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Susan Jung

Meatballs seem to be universally loved but there is a wide variety. All are made of minced meat, but that can be lamb, pork, beef, veal or a combination of them. The meat is mixed with seasoning and bound into a cohesive mass with fat and/or liquid, before being pan-fried, braised, grilled or fried.
Lamb meatballs with whole wheat spaghetti (pictured)
This recipe comes from food stylist Vivian Herijanto.
For the meatballs:
600 grams minced lamb
400 grams minced pork
25 grams dried breadcrumbs
50 grams freshly grated pecorino romano
50 grams freshly grated parmesan
2 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley
2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
30ml cream
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
30-60ml canola or olive oil
For the sauce and to serve:
30ml extra-virgin olive oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 medium-sized carrot, chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
The leaves from 2 rosemary sprigs, chopped
The leaves from 3 thyme sprigs, chopped
The leaves from 2 parsley sprigs, chopped
480ml dry red wine
2 900-gram cans crushed tomatoes
2 dried bay leaves
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
450 grams whole wheat spaghetti
Make the tomato sauce. In a large pot, heat the oil over a medium-high flame. Add the onion and garlic and saut? until soft. Add the carrot and celery and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the fresh herbs and cook until the vegetables are soft. Add the wine, bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for a few minutes. Stir in the tomatoes and bay leaves, then simmer, uncovered, over a low flame until thick, or for about one hour. Remove the bay leaves and taste the sauce for seasoning. Pur?e the sauce in a food processor.
Make the meatballs while the sauce is simmering. Mix together the pecorino and parmesan cheeses and set aside about one-quarter. Put the lamb and pork in a large bowl and add the breadcrumbs, three-quarters of the cheese, the parsley, rosemary, eggs and cream. Season with pepper and a little salt (the cheeses are salty). Mix gently but thoroughly, taking care not to overwork the meat. Shape into lumps the size and shape of golf balls, lay on a baking tray and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Heat some oil in a skillet and place over a medium-high flame. When the oil is very hot, brown the meatballs well on all sides. When all the meatballs are browned, add them to the finished sauce. Bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook until al dente. Remove the meatballs and most of the sauce to a serving bowl. When the pasta is cooked, drain it in a colander but do not rinse it - transfer it immediately to the pan holding the remaining sauce. Mix thoroughly to coat the pasta with the sauce then place on a serving platter. Serve the pasta with the meatballs and sauce and sprinkle with the reserved grated cheese.
Lion's head meatballs
If possible, make the stock one day in advance. This gives you time to chill it (so it solidifies to a jelly) and remove the layer of fat that will have floated to the surface. Hand chop the pork for a better texture.
For the stock:
250 grams chicken wings
250 grams chicken feet
2 large dried scallops
50 grams Yunnan ham
100 grams (or more) pork skin (taken from the pork belly used for the meatballs)
2 spring onions
A 1.5cm chunk of ginger, peeled
For the meatballs and vegetables:
750 grams fatty pork belly, skin removed
15ml soy sauce, plus extra for the sauce
20ml rice wine, plus extra for the sauce
1/2 tsp granulated sugar, plus extra for the sauce
10ml sesame oil
3 water chestnuts, peeled and minced
3 thin slices fresh ginger, peeled and minced
2 tsp cornstarch, plus extra for thickening the sauce
Fine sea salt, to taste
1/4 tsp finely ground white pepper
90ml of the chilled stock, cut into small pieces
15 grams shelled pine nuts, lightly toasted
Cooking oil, for frying
500 grams Chinese cabbage
Minced spring onions, for serving
Place all the ingredients for the stock in a medium-sized saucepan. Add a litre of water, bring to the boil then lower the heat and simmer for two or three hours, or until the chicken feet are very tender. Strain the stock, discarding the solids. Cool the liquid to room temperature then refrigerate it. When cold, remove the fat from the surface.
Cut the pork into large pieces then hand chop it by using two evenly sized sharp cleavers as if they were drumsticks. Put the minced pork in a large bowl and add the soy sauce, rice wine, sugar, sesame oil, water chestnuts, ginger, cornstarch, a little salt and pepper and 90ml of the chilled stock. Mix thoroughly, stirring in one direction. Stir in the pine nuts then shape the mixture into eight slightly flattened meatballs. Chill for at least an hour.
Heat the oil in a pan to the depth of about 3cm. When the oil is very hot, fry the meatballs a few at a time. Brown the meatballs on one side then turn them over and brown the other side. Drain on paper towels.
Trim and discard the bottom 2cm of the cabbage and reserve several of the larger leaves. Cut the remaining cabbage into 3cm pieces. Heat about 20ml of oil in a wok, add the chopped cabbage, sprinkle it lightly with salt and stir-fry until slightly wilted. Put the cabbage in a large clay pot, lay the meatballs on top and add about 600ml of the stock. Bring to the boil then taste the liquid and season with soy sauce, sugar, salt and rice wine. Place the reserved cabbage leaves over the meatballs then put the pot over a medium flame. Bring to the boil then lower the heat, put the lid on the clay pot and simmer for about 45 minutes. Thicken the sauce by stirring in about 2cm of cornstarch dissolved in water. Sprinkle with minced spring onion before serving.
Styling: Corner Kitchen Cooking School
 


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Susan Jung's recipes

Meatball recipes: lamb meatballs with whole wheat spaghetti, and Lion's head meatballs

Lamb meatballs with whole wheat spaghetti. Photo: Jonathan Wong

Lifestyle

Food & Drink

Grilled, fried or braised, meatballs are comfort food with univeral appeal. These two recipes give them a chance to shine


Meatball recipes: lamb meatballs with whole wheat spaghetti, and Lion's head meatballs

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Grilled, fried or braised, meatballs are comfort food with univeral appeal. These two recipes give them a chance to shine

Grilled, fried or braised, meatballs are comfort food with univeral appeal. These two recipes give them a chance to shine