Filipino Meatball Sandwich

Last Updated on December 16, 2020 by Chef Mireille

Juicy meatballs, pickled pineapple and frying cheese in between soft and crusty Portuguese rolls. Filipino Meatball Sandwich makes a hearty and filling meal.

It’s been several months since I participated in one of the Daring Kitchen’s challenges. This is actually the first one of 2013 I am participating in. To be honest, I haven’t been checking the site on a regular basis and when I did recall to check once or twice, the recipes were really complicated.

After coming across a Daring Kitchen post when blog hopping, I was reminded that I haven’t checked the site in a while and both the cooking and the baking categories were totally doable!

This month’s challenge is meatballs. The hosts left it very open, for us to create the kind of meatball we want. No restrictions – that’s my kind of challenge.

The June Daring Cooks’ challenge sure kept us rolling – meatballs, that is! Shelley from C Mom Cook and Ruth from The Crafts of Mommyhood challenged us to try meatballs from around the world and to create our own meatball meal celebrating a culture or cuisine of our own choice. With my use of both Asian and Spanish ingredients, these are Filipino inspired meatballs. I was inspired by the Filipino classic Chicken Adobo to flavor the sauce. Coupled with a pickled pineapple relish, these are very versatile.

Filipino cuisine is a fusion cuisine of both Asian and Spanish cultures. Since they were colonized by Spain, the Spanish left their footprint on the cuisine. Flan and chocolate based desserts are common as is Lechon, the famous Roast Pork, eaten in South America and other Spanish colonized countries.

IN THE MAKING

Now let’s make the sandwich with the meatballs, pickled pineapple and queso de freir (Latin frying cheese) on freshly made soft and crusty Portuguese rolls.

In addition to the sandwich, you can also serve them with noodles for a meal!

What a great sandwich! Be prepared to be gastronomically assaulted with flavor!

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Filipino Meatball Sandwich

Ingredients

• Meatball Ingredients:
• 8 oz. chorizo removed from the casings
• 18 oz. ground turkey
• 5 slices bacon fried crispy and chopped
• 5 scallions chopped
• 1/2 cup chives thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
• 1/4 cup cilantro finely chopped
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup whole wheat seasoned breadcrumbs 4C brand
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• oil for frying
• Sauce Ingredients:
• 4 tablespoons sweet chili sauce
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup coconut vinegar
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 4 oz. ginger
• 4 to matoes
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• Pickled Pineapple Relish:
• 1/2 pineapple peeled,cored and thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup coconut vinegar substitute: rice wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon palm sugar substitute: brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3 bird's eye chiles susbstitute: serrano chiles
• 12 Thai basil leaves finely chopped
• Sandwich Ingredients:
• 8 oz. queso de freier spanish frying cheese (substitute: halloumi cheese)
• Portuguese rolls
• 3 meatballs sliced per sandwich

Instructions

• First, make the relish.
• Combine all relish ingredients and mix well. Leave in the refrigerator at least 1 hour before using.
• Combine all the meatball ingredients and mix well. Form into 24 equal sized balls.
• Heat a few tablespoons of oil. Shallow fry the meatballs until browned on all sides, adding more oil when necessary. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to absorb excess oil.
• Combine all the sauce ingredients in a food processor and puree. Transfer to a large saucepan.
• Bring to a boil and cook for 15 minutes. Add meatballs. Reduce to a simmer and cook for another 5 minutes, stirring once in a while, adding water as necessary if sauce becomes too thick.
• Let's make the sandwich now.
• First, fry the queso de freier. Just put it in a hot skillet sprayed with non stick spray and fry until golden brown on both sides.
• Now split you roll in half and spread some of the sauce from the meatballs on the bottom half of the roll.
• Place a few slices of the fried cheese. Slice a few meatballs and then place your meatball slices on top.
• Top with a little of the pineapple relish.
• Top with the other slice of bread.

Did you try this recipe? Leave a comment below.Please follow me on Instagram @chefmireille or tag me #chefmireille with your pics! I'd love to share them!

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