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Karista Bennett

Karista Bennett

Chef & Food Writer

Five Spice Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce

December 10, 2020 by Karista Leave a Comment

Make frozen Oregon Blueberries the centerpiece of your holiday table with this luscious Five Spice Ground Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce recipe. The delightful flavor of blueberries pairs deliciously with these meatballs and makes for a lip-smacking starter to any holiday meal.

Five Spice Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce

When I think of holiday food I think of recipes that are just a bit more special than the average everyday celebration dishes. I want the food I serve during the holiday season to delight my family’s taste buds, and create the most enchanting food memories.

This sounds like a tall order, and one that might require a bit more time in the kitchen. However, that’s the beauty of this Five Spice Ground Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce recipe. It’s got big, fancy flavor, but it requires minimal time in the kitchen. After all, it’s the season for spending more time dining with our loved ones, and less time cooking.

Five Spice Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce

Both the meatballs and sauce can be prepared a day in advance and held in the refrigerator separately. Prior to serving, just reheat the sauce, add the meatballs and warm through. Alternately, you can reheat the meatballs and serve along-side the Savory Blueberry Sauce for dipping.  Either way, I love to serve them in a pretty dish with party picks or tiny appetizer forks.

What makes this recipe a bit more unique is that I’ve added the fragrant blend of spices called Five Spice Powder, also called Chinese Five Spice, to the meatballs.

Five spice powder typically includes cinnamon, cloves, star anise, fennel and black pepper, which compliments the distinctive flavor of Oregon Blueberries. This spice blend has become quite popular over the last few years and it can be found in most major markets.

The Five Spice powder adds the essence of warm holiday spice to the ground pork meatballs. Then I smother them in the coziest, savory blueberry sauce using frozen Oregon Blueberries for a tasty holiday appetizer.  It’s like a holiday gift for the taste buds!

Five Spice Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce

For convenience, I like to make the meatballs and then bake them in the oven. However, for a little added color to the meatballs, you can brown them in a skillet and then place them on a baking sheet and finish cooking them in the oven.

You might be wondering why I’m using blueberries in a holiday recipe. Frozen Oregon Blueberries are harvested at peak ripeness during the summer months and then they’re frozen for use throughout the year.

I love to incorporate frozen blueberries into my smoothies, oatmeal, muffins, cakes and of course recipes like this lush and silky Savory Blueberry Sauce. Frozen Oregon Blueberries can make a recipe go from good to absolutely delicious.

Frozen Oregon Blueberries

To make the sauce, I add frozen Oregon Blueberries to a sauce pan over medium-low heat. Give them a little stir until they start to release their liquid. I let them simmer for about 10 minutes.

Cooking with frozen Oregon Blueberries

Once the blueberries have released their juices, I strain the juice into a bowl and discard the pulp.

Cooking with frozen Oregon Blueberries

I add the juice back to a sauce pan and continue with the remaining ingredients. The sauce will thicken as it cools. However, for a thicker sauce I’ve added a cornstarch slurry option in the recipe.

Frozen Oregon Blueberries are perfectly sweet and lend their special blueberry flavor to all my favorite recipes. Using frozen Oregon Blueberries is also a great way to incorporate this luscious little berry into both sweet and savory recipes for an extra boost of blue.

Frozen Oregon Blueberries

Tis the season for all things delicious like these flavorful Five Spice Ground Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce.

Five Spice Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce

Warmest Wishes for the most delicious Holiday Season,

Karista

Five Spice Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce

Karista
December 10, 2020
by Karista
Cuisine American
Category Appetizers Karista’s Kitchen Kid Friendly Life Around My Table Pork
The delightful flavor of blueberries pairs deliciously with these meatballs and makes for a lip-smacking starter to any holiday meal.
Serving Size
Makes 20-22 Meatballs
Prep Time
15 minutes
Cook Time
30 minutes
Total Time
45 minutes
Rate this recipe
|
0 ratings
Five Spice Pork Meatballs with Savory Blueberry Sauce

Notes

Prepare these meatballs a day in advance and reheat with the sauce prior to serving. Serve in the sauce or serve the meatballs along-side the blueberry sauce.

Ingredients

For the Meatballs

  • 1-pound ground pork (not pork sausage)
  • 1 ½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
  • ½ teaspoon Five Spice Powder
  • ¼ teaspoon ground all spice
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 1 tablespoon minced shallots
  • ¼ cup finely chopped green onions
  • ½ cup warm milk
  • ½ cup panko bread crumbs
  • 1 egg, whisked

For the Savory Blueberry Sauce

  • 4 cups frozen blueberries
  • ½ cup blueberry preserves
  • 2 tablespoons tamari
  • 1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar (seasoned)
  • Cornstarch slurry (1 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with 1 teaspoon cold water)

Instructions

  1. To make the sauce, add the frozen blueberries to a medium sauce pan over medium low heat, stirring a bit until the blueberries begin to soften. Let the blueberries slowly simmer until the berries have reduced and the liquid is syrupy, about 10 minutes.
  2. Take the sauce pan off the heat and strain the liquid from the berries in a fine mesh strainer, pressing the berries to get all the extra liquid. You should end up with about 1 cup of liquid.
  3. Discard the pulp and then add the liquid back to the sauce pan. Heat over low heat and then stir in the blueberry preserves (or jam), tamari and rice wine vinegar. Let this simmer for about 5 minutes until the liquid coats the back of a spoon. Once the liquid cools it will harden a bit.
  4. However, if for some reason you want a thicker sauce, mix together the cornstarch slurry and add it to the sauce while the sauce is simmering. Let the sauce simmer for at least one minute to thicken. Set the sauce aside to cool.
  5. To make the meatballs add the ground pork, salt, pepper, Five Spice powder, all spice, minced garlic, minced shallot and chopped green onions to a large bowl. Gently mix until the ingredients are nicely combined.
  6. Next add the panko bread crumbs to the warm milk and stir. When the bread crumbs have mostly absorbed all the milk, pour it into the ground pork mixture along with the whisked egg. Again, gently combine the bread crumbs, milk and egg into the mixture until combine.
  7. Pre-heat the oven to 350F
  8. With a cookie scoop or tablespoon, make the meatballs and then place them on a parchment lined baking sheet. I can usually get 20-22 meatballs on one standard size baking sheet.
  9. Place them in the oven and bake them until golden brown on the bottom, about 10-15 minutes.
  10. Remove the meatballs from the oven and then add them to the blueberry sauce. Serve warm with little appetizer forks or party picks.
  11. Another option is to cool the meatballs and the sauce and then refrigerate them separately in covered containers overnight.
  12. To serve, gently re-heat the sauce in a large sauce pan and then add the meatballs and warm through.

Tags

appetizer recipes,
appetizers,
five spice pork meatballs,
Five Spice Powder,
ground pork recipes,
holiday appetizers,
meatball recipes,
oregon blueberries,
pork meatballs,
savory blueberry sauce
https://karistabennett.com/2020/12/10/five-spice-pork-meatballs-with-savory-blueberry-sauce/
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Filed Under: Appetizers, Karista's Kitchen, Kid Friendly, Life Around My Table, Pork Tagged With: appetizer recipes, appetizers, five spice pork meatballs, Five Spice Powder, ground pork recipes, holiday appetizers, meatball recipes, oregon blueberries, pork meatballs, savory blueberry sauce

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This is probably one of my favorite cookie recipes This is probably one of my favorite cookie recipes. It’s simple, I almost always have the ingredients on hand and it includes sunflower seed butter, which I’m sort of obsessed with. 🤓

Sun Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies from my book, The Oregon Farm Table Cookbook. You can find the recipe in the book and the book is sold everywhere! So you’ll find it at your local bookshop or online. And you can always find a link on my website. But, you can also DM me and I’ll send the recipe to you. Happy Thursday! 🍪 
#cookies
#chocolatechipcookies 
#sunbutter
#oregonfarmtablecookbook
This silky RED CURRY CAULIFLOWER SOUP comes togeth This silky RED CURRY CAULIFLOWER SOUP comes together easily and makes the perfect light lunch or dinner. It becomes a bit heartier when paired with a grilled cheddar and apple sandwich. Sometimes the simplest meals make the coziest evening. 

Ingredients
2 tablespoons coconut oil, ghee or extra virgin olive oil
1 large head cauliflower (about 2-2 1/2 lbs) stemmed and chopped
1 large yellow onion, diced
3-4 cloves garlic, finely diced
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
½ teaspoon ground coriander 
2 cups vegetable broth
1 14oz can coconut milk (not light)
1 ½ tablespoons Thai red curry paste
½ teaspoon turmeric
Squeeze of lime juice to taste
Season with salt and pepper to taste
Garnish with sliced green onions or fresh chopped cilantro 
Directions
In a large pot heat the oil over medium heat. When it’s hot add the onion and sauté until
translucent. Then add the garlic, chopped cauliflower, fresh ginger, ground coriander and vegetable broth. Let the veggies and broth simmer on low for about 10 minutes or until the cauliflower is soft Next, stir in the coconut milk, Thai red curry paste and turmeric. Bring it back to a simmer. Let the soup simmer on low for another 5-10 minutes to bring all the flavors together.
With an immersion blender, blend the soup to a puree. If you don’t have an immersion blender, transfer the soup to a blender or vitamix and puree.
Then pour the soup back into the pot. If the soup feels too thick, add another ¼ cup veggie broth until you feel you have the right consistency.
Season with salt and pepper and then add a squeeze or two of lime juice to taste.
Garnish with sliced green onions or fresh cilantro.
#cozyfood #comfortfood #winterfood #soup #cauliflower #healthycomfortfood
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I made this tuna salsa last week but I decided I needed to go all out comfort food that day and so I made it into a tuna salsa melt. 🤓

It was delicious! I’m in sandwich mode for some reason. So this tuna salsa melt had to happen. Even Mr. B loved it. 

Here is the casual recipe. You can adjust ingredients to your taste or dietary needs. 

Tuna Salsa Melt
1 5-6 ounce package of tuna, drained 
1/3 cup chopped cilantro 
1/3 cup diced red onion
1 teaspoon lime juice 
1 small jalapeño, seeded and diced (I used pickled jalapeños)
Drizzle of olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Slices of your fave bread (I used Texas Toast)
Slices of pepper Jack or Monterey Jack cheese (cheddar would be good too)
A little Mayo
A little butter 

Mix together the tuna, cilantro, onion, lime juice, jalapeños, a drizzle of olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper. 
Heat a griddle pan over medium low heat. Spread some butter on the outside of the bread and a little Mayo on the inside to help the tuna and cheese to stick. Add the tuna and cheese to the Mayo side of the bread slices. Then place the sandwich cheddar side down on the skillet and let the sandwich slowly toast. This part is not to be rushed. Then once it’s toasty and melted flip to the other side. 

If I make these for my family, I’ll place the sandwiches on a baking sheet and pop them in a warm oven until all the sandwiches are done. 

Serve with extra jalapeños and chips. Enjoy! 
#sandwichesofinstagram 
#tunamelt 
#oregonseafood
#comfortfood
You know how much I love the combination of bluebe You know how much I love the combination of blueberries and cardamom. So naturally, I had to combine these two enchanting flavors in my Blueberry Cardamom Baked Oatmeal.

This delicious and fragrant recipe couldn’t be easier or more satisfying. It’s prepared with sweet and healthy frozen Oregon Blueberries which make breakfast or brunch an absolute treat. ☺️

So grab a boost of blue and go make this recipe. 💙You’ll find the link to the recipe video and recipe in my profile. #oregonblueberries #grababoostofblue #howdoyoublueberry #bakedoatmeal #healthyfood #healthylifestyle #healthyliving #healthyeating
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Crunchy, creamy, soft, and bursting with so much flavor, I found myself licking my fingers and tempted to lick my plate! 

These pub burgers turned out so delicious I had to post them on my website. I’ve posted the link to all the deliciousness in my profile. ☺️

This is not a sponsored post. I simply adore our Oregon food producers, fishing families, and farmers, so I like to share the recipes I create with their products. And you’ll find more information about Port Orford Sustainable Seafood (a Community supported fishery) in my book, The Oregon Farm Table Cookbook. 

Delicious Wishes this winter Wednesday! 😘#oregonseafood #oregonfishing #oregoncoast #portorford #pnwseafood #rockfish #fishsandwich #crispyfish #pubfood #fishrecipes
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This soup is almost like an Indian Dal but with a bit more soup consistency. The gorgeous Indian spices make this soup taste fancy but it really couldn’t be easier. 

I love to serve this soup with Garlic Naan or Socca, a chickpea bread. The recipe follows!

Spinach Lentil Soup
Serves 6
Ingredients
2 tablespoons ghee or coconut oil
1 large sweet onion, diced
2 carrots, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ teaspoon mace 
1/8 teaspoon cayenne 
1 14-ounce can whole tomatoes
1 tablespoon tomato paste
2-3 cups vegetable or chicken broth
2 cups yellow or green lentils, soaked overnight, drained and rinsed
1 6-ounce bag baby spinach
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
½ cup chopped fresh cilantro plus 1 tablespoon chopped cilantro for garnish
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
In a soup pot over medium heat, add the ghee or coconut oil. When the oil is hot, add the onion and carrots and cook until soft, about 5-8 minutes. Then stir in the garlic and fresh ginger and 
cook one minute longer. 

Stir in the ground cumin, coriander, turmeric, mace and cayenne. Then add the tomatoes, tomato paste, lentils and at least 2 cups broth. Add more broth if needed. Bring the soup to a boil and then turn down the heat to a simmer. Simmer on low for about 15-20 minutes.
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In the meantime if you don’t have Chef Laurie’s book, Simple Fruit, or my book, The Oregon Farm Table Cookbook, you can find both of them at your local bookshop or online wherever books are sold. 
Looking forward to seeing you all on Thursday! 😘
#oregonfarmtablecookbook #simplefruitcookbook #learnhowtocook #cookinglive #recipedemo #chefsofinstagram #cookbooks
I had planned on making these Crab Stuffed Mushroo I had planned on making these Crab Stuffed Mushrooms in December. But for some reason I just never got around to it. It was another busy holiday season, with birthday celebrations included, but certainly not so busy I couldn’t have made them. Actually, what most likely happened is I planned way too many recipes for the month and these little lovelies just kept getting pushed down the list. This is classic Karista. 🤓

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And as well, an opportunity to make a few of the recipes that got left off the December list. 😉 I’ve listed the Crab Stuffed Mushroom recipe below. They make a delicious satisfying Saturday night nibble. 

Crab Stuffed Mushrooms 
Serves 6-8 / Makes 16-20 
Ingredients
16-20 cremini or white button mushrooms, stems removed
8 ounces cream cheese 
1 tablespoon chopped chives
1 tablespoon chopped Italian parsley 
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese, divided
Salt and pepper to taste
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¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon chopped fresh parsley
Garnish with additional parsley and chives 
Directions
Pre-heat the oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
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Mix together the remaining ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, Panko breadcrumbs and 1 teaspoon of 
fresh chopped parsley. Top each mushroom with the Panko and Parmesan mixture and then 
place them in the oven for about 10 minutes, just until the mushrooms and cheese are warmed through. Serve immediately.
I’ve posted only a handful of social or politica I’ve posted only a handful of social or political items here on my feed over the last few years. It’s not that I don’t have an opinion, I do. Those of you who know me well, know that I  feel strongly about things in our country and this amazing world we inhabit. 

But I limit my personal opinions here because I want this space devoted to a place of deliciousness, comfort, inspiration, discovery, personal growth and love.  A space where my passion for feeding mind, body and soul is central. 

It’s not that I won’t ever post something socially important here ever again, because certainly, sometimes there are things that just need to be stated. But I feel this space is meant for one reason. You. 

That said, my only comment about events that unfolded yesterday is that it was horrific. It was shameful and makes my heart grieve. As I heard many say yesterday and wholeheartedly agree with, we are better than that. 

Please no rude or negative comments. As the old saying goes...if you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all. 

Sending love and good health to you. The world certainly needs it today. 

I thought this recipe would be appropriate for this first Thursday of the new year. It’s my simple and nourishing black bean soup. You’ll find the link to this recipe in my profile. You’ll also find a fancier version of this soup in my book, The Oregon Farm Table Cookbook. 

Wishing you a warm and cozy day. 🙏🏻❤️

#thoughtsoftheday #soup #cozyfood #blackbeansoup
I wrote this ten years ago. It was a moment when i I wrote this ten years ago. It was a moment when it felt as if everything in my life was falling apart and I had no control. I’d walk into my kitchen and start cooking. It became sort of meditation practice. A way to process my thoughts and feelings, breathe deeply and then concentrate on preparing a delicious meal that would soothe my family and bring comfort to our souls. 

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Time spent preparing the simplest of food is always time well spent. ❤️
#thoughtsoftheday #foodquote #thepoetryoffood #foodlove #quotesoflife #quoteoftheday
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