This is a wonderfully seasonal dish that can be a main course or a side. The combination of flavors is both deep and wonderful. The savory meatballs with the sweet peaches, the tangy red onion with the tart lime juice. Very satisfying. It is another one that comes from Melissa Clark in NYTimes Cooking.
For this you’ll need: 1 lb ground pork (or beef or lamb or Beyond), 1″ piece of fresh ginger (peeled and grated), x3 garlic cloves (peeled and grated), 1-1/2 tsp ground cumin, 1/3 cup panko bread crumbs, 3 Tbsp fresh basil (chopped), 1/4 cup white wine, 3 peaches (pitted and chopped into 1″ pieces), 1/4 cup red onion (thinly sliced), 1 lime (cut in half), olive oil, salt and pepper.
In a large bowl mix together the grated ginger, garlic, ground cumin and about 1 tsp of salt. Add in the ground meat, panko and chopped basil. Mix everything together using your hands until well combined but not overly worked.
Heat about 3 Tbsp oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Gently form 1-1.5″ balls with the meat mixture and place into the skillet. Gently turn or roll the balls (by shaking the pan) as you brown all sides – about 5-8 mins.
Move the browned meatballs to one side and add the wine scraping up the browned bits where needed. Add the chopped peaches and some salt and pepper and cover the pan. Reduce the heat to a simmer and let cook until the meatballs are cooked through – about 10 mins. Uncover the pan, turn up the heat slightly, mash the peaches with the back of a wooden spoon and let the liquid reduce further creating a mushy thick sauce with the cooked peaches and evaporating liquid.
Add the onions and 1/2 of the chopped basil and stir everything together over medium low heat. Add further seasoning if needed and/or some more liquid (water) if it is too dry. Gently stir everything together and cook over a medium low flame until the onion slices are wilting. Remove from the heat and squeeze the juice of the two lime halves over the pan. Add a touch more ground cumin and transfer to a serving bowl.
Sprinkle the remaining basil over the top and serve warm. Serve on it’s own or over rice.
Dinner at Our Place 