A flavor power punch! That’s what these little meatballs are all about. They are easy to make, freeze well and any extra sauce can be used to perk up eggs, fish, rice… just about anything! Yes, there may be some ingredients you don’t have on hand, ie., chili crunch, fish sauce and dried mint, but it’s worth adding them to your pantry because you’ll find yourself using them again and again. Oh, and just as an FYI, my 1 year old grandson loves them!
Vietnamese Meatballs with Minty Chili Lime Sauce
Ingredients
Meatball Mixture
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup panko bread crumbs or regular bread crumbs
2 tablespoons fish sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger, about 1-inch piece
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
6 scallions, finely chopped (save 3 tablespoons for sauce)
2 teaspoon lime zest from 2 limes
1 tablespoon dried mint or 3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1 1/2 pounds 93% lean ground turkey or lean ground beef
Chili Lime Sauce
2 tablespoons chili crunch oil (I use S&B Brand Crunchy Garlic with chili oil because it’s not spicy)
1/4 cup tamari or low sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
Juice of 2 limes (about 1/4 cup)
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon dried mint
3 tablespoons scallions (saved from when prepping meatball mixture)
Directions
- For the meatball mixture: Preheat oven to 425 degrees and place rack in lowest position. Line a sheet pan with parchment. In a large bowl, combine eggs, 1 tablespoon olive oil and panko. Mix until it bread crumbs absorb the egg mixture. Add 2 tablespoons fish sauce, garlic, ginger, red pepper flakes, scallions (minus 3 tablespoons), lime zest and 1 tablespoon dried mint. Whisk to combine. Add ground turkey. Using hands, mix until combined.
- Roll into 1/4 cup size meatballs and place on parchment-lined baking sheet. Mixture will be sticky so you may have to wet your hands to roll them.
- Bake for 15-17 minutes, flipping them over half way through cooking. They should be browned and cooked through because you are not cooking them again.
- For the sauce: Whisk all of the ingredients in a medium bowl until sugar is dissolved.
- Serve meatballs drizzled with sauce. Serving suggestion: Serve with cooked rice and sliced cucumber or pickled cucumber salad.
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