Crisp pork meatballs laced with noodles

To most people meatballs are simply a little crispy on the outside while being juicy, tender and naturally full of meat on the inside. In terms of variety they are legion ranging from German meatballs, aka Konigsberger Klops to the better known Italian meatballs or the not so well known Swedish meatballs, sloppy Joe’s and would you believe the name porcupines, far too formidable a name for an item that has neither pork nor spines. Meatballs vary in size and can be as big as your fist, other times they can be small or medium with no defined size. Served alongside pasta or rice though rare with Irish potatoes or cocktail style on a single toothpick, sadly these tasty morsels have never been able to get the credit that they deserve despite the fact that they have been around for eon years going back several centuries.

The other day I looked through Apicius, aka De re culinarian or De re coquinaria, a collection of cookery writings dating back to Roman times and illustrating a bounty of recipes including, inter alia meatballs. In China, diners have enjoyed Four Joy Meatballs since the Qin Dynasty that dates from1644 to 1911 and was founded by Manchus, the northeast Asian people. 

Nevertheless, the meatball is thought to have had its origins in ancient Persian with the earliest known dish known as kofta. This was created by rolling leftover ground lamb into large balls which were glazed with egg yolk and saffron prior to cooking. This item became unique, different while at the same time being tasty.  To this day, kofta survives as a genre of meatball or meatloaf dishes in the Balkans, Middle East, North Africa, South Caucasian, South and Central Asian cuisine.    

Originally, meatballs were made with whatever meat was on hand, and they were convenient and easy to eat in a hurry. From being dropped into steaming bowls of soup to smothered in sauce, even to being stuffed with hard-boiled eggs. Meatballs travelled across Europe and Asia and into the Americas, becoming a part of Brazilian, Canadian, and even Mexican cuisine. In the US, they mostly associate meatballs with Italian food, or at least our version of Italian food. We cut up meatballs and throw them on pizza, order towering plates of spaghetti topped with meatballs the size of racquetballs (yum), and stuff hoagie rolls with juicy meatballs, tomato sauce, and loads of gooey, melty mozzarella for an amazing meatball sub.

In fact, the American version of meatballs is not too far off the original Italian recipes that date back to the Roman era. Italian meatballs, or polpette, are also typically made of ground beef and pork mixed with breadcrumbs, garlic, eggs, and Romano cheese,  just like the American equivalent. But, you are more likely to find meatballs in Italian soups than atop piles of pasta. Most Italians would chuckle at the oversized meatballs they knife-and-fork their way through in the US. If you are in Rome and order a plate of spaghetti and meatballs, prepare to be disappointed (order a plate of pancetta bucatini instead, make meatballs at home).

Crisp pork meatballs laced with noodles

These little meatballs, decoratively coated with a lacing of noodles, appear to be very impressive but surprisingly they are actually very easy to make. Incidentally, do by all means feel free to use minced beef in the event that you are averse to eating pork or for whatever reason.

Ingredients

Serves 4

400g minced pork readily available from a supermarket or butchery

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 tbsp crushed fresh ginger

2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro

1 tbsp oyster sauce

2 tbsp fresh bread crumbs

1 egg, beaten

200g fresh thin egg noodles, but can be substituted with regular pasta

Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Fresh cilantro leaves, to garnish

Spinach leaves and chili or tomato sauce to serve

Method

1. Mix together the pork, garlic, ginger, chopped cilantro, oyster sauce, bread crumbs and eggs and season with salt and pepper. Knead the pork mixture until it is sticky and then form into balls about the size of a walnut.

2. Blanch the noodles in a saucepan of boiling water for 2 to 3 minutes. Drain, rinse under cold running water and drain well. Wrap 3 to 5 strands of noodles securely around each meatball in a crisscross pattern.

3. Heat the oil in a deep fryer or a preheated wok. Deep fry the meatballs in batches until golden brown and cooked through to the centre. As each batch browns, remove with a slotted spoon and drain well on kitchen paper towel. Serve hot on a bed of spinach leaves that have been blanched in boiling salted water for a couple of minutes garnished with fresh cilantro leaves and chili  or tomato sauce in a small bowl.