Rice-Studded Meatballs

[Susan in FL]

I am interested in the opinion of you experts on oriental food... how does this recipe look to you? Ever made something like this?

Rice-Studded Meatballs

[gus_tatory]

not an expert, but SobaAddict70 has a recipe in the eGullet Recipe Archives for his grandmother's "Lion's Head Meatballs" that sounds kind of similar. it's here, but without the rice coating on the exterior.

[Katherine]

I'm sure I saw a recipe somewhere that called for rolling the raw meatballs in fully soaked short-grain sweet rice, followed by steaming. I can't recall if I tried it. It certainly never became part of my repertoire.

[jo-mel]

The usual name for these meatballs is "Pearl Balls". I see from the recipe from Gourmet, that they use long grain rice. The traditional rice to use is glutinous rice -- also known as 'sticky' or 'sweet' rice. The composition of the glutinous rice is different from long grain and the cooked result is an opaque shiny pearl-like rice -- rather than plain white -- hence the name "Pearl Balls" --'Zhen Zhu Rou Wan'.

The recipe in Gourmet is pretty basic. I make mine using Chinese dried mushrooms, and recently have been adding Chinese sausage, which gives them a special flavor.

They are fun to make and make a great presentation when served from the bamboo basket in which they are steamed. Before they are steamed, they look pretty, sitting on the rice, but the lettuce loses its color after the steaming process -- ending kinda washed out. The pearl balls can be steamed on waxed paper, but I prefer the lettuce. The rise IS indeed sticky, so they have to sit on something, and cannot be placed on the bamboo alone.

This recipe is a combo of one that I have developed over the years, adapted from several others:

PEARL BALLS

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked glutinous rice

lettuce leaves, or leafy substitute

Meatball Mixture:1 pound lean ground pork

8 dried Chinese mushrooms – soaked 30 minutes to rehydrate

8 canned waterchestnuts chopped, not too fine

¼ cup bamboo shoots chopped same as water chestnuts

1 tsp. minced garlic

2 Tbsp. finely minced fresh ginger

2 whole scallions, minced

1 egg

1 ½ Tbsp. soy sauce

1 ½ Tbsp. sherry

1 tsp. sesame oil

OPT: 2 links Chinese pork sausage, soaked in hot water till soft, then chopped.fine.

Preparation:

Rinse the rice and soak in cold water 2 to 3 hours.

Rinse the mushrooms, cut out tough stem. Chop fine.

Combine meatball mixture and form into 1 inch balls.

Drain rice and spread on a clean cloth towel, or paper towels.

Roll meatballs, one at a time, over the rice – pressing lightly to make rice adhere.

Cooking:

--- Add water to a wok, up to one inch below the level of the food to be cooked.

----Bring water to a boil.

----Line the steamer racks with leafy greens or waxed paper.

----Place meatballs on lettuce – leaving ½ inch spaces.

----Place racks over the boiling water, cover, and steam for 30 minutes.

Notes:

Pearl balls can be cooked a day ahead. Steam only 20 minutes. Cool and refrigerate. Re-steam 20 minutes before use.

You can also steam them, then place them on a cookie sheet, and freeze. When frozen, place in a freezer bag. Resteam them, on lettuce, for 20 to 25 minutes.

Serving sauce:

Equal parts of soy sauce and vinegar.

Add sesame oil to taste. (opt.)

Add hot oil to give a kick (opt.)

Sprinkle with chopped scallion (opt.)

[pjs]

Susan,

I'd second the use of the sticky rice. It is quite a different product than regular long grain. The asian grocery on W ISB Blvd. off of Beach St. had it in small bags last time I bought some there.

PJ

[WolfChef]

My dad used to make these for us kids. We always referred to them as porcupine meatballs. Maybe it's a midwest thing.

[jo-mel]

My dad used to make these for us kids.  We always referred to them as porcupine meatballs.  Maybe it's a midwest thing.

My mother use to make Porcupine meatballs when I was a kid, and I made them for my own kids. I'm talking about the kind where the meat and raw rice are mixed together, and dropped into a sauce that was mostly tomato sauce. Easiest dish in the world, as you don't have to brown the meatballs first --- just drop then in the liquid, and they are on their own. The rice stuck out when they were cooked -- hence the name. I wonder what their origin is? I guess most countries have their version of meatballs and rice. The Chinese Pearl balls are my favorite, I think.

Edited March 1, 2004 by jo-mel (log)

[Susan in FL]

My dad used to make these for us kids.  We always referred to them as porcupine meatballs.  Maybe it's a midwest thing.

That was my first thought when I saw this recipe, but porcupine meatballs, as I know them, are made from mixing in the rice throughout, rather than just on the outside. I love porcupine meatballs! How nastalgic... when I was a kid, I went to an elementary school that actually had really good cafeteria food. The lunches were cooked from scratch, and porcupine meatballs were on the menu about once a month. I've made them two or three times in my adult life, for old times' sake.

Hi PJ! Thanks for the tip. I have noticed the grocery store on ISB and wondered about it. There is an Asian market in Deland where I have gotten some good stuff. Glad to know about this place, in addition. P.S. Now is probably not the time for you and I to meet in person for that hamburger, huh... Is it a royal pain in the butt this week for you, traveling to and from work?

Jo-mel and All, I appreciate the info. I will modify this recipe with the suggestions and ideas you all gave. Sounds good! Thanks for writing out your recipe, Jo-Mel.

Now, what to have with them.... ?

[jo-mel]

What to have with them?

Well, they can be part of a dim Sum selection.

They can be an appetizer.

If you are having a meal where all forms of cooking are represented -- stir/frying -oven-cooking, deep/frying, etc . --- they can be your steamed dish.

They can be the pork representative in a meal covering all textures and flavors. A soft, bland but tasty pork ball in contrast to a hot beef, a sweet/sour fish, and a crispy chicken.

They can be with a simple soup, and a spinach salad for a lunch.

How about as dear Barbara Tropp suggested --- Pearl Balls, by them selves, with a light red wine or a full bodied white.

Jo-Ann

Edited March 1, 2004 by jo-mel (log)

[Cusina]

jo-mel thank you for sharing your recipe and the serving suggestions. I've copied them both and will give them a try.

[pjs]

I'd pair them with some deep-fried poultry or seafood, for the texture difference. With a stir-fry veg and rice you've got dinner!

Jo-Mel I copied your recipe.

PJ

PS That grocery on ISB has excellent dried shiitakes. They are in a big bag in bulk near the cash register. When the guy that owns the place becomes familar with you he will let you don a plastic bag on your hand and pick out your own! They also have excellent jasmine rice. I can't remember the brand name but it is the one with the big elephant on the bag.

I've learned how to avoid the traffic. Still, I wouldn't go to the Brickyard this week or that one week in October due to biker overload. I'd meet you at Pasha for schwarmas though!

[tissue]

For the meat filling you can also use a pork/shrimp mixture.

[trillium]

I'd also add to the nice recipe that jo-mel posted that if you can get them, fresh water chestnuts and bamboo are much nicer than canned, and a high grade shaoxing wine (not the "cooking" salted kind!) is preferrable to the sherry, unless of course, you can't find them. Plunk the water chestnuts into water as you peel them, to prevent discoloration.

regards,

trillium

[Stone]

Sounds like Vietnamese Potstickers (or dumplings). Basic dumpling filling, rolled in sticky rice and deep fried. A little painful, but delicious.

[jo-mel]

I'd also add to the nice recipe that jo-mel posted that if you can get them, fresh water chestnuts and bamboo are much nicer than canned, and a high grade shaoxing wine (not the "cooking" salted kind!) is preferrable to the sherry, unless of course, you can't find them.  Plunk the water chestnuts into water as you peel them, to prevent discoloration.

regards,

trillium

A big YES to the fresh chestnuts and bamboo! Now that fresh bamboo is available in some markets, it would be a nice addition, and I don't have to explain fresh chestnuts to those who have experienced them.

I don't like to chop these two vegetables too fine, as I like the crunch --especially from the chestnuts.

[Susan in FL]

Yes, absolutely, on trilliums's suggestions, especially the fresh water chestnuts which I can find at times. I'm not sure I'll be able to find the bamboo fresh, but I'll give it a try. And thanks for the ideas on what to have with the meatballs.

As soon as Bike Week is over, I'll check out that Asian market. What are schwarmas?

P.S. PJ, we're hoping to see you soon after Bike Week! Work is progressing on the project.

[trillium]

If you can't find bamboo fresh, you usually can find it in cryovac packages, which still tastes better then the canned stuff to me. Larger Vietnamese groceries in big cities will frequently have it in different sorts of cuts in tubs of water. I always go for those if they're there, because it gets rid of the peeling and trimming step on the bamboo.

regards,

trillium

[jo-mel]

Trillium ---- I had been told that those different cuts of bamboo shoots, in tubs of water, were from large restaurant-sized cans which were simply opened and placed in tubs of water. That they actually weren't fresh, because the fresh bamboo had a short 'shelf life' and didn't do well in transportation. Not so? I never actually asked the grocer. This was years ago.

I kinda assume, that fresh may now be available, as I see it in the markets, in its husk --- not in water. Do they now husk them and place them in the tubs?

[pjs]

As soon as Bike Week is over, I'll check out that Asian market.  What are schwarmas?

Pssst. Don't forget to pick-up some Szechuan Peppercorns while you are there. Don't tell them I sent you and wear sunglasses.

What are schwarmas? Apparently, according to this thread, no one knows.

PJ

[trillium]

Trillium ---- I had been told that those different cuts of bamboo shoots, in tubs of water, were from large restaurant-sized cans which were simply opened and placed in tubs of water. That they actually weren't fresh, because the fresh bamboo had a short 'shelf life' and didn't do well in transportation. Not so? I never actually asked the grocer. This was years ago.

I kinda assume, that fresh may now be available, as I see it in the markets, in its husk --- not in water. Do they now husk them and place them in the tubs?

Hmmm. I always assumed it was fresh because it didn't have that tin taste and it spoiled in the refrigerator pretty quickly...I had to use it within 2-3 days or so, and if you went on an off day the water was bubbly, and then I didn't buy any. I can't find anything of the sort here in Portland, so I can't investigate further, but at my favorite SE Asian grocery in Chicago I assumed they were doing the processing themselves or buying from a distributor that did. They tasted somewhere in between what you get in the cans and what you prepare yourself. I suppose it could have been that they were canned and just soaked in a lot of fresh water...or maybe they came from the cryovac type packaging instead of tins. Maybe someone with access can investigate.

regards,

trillium

[Susan in FL]

The pearl balls turned out good! Thanks jo-mel, and all, for your thoughts. I used parts of both recipes -- the Epicurious "Rice-Studded Meatballs," and yours, jo-mel. It was actually more of the latter. The only bamboo shoots available were canned, so I left them out. I figured they pretty much taste like the can, and wouldn't add much to the dish.

I think if I followed just the Epicurious recipe, they would have been too bland. I had some dipping sauce left over from another dinner and that helped. What fun to see how they looked! I was especially pleased with that part.

[trillium]

Brava! Those look good...I wish I hadn't looked before dinner because now I'm super hungry. Thanks for sharing the picture.

regards,

trillium

[jo-mel]

I just ate, and they still look good to me!!!!

Using the long grained rice does indeed make them 'rice studded'! Using the more starchy glutinous rice -- which is rounder, the balls are shinier. The nice thing about many of these recipes is that you can add or subtract what you wish and they still turn out fine.

They are fun to make ---and to present I always get oohs and aahs when I take the cover off the bamboo basket. BTW -- what did you steam them in? I always use bamboo, but the aluminum works just as well. They can be steamed on a plate too, but you can only get so many on one plate.

Thanks for the picture. They look scrumtious!

[Susan in FL]

I used my Farberware stainless steel pot with a steamer insert. I don't have a bamboo steamer, but after this successful dish and my increasing interest in Asian style cooking, I will probably soon be in the market for one! Any recommendations?

[trillium]

Buy one that fits your biggest pot or wok you can use for steaming. You shouldn't have to pay very much for them either. I have a big one you can see in my eGCI course, and then smaller ones that fit on saucpans. I like the big one because pyrex pie plates fit just right inside and their lip prevents spills. I also have a new gadget that is one of those plate grabber things so you can remove the plates from the steamer without tilting them. You don't really need one, but it does make life a little easier.

happy cooking,

trillium