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5 from 1 vote

Asian Pork Meatballs with Quick Pickled Vegetables and Spicy Mayonnaise

Serve these meatballs in lettuce cups or on the end of party toothpicks with spicy mayonnaise for dipping.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time22 minutes
Total Time52 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Asian
Servings: 16 lettuce cups
Author: Marissa Stevens

Ingredients

For Meatballs:

  • 1 large clove garlic
  • 1 inch piece fresh ginger peeled and roughly chopped
  • 1 stalk lemongrass roughly chopped (just the tender white center - top, bottom and outer leaves removed)
  • 1/2 ounce fresh Thai basil leaves a large handful
  • 1 pound ground pork
  • 1 tablespoon soy sauce
  • 1 tablespoon fish sauce
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For Quick Pickled Vegetables

  • 2 medium carrots cut into julienne strips (recipe note #1)
  • 1 small daikon radish cut into julienne strips (recipe note #1)
  • 2 green onions chopped
  • 3 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar or more to taste
  • 1 teaspoon sugar or more to taste
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or more to taste

For Spicy Sesame-Sriracha Mayonnaise

  • 1/2 cup mayonnaise or homemade sesame mayonnaise (see recipe notes for recipe)
  • 2 tablespoons sriracha hot chili sauce
  • 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil omit if using homemade sesame mayonnaise

For Lettuce Cups:

  • 1 head butter lettuce leaves separated

Instructions

To make the meatballs:

  • Preheat oven to 375°F
  • Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
  • With the food processor running, through the chute add garlic, ginger, lemon grass and basil. Process until minced.
  • Place ground pork in a medium bowl. Add garlic mixture from food processor bowl along with soy sauce, fish sauce, salt, pepper. Using your hands, combine ingredients taking care not to overmix which would make your meatballs tough.
  • With a 3 tablespoon scoop or 1/4 cup measure, scoop out scant 1/4 cup portions of pork mixture and place on prepared baking sheet. Once meatballs are portioned, quickly roll each between your palms to make rounds. Arrange meatballs on baking sheet with an inch or two of space between each one.
  • Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until lightly browned and cooked through.

To make the Quick Pickled Vegetables:

  • Combine carrot and daikon radish strips with rice vinegar, sugar and salt in a small bowl. Toss to coat.
  • Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

To make Spicy Sesame-Sriracha Mayonnaise:

  • In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, sriracha and sesame oil.
  • Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

To assemble lettuce cups:

  • Arrange lettuce leaves on serving platter.
  • On each leaf, place about a tablespoon of Quick Pickled Vegetables, 1 teaspoon of Spicy Sesame-Sriracha Mayonnaise (or more) and one meatball. Serve.

Notes

  1. You should have ~4 cups between the two julienned vegetables.
  2. Try this recipe for  Homemade Sesame Mayonnaise in place of store bought.

Nutrition

Calories: 138kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 410mg | Potassium: 204mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 1682IU | Vitamin C: 7mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 1mg

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