Granny Phyl's Sweet and Sour Meatballs

There was a time when Granny was making this all the time. It was referred to, if I recall, as ‘The Sweet and Sour Meatball Era’. When we visited, we could be fairly sure of this being on the menu. This is another one that you guys have made more often than me. Here it is, directly from Granny’s own handwriting, with James’s adding the method.

Ingredients:

Granny Phyl’s Sweet and Sour Meatballs.

There was a time when Granny was making this all the time. It was referred to, if I recall, as ‘The Sweet and Sour Meatball Era’. When we visited, we could be fairly sure of this being on the menu. This is another one that you guys have made more often than me. Here it is, directly from Granny’s own handwriting, with James’s adding the method.

Ingredients:

o Beef or pork mince

o 25 ozs lean mince (that’s about 600 g)

o 100 g sausage meat

o 1 c of fresh brown breadcrumbs (or cut up slices)

o 1 egg

o 2 tsp salt (James says ‘or 1’)

o spring onions finely chopped (or 1 small onion)

o 1/2 tsp five-spice powder

o pinch chili powder

o 1 Tbsp soya sauce

o 3 cloves garlic, finely cut

o juice of 1 lemon (James says ‘lemon can make it too loose’)

o 1 Tbsp brown sugar

Method:

In a small bowl combine all of the above. Make into small balls and cook on high in microwave for ? mins or cook in a conventional oven for 15 -20 minutes.

Sweet and sour sauce ingredients:

o 3 Tbsp brown sugar

o 1/2 cup vinegar (malt?)

o 1/2 cup tom sauce

o 1 tsp chili sauce.

Method:

Cook in microwave in a large bowl for 7 minutes. Pour over meatballs before cooking or after.

(Kate’s comment: I think the meatballs would taste nicer and stay juicier if they were cooked in the sauce, in a conventional oven, and I’d suggest to cover the dish too, so they don’t lose too much water. Watch they don’t burn, with all that sugar. But this is just a guess because I haven’t made them as at the time of writing.)