Asian Meatballs

Spaghetti and Meatballs is a big favorite in my house, but all I had were flat rice noodles for Pad Thai. So...Asian Meatballs it is! This turned out better than I expected. Bonus! I made a stir fry with carrots, fennel, broccoli and rice noodles, then mixed in about half of the sauce. But you could just make the meatballs as an appetizer too and skip the stir fry.

1/3 cup whole milk
1/4 cup fine gluten-free bread crumbs
2 lbs ground beef
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon celtic sea salt
1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
5 Tablespoons Tamari
1 Tablespoon toasted sesame oil
2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice
2 Tablespoons agave

Mix together the milk, breadcrumbs, ground beef, egg, salt, pepper, cilantro, and 1 Tbsp soy sauce. Form into balls with about 1 or 2 Tbsp of meat mixture each. Place in baking dish and cook at 350 degrees for about 20-25 minutes until cooked through and starting to brown.

Make sauce by mixing together 4 Tablespoons Tamari, 1 Tablespoon sesame oil, 2 Tablespoons lime juice and 2 Tablespoons agave.

When meatballs are done, remove from oven and drain fat. Toss meatballs with the sauce.

Serve with rice, a stir fry, or a rice-noodle stir fry. You can reserve some of the sauce and mix it in with your rice or stir fry if you wish, then top with the meatballs.

RICE NOODLE STIR FRY
3 medium carrots, sliced
1 bulb fennel, chopped
1 small head of broccoli
1 package rice noodles (8 oz), soaked in hot water for 10 min
1 Tbsp toasted sesame oil
1 Tbsp grapeseed oil

Heat oils in wok or sautee pan. Sautee the carrots, fennel and broccoli until tender. Drain rice noodles and add to the wok. Stir fry a couple of minutes, then add a few tablespoons of the meatball sauce. Taste and add more if you desire. Save the rest of the sauce to flavor the meatballs or drizzle over your stir fry. Top the noodles with meatballs.

A great dish for adults and kids!