Asian Meatballs with Citrus Sauce and Quinoa Cabbage Salad

I was craving Asian-anything the other night - I didn't care if it was Chinese or Thai or Vietnamese or what.  I think I kind of drew from a lot of different Asian cooking influences when I made these meatballs and they came out so bomb!  They remind me a little of the filling you get in pot stickers, and are, in fact, very similar to our pot sticker recipe, found here.  Lots of veggies in these suckers!  In fact as I was chopping all the veggies up and throwing them in the bowl for pics, Justin asked where the meat was?  He didn't see that it was in the bottom of the mixing bowl... just covered with a ton of vegetables.
 

The citrus sauce was Justin's idea.  I was just going to do a wine sauce, but we had some oranges and lemons on hand and I really liked the idea of the bright citrus flavour to go with the meatballs.  Way tasty!  And all served with a cold quinoa and Napa cabbage salad... because you're going to have enough cabbage for both the meatballs and the salad!  Might as well use it all up!  ( actually only used 1/2 the Napa cabbage and sauted up the other 1/2 with the rest of the red onion the next night!)  But the quinoa and cabbage salad was a great contrast - I liked the crunch and lightness of the raw cabbage, cucumber and onion in the salad to go with the meatballs and sauce.  It all came together really well and satisfied that Asian food craving!

We'll be headed to a DS-13 show next weekend, so let's listen to a little Swedish hardcore with, "I Don't Wanna Be A Skinhead".  Neither do I, dude.  Neither do I.  -jen

ASIAN MEATBALLS

Napa Cabbage

Prep Time:  about 25 minutes
Cook Time:  30-40 minutes
Difficulty:  Medium
Makes: 60 meatballs

Meatball Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground pork
• 1 pound ground turkey
• 2 cups finely chopped Napa cabbage
• 1 cup finely diced carrots (3 medium)
• 3/4 cup finely diced celery (2 medium)
• 1 cup finely diced green onions (1 bunch)
• 1 cup finely diced Anaheim or bell peppers (2 medium)
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 cup chopped fresh herbs (I used 3/4c cilantro, 1/4c basil, 1/4c mint)
• 3 teaspoons minced ginger
• 2 tablespoons crushed red pepper flakes (1 tbsp for less spicy - 2 tbsp just has a small kick)
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons fish sauce
• 2 teaspoons Chinese mustard
• 2 eggs, lightly whisked
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• canola oil for frying

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients EXCEPT the canola oil and mix until combined.  If you have a food processor, I recommend throwing all the veggies into that to get them super-fine diced.  While it's not necessary, the meatball will hold together better the finer the veggies are chopped. 

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F.

Form 1.5 tablespoons of mixture into balls.  In a large skillet, add enough oil to cover the bottom and heat to medium-high.  Brown in batches.  Space balls evenly in pan so that they're not touching.  I only browned tops and bottoms.  Remove browned meatballs and set on a paper towel to remove excess grease.  Once all meatballs are browned, arrange on baking sheet.  (Don't rinse out that skillet!)  Bake at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until an internal temperature of 165 degrees is reached.


 
Citrus Sauce Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup diced red onion
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• juice of 1 orange
• juice of 1 lemon
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 2 cups chicken broth (you'll want 3 cups total of juice, wine and broth)
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• zest of 1 orange
• zest of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch (and 2 tbsp water)
• salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs (used the same ones as in meatballs: cilantro, basil, mint)

In the skillet that you browned the meatballs, you'll want about 2 tablespoons of oil over medium-high heat.  My pork was lean, so I had to add oil to the pan - if you got higher-fat pork, you may have enough oil in the pan remaining or you may even have to remove some.  Saute onions until translucent and tender.  Add garlic and saute for another minute.  Add your 3 cups combined of citrus juice, wine and broth to the skillet as well as the soy sauce and the citrus zest, making sure you scrape those browned bits off the bottom of the skillet.  Bring to a boil and let reduce for about 5 minutes.  In a separate bowl combine 2 tablespoons of cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water to make a slurry.  Whisk this in to the sauce until sauce thickens.  Remove from heat and taste.  Add salt and pepper as needed and stir in fresh herbs.  Serve over Asian Meatballs with Quinoa Salad (see recipe below).

QUINOA CABBAGE SALAD

Cook Time:  20 minutes
Rest Time:  20 minutes
Difficulty:  Easy
Makes: about 5 cups

• 1 cup uncooked quinoa
• 1 and 1/4 cup chicken broth
• 2 cups Napa cabbage, chopped
• 1 cucumber, seeds removed and diced
• 1/3 cup red onion, diced 

In a large sauce pan, over medium-high heat, add quinoa and cook about 2 minutes to toast - you'll see the quinoa start to turn a darker, golden brown and you'll smell that nutty, toasty deliciousness.  Stir in chicken broth.  Bring to a boil, than cover, lower heat, and simmer for a total of 18 minutes, stirring half-way through.  After 18 minutes, turn off heat and let rest with lid on for another 10 minutes.  Uncover and fluff with a fork.  Transfer to a large serving bowl and let cool another 10 minutes.  Stir in Napa cabbage, diced cucumber and diced onion.  Serve at room temp or chilled.