The inspiration for this post in my mini series came when I overheard a conversation last week between two chaps in a Dun Laoghaire bar. Some snippets of their collective Chinese cookery wisdom; “They make it tasty by adding MSG. That stuff is really bad for you, full of lard.” “It makes you real hungry”. “There’s always loads of salt in the curry.” “The one in XXXX got closed down for serving seagull.” So went the assassination of the centuries old culinary traditions of one point four billion people.
It’s a bit depressing when we think this way. Particularly when there are so many simple dishes of Chinese origin. Dishes that are both easy to cook and are good for you. My next mind opening recipe in the series is Lion’s Head Meatballs.
The lion’s head name comes from the idea that the bok choi looks like a mane on the meatball lions head. Or so they say…
The ingredients list runs as follows;
- 5 pork chops
- 6 heads of bok choi
- 1 pint of chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon of garlic
- 1 tablespoon of ginger
- 3 or 4 spring onions
- 1 heaped tablespoon of cornflour
- a splash or two of soy sauce
- a splash of rice wine or sherry, if you have any left over from that funeral.
- salt and pepper to taste
First, mince the pork chops. If you don’t have a mincer, get a big knife and chop the meat up very small. Keep chopping until you have a coarse mince and muscular arms.
Be sure to mince the fat as well as the lean. Then add the garlic, ginger chopped spring onions, cornflour rice wine and soy sauce.
While the meatball mixture is mixing, chop the bok choi.
Next, mould the meat mixture into meatballs. Mine are a little bigger than a golf ball.
Fry these off over a medium heat until they are brown on most sides.
In a different (bigger) pan, add the chicken stock. Transfer the (partially) cooked meatballs and bring to a gentle simmer.
Cook for ten minutes or so before adding the bok choi.
When the bok choi has wilted, serve this dish with some rice. The rice absorbs the stock and the whole affair makes for a wonderful autumn dish.
It’s about as far away from the standard Irish Chinese takeaway as Dublin is from Beijing (about 5,000 miles as the very tired seagull flies). It’s easy, inexpensive and delicious. Mind you, it’s not as easy as calling the Jade Palace for some chicken balls, if that’s what floats your junk. Go on, open your mind and give this a go.
I’ll have another western take on a Chinese classic next in the series. Keep an eye out for Cha Sui Roast Pork with Stir Fried Noodles, coming soon.
Mad Dog | 22nd October 2013
|
I bet new versions of the Kenwood Chef don’t last so long – I’ve got the very same in my kitchen, with mincer!
Those meatballs look fantastic 😉
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Thanks MD. They are so easy to do and the ingredients are not far from a pork chop and cabbage. Light years ahead in taste though.
Adam J. Holland | 22nd October 2013
|
I was disappointed to learn that there is no lion in those meatballs. Still, they look divine.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Tasty indeed Adam. I think I might raise some ire if I used the real thing.
Adam | 22nd October 2013
|
We have various types of meatballs regularly, but I’ve never thought about doing those. good shout, Conor. One for this weekend maybe. Unusual to mince those chops though, rather than just get minced pork.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
With due deference to the butchering community, when I mince the pork myself, I know what I am eating…. It makes for a decent photo too!
frugalfeeding | 22nd October 2013
|
Great post, Conor – those look wonderful! You’ve achieved a good colour on your balls.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
It’s all the cycling…
frugalfeeding | 22nd October 2013
|
Good lord… Hoping to get out tomorrow and perhaps mine’ll end up the same delicious hue.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Time to leave this thread….
ohlidia | 22nd October 2013
|
Oh, I love this Connor! My kind of meal when the weather turns cool. I’ll have to forage through my unused kitchen stuff, I think I have a mincer attachment to my Kitchen Aid. Or I could ask the butcher to do it. Thanks for another fantastic recipe.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Hi Lidia, Thanks for that. It fits the bill in that it is very easy, very tasty and economical.
BTW: I was on Chicago John’s site last evening. Nice one on the pasta.
anyone4curryandotherthings | 22nd October 2013
|
oh Conor – Irish humour!!!!:):) Meatballs sound and look delicious – will certainly try those once I can ‘run around’ again – love Bok Choi – I only wish I still had my mothers oldfashioned mincer – can not find one here or abroad. Keep looking thou. Carina
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Hi Carina,
You have been laid up for a while now. I look forward to seeing you back in the kitchen.
Amanda | 22nd October 2013
|
I know how you feel when you hear things like that. I love that you mince your own meat! This dish looks absolutely delicious.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Thanks Amanda,
The food processor is nearly as old as myself. Unlike myself, all the bits work perfectly well. I enjoy making the mince.
Man Fuel | 22nd October 2013
|
Even though they are meatballs, the dish looks light and refreshing. In any event, I need to get myself a meat griner.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Do. It is pretty manly stuff feeding the meat into the screw and seeing the resulting mince come out the other end. Not as manly as using the hand operated one we had when I was growing up. That would make a man of you!
Jody and Ken | 22nd October 2013
|
Hmmm…. my first comment disappeared. Conor, as an expert in gratuitous chopping shots (and the more advanced gratuitous dicing and mincing shots) I recognize talent when I see it. Your bok choy shot is cutting edge! Excellent post. I’m Pinning it. Ken
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Thanks Ken, I admit to polishing the knife for that shot…
cookinginsens | 22nd October 2013
|
Beautiful. I love brothy plates like this.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
It’s getting to the time of year for them. Wet here today.
richardmcgary | 22nd October 2013
|
Nice looking meatballs, Conor. Need to keep this recipe in mind now that we are having cooler weather.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Thanks Richard. The emphasis in this little series is simplicity. It takes marginally more effort than frying the pork chops and it is very toothsome (love that word).
StefanGourmet | 22nd October 2013
|
Very nice, Conor! I had never heard of this dish, but that’s not strange since I don’t really know much about Chinese cuisine. I love the instruction to brown the meatballs on most sides 🙂 It goes without saying the pictures are great — my favorite one is the browning meatballs in the copper pan.
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
Thanks Stefan. Don’s gift of those copper pans helps with the photos. They tend to look pretty good.
StefanGourmet | 22nd October 2013
|
It also helps that your pans look neat and tidy in the photos. I still stick to my rule that I don’t let the photo taking interfere TOO much with my cooking, so I often have splashes and stuff showing…
Conor Bofin | 22nd October 2013
|
While I tend to not let the cooking interfere with the photo taking…
StefanGourmet | 22nd October 2013
|
LOL
I actually forgot to mention another rule of mine that also doesn’t help to produce tidy photos: I also don’t want to let cleaning interfere with the cooking. (Kees doesn’t like that rule as you can imagine)
Stef | 22nd October 2013
|
Oooh, I have some bak choy in the fridge there, reckon this will be a good way to use it up!
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
Do it! It’s worth the minimal effort.
misha | 22nd October 2013
|
these look great, conor. i actually (for once) have all the ingredients to make these. maybe i’ll give it a go this weekend. my meat grinder is one of those good old fashioned 20 kg hand crankers, so it’ll be an arm workout and a delicious meal.
also, i’m excited for that cha sui. i’ve been developing a recipe myself for quite some time and i’m really pumped to see your take on a classic.
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
Excellent on both counts. For sure, my cha sui is a ‘take’. But, it holds true to the principals. I will post it in two weeks, with a bit of Spanish in between.
thewindykitchen | 23rd October 2013
|
We love Asian food, and I cook it quite often. The thing that I love about it is that it is so flavorful that it can make even tofu appetizing! I am struggling a bit with the percentage of salt as I try to reproduce some of the more traditional dishes that require fermented/preserved things, but there are a lot of easy dishes like your gorgeous meatballs, that only require a few simple ingredients. It’s a shame really that a few greasy Chinese (probably not very authentic either!) joints are giving Asian food a bad name. Looking forward to your Char Siu Pork recipe. One of my favorite dishes is using it to make the steamed buns. If you have some pork left over, I highly recommend them 😉
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
I only ever made them twice and both times were very long ago. My daughters who are both in their 20s still ask me to do them. I think I have a plan forming.
Thank you,
C
ChgoJohn | 23rd October 2013
|
It sounds like those gents made the same mistake many of my countrymen make, thinking that the food they get at a Chinese take-away is authentic. These meatballs sound terrific, Conor. Sounds like a great mix of flavors within each one. I was surprised to see pork chops used. I’ve not seen it used in this way before. (I hope you saved the bones. They’ll help make a wonderful tomato sauce.) Next to my stand mixer, my “mincer” is my most cherished kitchen appliance. My dishes got so much better once I took control of the meat being used. This was a great post. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
Thanks John,
I have been chatting with two of my Chinese friends about these dishes. They has made some recommendations for more in the series. I am really enjoying their input as it does keep things real. The mincer (meat grinder) is good fun. My mum showed me a trick for cleaning it. One stuffs a couple of slices of bread in after the meat. When bread starts to come out the other end, all the meat is ground and most of the cleaning is done.
Stef | 23rd October 2013
|
Oh that’s a great tip, you should put that in the article. One of the reasons I don’t use my mincer as much as I could is the pain I have in cleaning it. It is an industrial job that can do a couple of hundred kilos an hour so it’s a bit more of a job to get it set up etc.
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
I might manage a couple of hundred kilos in my lifetime!
trixfred30 | 23rd October 2013
|
Pak Choy (or whatever its called) is my favourite green, and I like to braise them with icing sugar, ginger and soy sauce. I like the way you got the meatballs to go that colour – v impressive!
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
Thanks. Gentle frying and a lot of tricky turning did the trick.
Yinzerella | 23rd October 2013
|
If only they carried bok choi at my lame-ass grocery store!
Looking forward to the roast pork.
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
You need to move house.
Yinzerella | 23rd October 2013
|
LOL. I am making “easy kimchi” right now. I’m using Savoy cabbage because, well, of course, they don’t carry Napa!
Phil @foodfrankly | 23rd October 2013
|
I was kindly given a 1968 Kenwood ‘Chef’ by a friend. It occasionally smoked and smelt of burning electrics, but we have up-to-date electric breakers, so I decided it was ‘character’ and used it until it conked out recently. It’s now ornamental….
Great dish this, I did some a little while back using Ken Hom’s bible as guidance. Simple and delicious like most ‘real’ Chinese food.
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
Yes Phil, they are a great device. I’ll bet you could get yours repaired. Funny, when the thing gets very old, we value it a lot. Mine makes a huge racket and rocks about while its doing its thing. I would never think of getting a new one.
Maria Dernikos | 23rd October 2013
|
Those meatballs look delicious – I might even give them a go at the weekend.
Conor Bofin | 23rd October 2013
|
Hi Maria,
Do try them. They are easy and tasty.
Best,
Conor
Maria Dernikos | 23rd October 2013
|
Trust me I will! If I could teleport those meatballs straight from your post to my plate I would. I have a real yearning for them!!
tinywhitecottage | 25th October 2013
|
This is a keeper of a recipe. Great way to use bok choi. Perfectly browned.
Conor Bofin | 25th October 2013
|
Thanks. You covered the main points better than I could.
Best,
Conor
babso2you | 27th October 2013
|
That looks great! Seems easy enough too! A must try!
Conor Bofin | 27th October 2013
|
Thanks Barb.
babso2you | 27th October 2013
|
Will let you know how it goes!
Conor Bofin | 27th October 2013
|
Please do. I’d love to see it.
egg me on | 28th October 2013
|
Okay, I’m a week late on this one (I was traveling, and had spotty internet access), but these meatballs deserve a hearty ROAR! Well done, Conor. Can’t wait to see the roast pork and stir fried noodles.
Conor Bofin | 28th October 2013
|
Thanks Tommy. They are appearing next week. In the meantime, I have cooked a Szechuan speciality of Mapo Tofu. It will literally make your eyes water but, it was fantastic. That to follow again…. I’m having fun.
egg me on | 28th October 2013
|
I’m weeping with anticipation … keep having fun!
Sarah-Jane | 31st October 2013
|
Hi Conor
Discovered your blog today through a mail shot from Glenisk, that BBQ lamb dish is going to get it next week as its outdoor cooking weather again here in Perth! For this recipe do you think I could whack the meat in the food processor?
SJ
Conor Bofin | 31st October 2013
|
Should be delicious. Just don’t over process.
Tonette Joyce | 3rd November 2013
|
I love bok choy and these look fantastic, Conor. “…left over from the funeral”.You’re funny!
wendy@chezchloe | 5th November 2013
|
Ok- I just flashed on seeing a cooking show in your future. call me crazy:)
I love eating Chinese food but very rarely cook it at home. This is a good reminder you can enjoy the flavors and not get caught up in a mile long recipe with lard and MSG.
Thanks. wt
Conor Bofin | 5th November 2013
|
I have never used MSG and really don’t see the need for it. It does enhance some flavours but one pays a big price in after-taste and general oddness. Fresh ingredients and a bit of care win out every time.
babso2you | 15th November 2013
|
Conor — I am going to try this recipe and I just wanted to know how many servings this makes…4?
Conor Bofin | 16th November 2013
|
4 comfortably. Even some left over. Let me know how it turns out.
babso2you | 17th November 2013
|
Excellent recipe! Gentle flavors which all came together beautifully! Would you mind if I do a post and include a link to your recipe?
Conor Bofin | 17th November 2013
|
I would love it if you did Barb. Great that it worked out well.
babso2you | 17th November 2013
|
For all the years that you have been writing your blog Conor, you should consider publishing a cookbook! Many thanks and stay tuned! My best – B
Conor Bofin | 19th November 2013
|
Thanks Barb. If I ever get the time…
babso2you | 19th November 2013
|
It’s already done…all you have to do is put pages together, do a cover (maybe with a pouring shot), and a back cover with a bio….Call the book “One Man’s Meat – Volume 1…” 🙂
Conor Bofin | 19th November 2013
|
The pouring shot has become such a measure of one’s blogging ability. I blame Richard McGary down there in DFW.
babso2you | 20th November 2013
|
I still have not mastered the pouring shot! Blast that McGary for starting this! 🙂
Pingback:Conor’s Lions Head Meatballs! | Life in the Foothills | 18th November 2013
|
Pingback:Musings on Recipe Formats… | Sybaritica | 1st December 2013
|