Cocktail Meatballs

Meatballs

1. Line a half sheet baking tray with foil or parchment paper (so that clean up is easier), and place a wire rack on top. The wire rack should be a cross-wire baking rack. Next, preheat oven to 325°F.
2. Place the panko crumbs in a bowl, along with the milk. Allow the breadcrumbs to soak up the milk.
3. In a spice grinder or small food processor, place the roughly chopped shallots, peeled garlic, black pepper and salt. Process to form a smooth paste.
4. If you’re using pork meat, place the pork meat in the food processor and process until the meat is chopped very finely and is almost like a paste. If you’re using pork mince, just place the mince in the food processor.
5. Add the soaked panko, spice mix and the egg to the pork mixture. Pulse the mixture until you have a wet mix that's almost like a paste.
6. Add half of the beef mince and pulse a few times to mix well. Then add the rest of the beef mince and pulse until almost all of the beef mince has been mixed in.
7. Scrape the meat mixture into a bowl, and mix the ground meat with a spatula or your hand. Make sure all of the meat and spice mix are well combined.
8. Using a small cookie scoop, portion the meat mix. Next, roll these portions into small balls (about 1 - 1 ¼ inches in diameter), using wet hands.
9. Place the meatballs on the wire rack, with at least ¾ inch of space between each.
10. Bake in preheated oven for 15 - 20 minutes, until cooked through.
11. Remove from the oven, and allow the meatballs to cool slightly. Then remove the meatballs from the wire rack and allow them to cool completely.
12. FREEZING FOR LATER - once the meatballs have cooled down completely, place them in an airtight container or a ziploc freezer bag, and freeze for later use. Frozen meatballs can be thawed overnight in the fridge before use.

Meatball Sauce

1. Mix the honey, tomato ketchup, ¼ cup sriracha, 3 tbsp balsamic vinegar and orange juice in a pan. Whisk to mix well. Add a pinch of salt.
2. Heat over medium heat until the sauce comes to a simmer. Simmer for about 10 - 15 minutes, while stirring, until the sauce has thickened. Taste and add more salt and more sriracha sauce (up to ¼ cup), if needed. If you want more of the tangy flavor without the spice, add the rest of the balsamic vinegar. Whisk to mix well.
3. Add the thawed or room temperature meatballs into the sauce. Stir to coat the meat balls, and let them heat through in the sauce. Simmer for a few more minutes if you want to thicken the sauce more.
4. Place the meatballs on a serving tray and spoon some of the sauce over them. Serve warm, with cocktail picks.