Vietnamese Pork Balls with Rice Vermicelli
This is a really tasty, easy dish that’s great to serve on a hot day, or when you feel like a lighter meal. I got the original recipe from my friend Christina Soong and I’ve made a few variations to it. The pork balls are so tasty – I’ve added fresh herbs and cook them in the oven. Don’t try to get all healthy and use low fat pork mince – your balls will turn out dry – and as I’ve said before, nobody wants dry balls!
INGREDIENTS – BALLS
- 400 grams minced pork
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1.5 teaspoons sugar
- 1 large cloves garlic, minced or chopped very finely
- 1/4 teaspoon white pepper
- Fresh coriander and mint to your liking (around 2 – 4 Tbsp of each), chopped
INGREDIENTS – OTHER
- 1 packet rice vermicelli noodles
- 1 carrot
- 1 cucumber
- Shredded iceberg lettuce
- 1 small bag bean sprouts
- Bunch mint
- Bunch coriander
- Bunch Vietnamese mint
INGREDIENTS – DRESSING
- 2/3 cup water
- 1.5 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1.5 teaspoon caster sugar
- 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon lime or lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons sweet chilli sauce
- 1 Birds Eye chilli, slice finely
METHOD
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius.
- Mix all ball ingredients until combined and then use your hands to form into 16 small balls and place on a greased baking tray.
- Place in oven and cook for around 17 – 20 minutes then remove from oven.
- Cook noodles to pack instructions.
- Make up the dressing by combining the ingredients in a medium bowl. Taste and adjust flavour as desired, adding more lime for sourness, fish sauce for saltiness and sugar for sweetness etc.
- Peel and cut cucumber and carrots into matchsticks, and wash and drain bean sprouts and fresh herbs.
- To serve, divide noodles between four bowls. Arrange the vegetables and herbs and spoon over the dressing. Top with four balls each and serve with lime wedges.
No body likes dry balls 🙂
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Tried this recipe using some left over mince. It was good! Thanks for the inspiration to make! Xx
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