It's fun for kids to nibble these tender meatballs straight from the skewer or slide them off and wrap them in Boston or Bibb lettuce leaves along with slivers of cucumber, shredded carrots, and sprigs of fresh cilantro or mint. Either way, they pair beautifully with the sweet and spicy Vietnamese dipping sauce Nuoc Cham.
What you'll need
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce
- 2 teaspoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/3 cup shallots, minced
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh mint, finely chopped
- 1 pound ground pork
- Canola oil for brushing
- 8 (9-inch) bamboo skewers, soaked in water for 30 minutes
How to make it
Whisk together the cornstarch, sugar, fish sauce, soy sauce, and pepper in a medium bowl. Stir in the shallots, garlic, and mint. Add the pork and combine very gently by hand.
Form the mixture into 48 meatballs, each about an inch in diameter. Thread 6 meatballs onto each skewer. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to firm them slightly.
Prepare an electric grill or heat a grill pan to medium-high (the meatballs could fall through the grates of an outdoor grill). Lightly brush the meatballs with oil and grill them 6 to 8 minutes, turning often, until they're browned on all sides and just cooked through. Serve with Nuoc Cham sauce. Serves 4.
Nutritional Information
Per serving (2 skewers and 2 tablespoons of sauce): Calories 366 • Total Fat 24 g • Saturated Fat 9 g • Cholesterol 82 mg • Sodium 1,065 mg • Total Carbohydrate 16 g • Fiber 0.2 g • Sugars 9 g • Protein 20 g
