As soon as I started cooking gluten free I set up my pantry with all the Asian ingredients and sauces I needed to make my favourite recipes. Lion's Head Meatballs is one of those recipes. The giant meatballs represent a lion's head while the shredded cabbage represents its' mane.
In southern China this dish is served family style. Everyone scoops off a portion of the meatball along with some sauce and cabbage.
If you're new to cooking gluten free Asian dishes check out this post, gluten free Asian Pantry.
🥢 Ingredients
Don't be deterred by a long list of ingredients. They're just meatballs and once you've make them a few times it gets faster. We always think they're worth the effort.
- ground pork
- dried black Chinese mushrooms (shiitake)
- green onions
- water chestnuts
- garlic & ginger
- cornstarch
- gluten free chicken stock
- dry sherry
- gluten free soy sauce
- gluten free oyster sauce
- green cabbage
- sesame oil
⛩ Substitutions
With too may substitutions you don't get the taste of the original recipe. At the same time you might have more dietary restrictions or you don't want to stock a certain item. Here are some suggestions.
Dried Chinese mushrooms (shiitake) - I'm sure you could use fresh button mushrooms or another dried mushroom. I keep these in my pantry and use them in a simple ichiban-style soup or my everyday vegetable stir fry so I don't substitute.
Water chestnuts - There is no substitute for crunchy water chestnuts. In a pinch I'd try finely chopped celery or simply omit them.
Dry sherry - This is the substitute for Chinese cooking wine. It's easy to find at a liquor store, I buy W&H Dry Sack sherry. Substitute with additional chicken stock if you have to.
Gluten free oyster sauce - Although hoisin sauce has a different taste I use it when I'm out of oyster sauce. Panda Brand Oyster Sauce with the green label made by Lee Kum Kee is gluten free.
For an everyday dinner I make smaller sized meatballs because they're easier to cook as well as portion into a second meal. Let me know in the comments below if you tried this recipe and made the giant size lion's head meatballs.
Lion's Head Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground pork
- 6 dried black Chinese mushrooms (shiitake)
- 3 green onions, finely chopped
- 6 water chestnuts, finely chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon finely minced ginger
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch (plus more for dusting meatballs)
- 2 tablespoon dry sherry
- 1 tablespoon gluten free soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon gluten free oyster sauce
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
CABBAGE & COOKING
- 4 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 6 cups shredded green cabbage
SAUCE
- 1½ cups gluten free chicken stock
- ¼ cup dry sherry
- 2 tablespoon gluten free oyster sauce
- 1 tablespoon gluten free soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
FINISHING
- 2 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 tablespoon water
Instructions
MEATBALLS
- Pour boiling water over dried mushrooms to cover, let soak 20 minutes to soften. Squeeze liquid out of mushrooms, cut out stems and discard. Finely chop mushroom caps.
- In a large bowl combine mushrooms, green onions, water chestnuts, garlic, ginger, cornstarch, dry sherry, soy sauce, oyster sauce, sugar and pepper.
- Add ground pork and gently mix until combined. Form mixture into 3 giant meatballs or smaller ones if you prefer. Refrigerate until ready to use.
SAUCE
- Combine all sauce ingredients in a 2-cup pyrex measuring cup.
- In a small dish whisk 2 tablespoon cornstarch with 2 tablespoon water. Set aside.
COOKING
- Sprinkle a few spoonfuls of cornstarch over the meatballs. Gently toss the meatballs between your hands until they are lightly coated with cornstarch.
- Heat a large pan over high heat. When hot add 2 tablespoon oil. When the oil is hot add the meatballs. Cook until nicely browned gently turning them as they brown, about 8 minutes.
- Transfer meatballs to a saucepan and place over medium-high heat. Pour sauce on top and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 20 minutes.
- Add cornstarch mixture to the hot sauce stirring until thickened, 1-2 minutes.
CABBAGE & SERVING
- Just before the meatballs are done cook the cabbage.
- Heat 2 tablespoon oil in saute pan over medium-high heat. Add cabbage and stir-fry 3-5 minutes until slightly wilted.
- Spread cabbage on a serving platter. Place meatballs on top of cabbage.
- Pour some sauce over meatballs and serve remainder on the side.
Nutrition
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