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Pearl Balls

Glutinous rice and pork meatballs steamed with soy sauce, ginger, and green onions.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 11 ingredients
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Why it works: Onion and ginger are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,595 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Pearl Balls

Time25–35 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the rice

  1. Soak the glutinous rice in water for at least 6–8 hours (preferably overnight).

  2. Drain the soaked rice in a sieve or colander and ensure the rice is dry before using.

Make the pork mixture

  1. Mince or grind the pork if not using ground pork.

  2. Mince the ginger and finely chop the green onions.

  3. Lightly beat the egg and combine it with light soy sauce, sherry, water, cornstarch, sugar, and salt.

  4. (Optional) Add a few Chinese black mushrooms or water chestnuts to the pork mixture.

Shape and steam

  1. Take about 1 tablespoon of the pork mixture and form it into a ball.

  2. Continue with the rest of the pork mixture.

  3. Roll the pork balls lightly over the dried glutinous rice until they are completely coated.

  4. Place the porkballs on a heatproof dish spaced 1/2 to 1 inch apart.

  5. Place the dish on a rack in a pot, cover, and steam over boiling water for 25–35 minutes.

  6. Serve the pearl balls with soy sauce.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1110Calories
53 gProtein
21 gFat
165 gCarbs

Counts 10 of 11 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 10 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Pork100g cooked242
Rice1 cup cooked (158g) white206
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Wine2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)25
Soy Sauce1 tbsp (15ml)9
Ginger1 tsp grated fresh (2g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Onion + gingertop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together7,595 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  2. Rice + oniontop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together10,433 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  3. Rice + gingertop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,196 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  4. Pork + oniontop 10% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together18,214 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  5. Rice + porktop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,137 recipes

    Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Glutinous rice
Forms a sticky coating that clings to the pork and cooks into a chewy outer layer.
Pork
Provides the main filling and, with the egg, gives the balls their body and juiciness.
Egg
Binds the pork mixture so the balls hold their shape while steaming.
Cornstarch
Helps the filling stay tender and moist and bind the mixture together.
Light soy sauce
Adds salt and savoury flavour to the pork filling.

The step that matters

Ensure the rice is dry before using. Wet rice will not coat evenly, so the pork balls may stick together or fail to pick up a clean, even layer of rice during steaming.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (rice, pork, ginger, egg, sauce, sherry, sugar):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Asparagusfits better
  3. Sweet potatofits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against rice, pork, ginger, egg, sauce, sherry, sugar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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