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These pork rice balls are rolled with sticky rice and then steamed. Dip inhoisinsauce or wrap in a lettuce leaf and serve as an appetizer!
Thank you National Pork Board for sponsoring this post and providing me an opportunity to participate in the Pass The Pork Blogger Tour! The opinions expressed are mine alone.
Pork Rice Balls
I’m sure you’ve heard the slogans “Pork, The Other White Meat” or“Pork Be Inspired” which are both intended to catch your attention and take a closer look at pork products.
Well, I hadanopportunity to participate ina three day blogger event that allowed me a close-up peek ofthe pork industry and tour a state of the art pork farmin Iowa!
A tour of a pork farm
This California girl issurrounded by agriculture. I pass by acres of lettuce, strawberriesandartichokes on my way to my office during my work week, but I have never been exposed to livestock farming and to be perfectly honest, I was a little nervous of what I might learn.
Like you, I’ve read stories aboutanimals beingmistreated and living in barbaric conditions, so I mentally prepared myself with those images and even went as far as thinkingthat I just mightcome home avegetarian (dramatic much?! lol).
What I experiencedwhen I toured theBrenneman Pork family run swine and grain company was an extremely well organized and highly sophisticated operation that has beencommittedto refining and improving their processes in all their business practicesfor over 30 years.
Family run farm
During the tour we were able to ask any question we wanted and were givena lot of time with the Brenneman’s and their extended family.
My father is an entrepreneur, so I can appreciate the sacrifices and commitment it takes to run acompanyfrom the ground up. Some years are better than others just as you would expect in any company, and in the pork industry youhave to be willing to adjust to the consumers demands, while continuing toprovide the safest and best quality of pork.
Most impressive is thebio-securitypolicyin the Brenneman’s sow unit, nurseries and finishers areas. Any person (employees, visitors, vets….EVERYONE) on the farm must be free of dirt and disease before coming in contact with the animals.
Yep!They don’t want HUMANS to infect their pigs! In order to mitigateinfectious diseases there is a very regimented routine in place. Every person must takea full shower and dress in coveralls or those white space suits you see in the photo above before being in contact the the piggies as well as shower when you leave the farm!
Bloggers experience farm life!
Several of the bloggers sleeved a sow. That’swhen you put on along plastic glove and gently pull the piggy out of the sow during delivery! Delivering a newbornwas super cool and quite an incredible experience!
I delivered piggy number 14, the last of that particular sow’s piglets, so I suppose I’m a piggy midwife now!!
Cute as can be and you might think that after that experience I would never touch bacon again! Quite the opposite is true. After witnessing the pork farming practices I’m looking at pork with more recipe ideas in mind!!
How to cook pork
On this tour we were fed very well and had a wide variety ofpork dishes to try. We also cookedour own meal with the guidance of Nina who developed an amazing pork inspired menu that was thoroughly enjoyed by all of us!
One of the helpful tips I learnedis how to properly cookpork. Since pork is very lean, the internal temperature of the meat should be between 140 – 160 degrees.
Since I returned from the tour I have a new appreciation for the life of a farmerand the pork industry! In fact, I’mhummingthe catchy slogan,“Put Pork On Your fork!”with pride!
I madethesetasty pork rice balls witha mix of ground pork and Asian spices, rolled each insticky rice and then steamed them! Add more flavor by serving these with hoisin sauce or wrap each piece in lettuce for a utensil free appetizer!
Pork Rice Balls
Pork rice balls rolled in sticky rice and then steamed. Dip each ball inhoisinsauce or wrap in a lettuce leaf.
5 from 11 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Appetizer
Keyword: Pork balls, pork rice balls
Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes
Additional Time: 2 hours hours
Total Time: 2 hours hours 30 minutes minutes
Servings: 24 Servings
Calories: 72kcal
Author: Sandra @ The Foodie Affair
Ingredients
- 1 cup sticky rice glutinous
- 1 pound ground pork
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger minced
- 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 green onions chopped
- hoisin sauce for dipping
Instructions
In a medium bowl add water to rice. Swish around and disburse the milky substance. Drain and add more cold water repeating several times or until water is clear. Cover rice with cold water and let sit for 2 hours (or overnight). Drain and spread rice on a baking sheet. Pat with paper towels to soak up the extra moisture.
In a medium bowl add the pork, egg, ginger, sugar, soy sauce, oil, salt and pepper. Mix well and then fold in green onions. Roll into 1 inch meatballs and then roll in the rice.
Place in a steamer (you may need to cook in batches) and steam for 20 minutes. Serve with hoisin sauce.
Notes
Ground chicken, turkey or beef will also work in this recipe although the flavor will be different with each meat.
Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 72kcal | Carbohydrates: 3g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 26mg | Sodium: 120mg | Sugar: 1g
Disclaimer
Please note that the nutritional information provided are guidelines and may vary based on the brand of products used. For your specific nutritional goals use My Fitness Pal or Verywell Fit recipe calculators. All content within this site is not intended as medical diagnosis or treatment and should not be considered a substitute for professional medical expertise.
