Thursday, May 9, 2013

In-between days

Pork balls in broth
Around here, spring tends to come in dribs and drabs--a splash of sunshine here, a smattering of blooms there. It takes a while for the season to gather momentum, to really come into its own. In some ways, these first few weeks are the ones I like best. The first shoots out of the ground, the first lacy blossoms on the trees--spotting these on walks around the neighbourhood makes me want to skip to the end of the block. Spring! It's here! It's here! There's something so good about the newness of it all. 
Mise for the pork balls Chopped For mixing
But like I said, the season's momentum is slow to gather. Like right now, it feels just about like spring. It's warm enough to throw open all the windows, and when passing through the yard, it's hard not to crush a few violets underfoot. They've got it carpeted. But most of the farmers' markets in town have yet to open, and even when they do in the coming days, it might be a while before there's much more filling the stands than asparagus and pea shoots (which is not to say that I have anything against either). So, yes, I'm being impatient. But after months and months of brassicas--roasted, braised, and pan-fried--how can you not be? There comes a point in the year, however short-lived, when it's hard to even look at another cabbage.
Fry up Pork balls Bowls
But, in these in-between days, cabbage is what you can count on. So here is something to help you wait out the days--Nigel Slater's chicken broth with pork and kale. Now, I can't go so far as to say that it tastes like spring--that would just be a bit of a stretch--but it doesn't quite recall the depths of winter either. An in-between kind of dish. For, though that ruffled kale afloat in broth has an unmistakable wintriness to it, the meatballs do not. These are rolled together with generous handfuls each of parsley, mint, and scallion, as well as a bit of fresh chile for kick, then seared golden in a hot pan and finished in the broth. The effect is something bright and fresh, something powerfully enlivening--enough to slough off the last of winter's drabness and make you forget (at least for a little while) that you are waiting.
Germination!

Chicken Broth with Pork and Kale
Adapted from Nigel Slater's Tender
Note: As Slater says, you can substitute the kale leaves for savoy cabbage, and I get the feeling that I might have preferred it that way. I also bulked up the leftovers the next day with some cubes of boiled potato, which rounded things out rather nicely.

PORK BALLS
400 g / 14 oz ground pork
2 small, hot chiles
4 scallions
2 garlic cloves
6 bushy sprigs of parsley
6 bushy sprigs of mint
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
A little vegetable oil

SOUP
1 liter / 4 cups chicken stock
125 g / 4 1/2 oz kale leaves (from about half a bunch)

Remove any tough stalks from the kale leaves and tear into rough pieces. Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil and blanch the kale for a minute or two, then drain and set aside. Give the pot a quick rinse.
Put the pork in a mixing bowl. Finely chop the chiles and add them with their seeds to the pork. Slice the scallions, discarding the roots and the very darkest tips of the leaves. Peel and mince the garlic, and add with the scallions to the pork. Pull the parsley and mint leaves from their stems and chop coarsely, then add them to the pork with the salt. Mix everything thoroughly with your hands and form into about sixteen balls, about 1 1/4 inches in diameter.
Warm a thin slick of oil in a cast-iron pan and cook the pork balls, in batches if needed, until toasty on all sides, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, in the same pot the kale cooked in, bring the stock to a boil and season with salt and pepper. Lower in the pork balls and then decrease the heat and simmer for 5-7 minutes, until they are cooked through. Add the kale to the soup and serve immediately.
Serves 3-4.

10 comments:

  1. BLARMYGOD, this looks so delicious to me right now. I love your photos.

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  2. Ohh I have to say, I do not envy you right now. I think by the time the first signs of spring come around (here, it was a 60 degree day in the beginning of March), I am more more more than ready for pure sunshine and heat. For the past couple weeks or so it's been at least 75 degrees F every day and sunny, and I couldn't be happier! (Of course the first showcase of rain and a drop in temp is supposed to happen on graduation though -- typical.) Still can't figure out why the only things at the farmer's market are kale and potatoes though, so maybe we're on more equal ground than I'd like to think. ;)

    This soup does sound excellent though, and especially those meatballs. The chiles and herbs sound like a very fun addition to what otherwise would taste very wintry.

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    1. It's plenty warm here now, and my neighbourhood market is open! I'm hoping that I can make these meatballs again soon, this time with local spinach and maybe some green garlic? The only real obstacle, funnily enough, is getting my hands on some ground pork without having to leave my neighbourhood. I don't know why, but none of stores ever seem to have any...

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  3. Nigel Slater always has the best meatball ideas, doesn't he? I do almost this exact thing, only with lamb as the meat. So good!

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    1. I can see how lamb would work here. There's also a turkey meatball recipe in Jerusalem with similar flavours. Guess it's hard to go wrong with scallions and mint in a meatball!

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  4. Nigel can do no wrong. I'm being a bit impatient about spring too. It was finally here ... but I just had to bring my potted plants in for the night due to the threat of frost. Grr. At least we can rationalize this time as good soup weather. Thanks for the lovely reminder Katie!

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  5. Mint and parsley and scallions, yes that might be the taste of young spring ... all wrapped up in a ball-o-meat. What a gorgeous and simple recipe. Can't wait to try it.

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  6. This is beeeautiful Katie and I love the garden! :)

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    1. Thanks, Oana. I'm pretty excited about it! I'm growing a lot of things for the first time this year.

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  7. Loving the recipe, will try this with our kale we'll be picking soon.

    Good luck with your garden. :)

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