Comments on: Lion’s Head Pork Meatballs (狮子头)

By: Maggie Zhu

Maggie Zhu — Fri, 09 May 2025 13:55:55 +0000

In reply to Kate. Hi kate, thanks so much for leaving a positive review and sharing your experience. It's so interesting to learn that it's possible to use rice to replace the panko, and it's possible to steam them in the oven. I think the oven method is great for anyone who wants to make bigger batches. Happy to hear that your family enjoyed these :)

By: Kate

Kate — Fri, 09 May 2025 04:32:33 +0000

My family LOVED these. Even my kid who barely eats meat couldn’t get enough! We have to be gluten free, so I subbed 1/2 cup of cooked rice for the panko. This did cause them to be even looser and more patty-like, but who cares? Delicious. We are a big family and I made a triple recipe, so I fried the patties, and tranferred to a rack on a baking sheet. I added boiling water to the pan, covered the whole thing with foil and baked for 25-30 minutes at 400 to steam. We had them with stir fried rice noodles with veggies, and some pickled cucumbers.

By: Trudy

Trudy — Sun, 09 Feb 2025 17:50:31 +0000

Best meatball recipe yet. Making it for the second time this week.
I make them about half the size indicated, and after frying them on both sides, put a lid on the pan, and turn off the heat. The residual heat steams them perfectly. We eat them in soups, noodle bowls, and as appetizers with our favourite dipping sauces.

By: Maggie Zhu

Maggie Zhu — Sat, 17 Aug 2024 18:17:51 +0000

In reply to Amanda Jones.

Hi Amanda, I’m so glad to hear you liked the dish and was willing to give it another try after the first time!
The recipe is different from many restaurant version since it’s a family recipe. It contains more liquid so it yields a very tender result.
The salt part is tricky because the other ingredients affects the quantity. I used panko breadcrumbs in this recipe, which is very mild. Some breadcrumbs can be quite salty, so reducing salt might be needed.
Anyway, so happy that you ended up liking the dish and thanks for leaving a positive review 🙂

By: Amanda Jones

Amanda Jones — Sat, 17 Aug 2024 14:57:26 +0000

My second time making these Lionshead Meatballs were definitely more successful. The first time I used a mini food processor to chop the water chestnuts and the spring onions, I had to substitute the shaoxing wine with white port as I had neither shaoxing nor dry sherry, and since I was having a kitchen renovation I used experience rather than science to measure some of the wet ingredients. I loved this version, although I found it a little salty for my taste despite the steamed Jasmine rice as per your note at the end, however my husband was not a fan, it was too soft, too salty, too ‘challenging’.
The second version was so much better, the flavours were more balanced and I finely chopped the water chestnuts and spring onions and carefully measured al the ‘correct’ ingredients but did only add 1 tsp of salt. Since I was giving my husband a 2nd chance to like them (aka desperate for him to like them since I want to eat a LOT of them) I cooked a mixture of steamed Jasmine rice and salt and chilli chips (done in the air fryer with minimal oil), which was a winning combination for him and I am very happy to report that he also loves them and will happily have them again, which was music to my ears. Thank you for sharing this recipe, I have not come across this here in the UK before, but have since found some British Chinese versions that are very similar. I made with gluten free breadcrumbs, which may have changed the texture slightly but what a wonderful dish and pretty healthy too. I look forward to trying more of your recipes.

By: SueK

SueK — Sat, 27 Apr 2024 20:26:53 +0000

In reply to Maggie Zhu. That was my thought regarding time and not drying them out. Well I am off to get everything cut up for sweet and sour chicken and clean up some dishes. Have a great day and take care of Dozer!!

By: Maggie Zhu

Maggie Zhu — Sat, 27 Apr 2024 18:17:44 +0000

In reply to SueK. I think it really depends on how small the meatballs are, but you probably only need 15 to 20 minutes if the meatballs are half of the size. Edit: I forgot to mention, it also depends on how you stack the meatballs. If you steam a lot at a time and pile them up, the meatballs will take longer to cook. I think the safest way is to set a timer at 15 or 20 minutes and check the doneness. It's the best not to overcook the meatballs so they will remain very juicy.

By: SueK

SueK — Sat, 27 Apr 2024 15:03:45 +0000

I am giving you 5 stars even though I have not made them yet because I know they are going to be excellent as all the other recipes of yours that I have tried. Question: I want to make them smaller as we prefer our meatballs to be smaller. I feel I would need to shorten the steaming time frame but how much would you think?

By: Linda

Linda — Mon, 15 Jan 2024 03:55:36 +0000

Very tasty tender meatballs which I ate with steamed rice. Just delicious. Best meatballs I’ve made in a long time. Thank you.

By: Maggie Zhu

Maggie Zhu — Wed, 10 Jan 2024 15:13:03 +0000

In reply to Eileen. You should use the regular fatty pork for a more tender result. Happy cooking and hope you enjoy the dish :)