves to fit your occasion, drop them in a pot of broth with noodles for a hearty soup, make them into a sandwich, serve them with rice for a main course or as appetizers on their own with a little sweet chile sauce.
Recipe type: Main Dishes
Occasion: Celebrations & Gatherings
Serves: about 48 meatballs
Ingredients
  • 1½ pounds ground pork
  • 1 pound ground beef
  • 2 scallions chopped finely, about 3 tablespoons
  • ¼ bunch cilantro stems and leaves minced, (about 2 tablespoons), plus more for garnish
  • 3 cloves garlic grated finely on a rasp
  • 1 inch piece of peeled ginger grated finely on a rasp
  • 1-2 Thai bird chiles minced (optional)
  • 1½ tablespoons fish sauce
  • pinch white pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • coconut oil spray (or other spray oil)
Instructions
  1. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix gently and thoroughly. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Using a 2 oz ice cream scoop, portion out the meatballs onto the baking sheet. Use wet hands (put a little water in a small bowl or plate to dip your hands into while you work) to help roll into smooth balls about 1½ inches in diameter or about 1½ tablespoons in volume. Repeat until all meatballs have been formed. (See get savvy note on freezing)
  2. Preheat broiler to high.
  3. In another baking sheet, set a rack and spray with coconut oil. (If you don't have a rack, just use the baking sheet, it will work fine) Transfer as many of the meatballs as will fit to the sprayed rack leaving about 1 inch in between them. Note: If your broiler has a narrow cooking area and doesn't heat the whole baking sheet at once, adjust your meatballs to fit precisely under the elements, cooking fewer meatballs per batch if necessary, you'll find this to be more efficient than rotating throughout cooking. Cook under the broiler for 7 minutes transfer to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm. Repeat with remaining meatballs.
  4. If serving as an appetizer, pair with a jarred sweet chile sauce.
  5. If serving as a soup - simply skip the broiling cooking method, bring your broth to a boil, and poach at a bare simmer until cooked through (about 7-10 minutes).
  6. If serving in a noodle bowl or rice bowl, cook the noodles and rice according to the packaging instructions, lightly season with soy and sesame oil. Garnish or toss through a combination of the following vegetables: julienned cucumber, sliced scallions, sliced red chiles, chopped cilantro, julienned carrots, julienned daikon radish, or any sautéd vegetables such as mushrooms, broccoli or green beans.
  7. If serving as a bahn mi sandwich try the following accompaniments, cut a baguette in half lengthwise. Combine sriracha with mayo (use as much sriracha as you like to make a very spicy mayo or just a mildly spicy one, we like a 3:2 ratio of mayo to sriracha) add a squeeze of lime and a pinch of salt and spread on both sides of a baguette. Make a quick vegetable salad with ½ English cucumber, julienned, sliced red chiles, 2 medium carrots, grated, julienned daikon radish (about ½ cup) or sliced napa cabbage. Put all vegetables in a bowl and dress with lime 1 tablespoon lime juice, 1 tablespoon fish sauce and a pinch of sugar and salt to taste. Set aside to wilt a bit before adding to the sandwiches. Garnish with picked cilantro and mint leaves. NOTE: bahn mi sandwiches traditionally have pate, butter and other French influences, feel free to riff on this. There really are no rules when making one for a pot luck.
GET SAVVY: Mini meatballs can be frozen in their raw form or after they've been cooked. If freezing from raw, roll meatballs and freeze on a baking sheet, covered until solid, about 2 hours. Once frozen, transfer to resealable bags or freezer safe containers and store again in the freezer. They will last for up to 1 month before getting too freezer burned. To cook when ready, either poach in simmering broth or roast in an oven at 400 degrees until cooked through, about 20 minutes (if cooking from frozen).

If freezing after cooked: simply store in a resealable bag or freezer safe container. They can be microwaved to reheat or brought back up to temperature in a 350-400 degree oven for about 15 minutes.
Recipe by Doorstep Dishes at https://www.doorstepdishes.com/potluck-secrets-magical-mini-meatballs/