Author Notes: For the Super Bowl this year, my husband wanted to make some Korean chicken wings he had seen in a magazine. When I saw the recipe, I wasn’t expecting gochujang (Korean chili paste) to be an easy ingredient to find (or pronounce), but it turned out it was incredibly painless to locate at my local big-box store. The wings turned out great, but I now have a pretty sizable tub of gochujang sitting in my fridge.
Not one to let food go to waste, I’ve made it my mission to use that stuff up. It’s actually pretty versatile, and has a nice spicy and smoky flavor. A little bit goes a long way toward giving an otherwise boring dish a little Korean flair. Along the lines of “party food” like chicken wings, I thought this stuff would work in meatballs, too (my recipe is adapted from a recipe from Spoon Fork Bacon). These meatballs are spicy and smoky and delicious. —foxeslovelemons
Makes: 20 meatballs
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 15 min
/bc1fbb41-77ba-4b24-abed-5c6a2e4a40f6--2013-0924_finalist_spicy-meatballs-027.jpg "Spicy Korean-Style Gochujang Meatballs 2")
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Photo by James Ransom
/06e25822-1fba-4bee-bd35-e27854351314--Korean-Style_Gochujan_Meatballs.JPG "Spicy Korean-Style Gochujang Meatballs 3")
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Meatball ingredients or art installation?
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Play the meatball game: dump everything into a bowl.
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Keep dumping. (This is where the spice comes from.)
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Scallions, after you.
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And a classic meatball staple: breadcrumbs.
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Mix it all together gently — be careful not to over-mix!
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And now, to shape them gingerly.
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You’re looking for golf ball-sized meatballs.
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Like so.
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Then brown them in bubbling hot oil.
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Flip!
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And finish them off in the oven.
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While they’re baking, whisk the glaze together on the stove.
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And brush your meatballs with it — taste testing is encouraged.
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Would it be weird to call this gilding the lily?
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Cocktail party-ready.
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Photo by Food52
Spicy Korean-Style Gochujang Meatballs
Print RecipeIngredients
- Meatballs
- 3 green onions, very thinly sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons gochujang (Korean chili paste)
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
- 2 tablespoons canola oil, for pan-frying
- Glaze
- 1/3 cup apricot preserves
- 2 tablespoons gochujang (Korean chili paste)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- Garnishes: sliced green onion and toasted sesame seeds
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350° F. In large bowl, combine all meatball ingredients except oil. The key to good meatballs is not to over mix them. Just gently combine the ingredients until everything is evenly distributed. Form the mixture into golf-ball sized meatballs.
Heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. In batches (don’t crowd the pan!), brown the meatballs on all sides. Transfer meatballs to rimmed baking pan and transfer to oven. Bake 10 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 160° F.
Meanwhile, in small saucepot, combine all glaze ingredients. Cook over medium heat 5 minutes or until mixture is slightly thickened.
To serve, brush meatballs with glaze and sprinkle with green onion and sesame seeds.
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