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Appetizer Ham Balls with Hawaiian Punch Sauce

Ham balls made from ground ham and pork, baked and served with a sauce of Hawaiian Punch, brown sugar, and mustard.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 13 ingredients
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Why it works: Pork and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,386 recipes. Both carry 4-heptenal, which smells creamy, biscuit. The science ↓

Appetizer Ham Balls with Hawaiian Punch Sauce

Oven350
Timeabout 20 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the meatballs

  1. Preheat oven to 350.

  2. Combine all meatball ingredients and shape into 1-inch balls.

  3. Place on greased cookie sheet and bake about 20 minutes, or until browned.

Make the sauce

  1. To make sauce, combine brown sugar, flour and mustard, mixing well.

  2. Add punch and vinegar and mix well.

  3. Add cloves and corn syrup.

  4. Over medium heat cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and becomes clear.

Combine and serve

  1. Place ham balls in crock-pot and pour sauce over all.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

1362Calories
84 gProtein
38 gFat
168 gCarbs

Counts 11 of 13 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 11 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Pork100g cooked242
Oat1/2 cup dry (40g)154
Milk1 cup (244ml) whole149
Ham100g cooked145
Egg1 large egg (50g)78
Corn1/2 cup kernels (82g)77
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Clove1 tsp ground (2g)7
Mustard1 tsp (5g) yellow3
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Saucenot in our table0
Syrupnot 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. Pork + milktop 12% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,386 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4-heptenal (creamy, biscuit).

  2. Ham + porktop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,638 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).

  3. Sauce + sugartop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,147 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).

  4. Oats + milktop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,119 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,3,5-trimethylpyrazine (cocoa, roasted).

  5. Milk + flourtop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together78,219 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

Milk and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 78,219 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

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

What each ingredient does

Ground ham
Provides the savory, meaty flavor base of the meatballs.
Ground pork
Adds fat and moisture, keeping the meatballs tender while they bake.
Quick oats
Absorb liquid and bind the meat, helping the balls hold together and stay moist.
Egg
Binds the meatball mixture so the balls hold their shape.
Flour
Thickens the sauce as it cooks, giving it body.
Brown sugar
Adds sweetness and depth to the sauce.

The step that matters

Cooking the sauce over medium heat. Stirring constantly keeps the flour and sugar from scorching or lumping while the starch swells and thickens the mixture into a smooth sauce.

“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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