Pork Balls with Minted Peanut Sauce

At first glance these eye-catching chile peppers look like red jalapeno. However, they have a different flavor and are less meaty than Jalapeno. Red Fresnos are great roasted and added to salsas. Try grilling them alongside your steaks or in kabobs.

When roasting these they should char, blister, and become soft. Try substituting these in your favorite chile recipes.

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Ingredients:

10 oz leg of pork, trimmed and diced
1 piece fresh ginger, 1/2 inch long, peeled and grated
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 tsp sesame oil
1 Tbsp medium-dry sherry
1 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 egg white
1/2 tsp salt
a pinch of white pepper
12 oz long grain rice, washed and cooked for 15 minutes
2 oz ham, thickly sliced and diced
1 iceberg or bib lettuce, to serve

Minted Peanut Sauce:
1 Tbsp creamed coconut
1 1/3 cups boiling water
1 Tbsp smooth peanut butter
juice of 1 lime
1 red chile, seeded and finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 Tbsp freshly- chopped mint
1 Tbsp freshly-chopped coriander
1 Tbsp fish sauce (optional)

Instructions:

To make the pork balls, place the diced pork, ginger, and garlic in a food processor and blend together smoothly for about 2-3 minutes. Add the sesame oil, sherry, soy sauce, and sugar, and blend. Lastly add the egg white.

Spread the cooked rice and ham on a shallow dish. Using wet hands, shape the pork mixture into thumb-sized balls. Roll in the rice to cover and pierce each ball with a bamboo skewer.
To make the sauce, put the creamed coconut in a measuring jug and cover with the boiling water. Place the peanut butter in another bowl with the lime juice, chile, garlic, mint and coriander. Combine evenly, then add the creamed coconut and season with the fish sauce if desired.

Place the pork balls in a bamboo steamer, cover, and steam over a saucepan of boiling water for 8-10 minutes. Arrange all the lettuce leaves on a large serving plate. Place the pork balls on the leaves with the dipping sauce to one side.

Serves 4-6.

From “Fire and Spice” by Hsiung, Fernandez, and Wheeler.