Let me tell you about this sandwich
I crashed two recipes together and this is what happened
Hello and happy Friday!
So I went on a little side quest with the vegan mince project. Not a huge detour, but it definitely qualifies as jumping over to a new thing before finishing the old thing…
Ever since my exciting batch of Italian seitan sausage, I’ve been thinking eagerly about taking that good mushroom-cauliflower base and using it with my existing recipe for Vietnamese-Inspired Ginger-Herb Meatballs with Lemongrass.
To quote my own recipe page, “The flavors of these juicy little meatballs are inspired by cravings after browsing one of my favorite cookbooks, Vietnamese Food Any Day by Andrea Nguyen. I’m a sucker for the vibrancy of the recipes in all of Andrea's books: the combination of savory and complex flavors balanced with bright clear pops of fresh herbs and acidity. While these meatballs aren't a take on any specific recipe, I let them be guided by the "pantry" section in the front of Vietnamese Food Any Day.”
Last week I decided to just go for it, smushing my working recipe for vegan seitan sausage and my existing meatball recipe together.
For reference, here are the ingredients in my existing meatball recipe:
ground chicken, ground pork, or Impossible vegan ground pork
fresh cilantro or mint, or a combo of both
fresh garlic
serrano chili
finely grated fresh ginger
fish sauce
prepared lemongrass paste
freshly ground black or white pepper
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Hey hi hello! One of the best ways to show love for friends and family is through cooking, am I right? Well, let’s take that love and spread it as far as we can! Especially now, with all the horrors unfolding in the US and continued genocide abroad, let’s make a difference where we can by seeking out local nonprofits that support mutual aid endeavors like community fridges and advocacy for our unhoused neighbors. Support for organizations that provide critical support for Trans youth is also critical, as is finding ways to support anti-genocide efforts and relief aid in Palestine, such as through organizations like Anera.
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I took the flavorings out of my most successful Italian seitan sausage base and incorporated the herbs, serrano, ginger, fish sauce, and lemongrass paste. Rather than steaming the mixture in bulk, I immediately shaped it into ping-pong sized balls and cooked them the same way that I cook the chicken-based meatballs in the original recipe.
I pulled the method quite literally from the back of a frozen dumpling package (I forget what brand):
First you add a splash of water and oil to the skillet, then you add your meatballs and bring to a simmer. Once it simmers, clap a lid on the skillet and steam until the meatballs are cooked through. Remove the lid and let any remaining water cook off, at which point the splash of oil from the beginning will start to brown the outside.
Overall, the method worked quite well, but because the vital wheat gluten is absorbent it sucked up much more of the water than ground meat would. That ended up starting the browning process too soon, and I had to fuss with adding extra water to keep the balls steaming instead of burning. The final texture was still very good, but I need to remake it with adjusted moisture levels and get an accurate time for how long the seitan balls need to steam.
BUT nevertheless, they were SO GOOD I was dancing around my kitchen.
Texture is the biggest challenge, as always. While I do think that the blend got a bit soft once it soaked up extra moisture from the pan, it firmed up into a nearly perfect texture as it cooled. They were bouncy and moist, and they seared beautifully.
The flavors in this recipe are essentially my favorite components of bánh mì minced up and smushed into juicy little meatballs. Earthy, pungent garlic and funky-deep fish sauce (or soy sauce) create a deeply savory and complex base. Letting the meatballs take on some color in a hot skillet adds even more complexity, caramelizing the proteins and natural sugars into a nutty-savory crust. A ton of grated fresh ginger gives the savory foundation a liveliness that knits together that umami with bright and aromatic lemongrass, mint, and cilantro.
Even though this was not hard to throw together, it’s definitely more work than using store-bought vegan pork. It still felt worth it, though, because the texture was a lot better and it was easier to shape the meatballs (Impossible and Beyond are absurdly sticky and fussy to work with). It also lacked that strange, almost plastic background note that both big brands tend to have.
I still haven’t tried freezing the mince. With each round of testing I’m refining the method and making it more and more weeknight friendly, but I’d still like it to end up as something that lends itself well to batch cooking. If these tasty little meatballs could be kept on hand in the freezer it would open the door for so many great, spontaneous dinners and lunches! Stir-fry, sandwiches and wraps packed with fresh herbs and pickled veg, or atop leafy green salads! They’re even delicious just stabbed with toothpicks for a party platter.
So what’s next? I’m going to make this recipe again and try both freezing the mince and using it inside some dumplings… I know, I know, here I go again, starting another new thing before finishing the old!!! Dumplings?! Well here’s the thing… Andrea Nguyen also has a fantastic book all about dumplings, and how could I not adapt her dumpling filling recipes to work with my juicy vegan base?! I figure I might as well start the journey with this set of flavors!
Thanks for reading! Stay tuned for more behind the scenes adventures in my tiny home kitchen laboratory. And…more new recipes on Small Pantry are in the works! This past week was a marathon of photoshoots and testing, so another round of new, fully tested recipes will be up soon.
Until next week, be well!
xoxo Julia