End-of-season plums bring a tart, sticky sweetness to a comforting bowl of pork sausage meatballs and udon in Jess Elliott Dennison’s recipe. The dish serves two, with 10 minutes of preparation and 30 minutes of cooking.
Dennison’s preferred udon are the individually portioned fresh packs, which she buys from a local Asian supermarket and keeps in the freezer. She cautions against putting them straight into the pan of plum sauce and meatballs: the noodles can turn a strange pink, a result she compares to the blue soup in Bridget Jones.
Pork, sesame and plum meatballs with udon
Prep: 10 min Cook: 30 min Serves: 2
For the meatballs
- 4 pork sausages (240g), skins removed
- 1 egg
- 45g panko breadcrumbs
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- ½ tsp fennel seeds, crushed
- ½ tbsp light soy sauce
- ¼ tsp flaky sea salt
- ⅛ tsp Chinese five-spice
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil, or sunflower oil
- 2 tbsp sesame seeds
For the sauce
- 3 plums
- ½ tsp brown miso paste
- ½ tsp chili flakes
- 1 tsp light soy sauce
- 1½ tsp light brown sugar
For the noodles
- 400g fresh or frozen udon (Dennison likes J-Basket, which is widely available)
- 50g cucumber, finely sliced
To serve
- Finely ground pepper
- Soy sauce
- Malt vinegar
- Chili oil
Method
Put the sausage meat, egg, panko, garlic, fennel seeds, soy sauce, salt and five-spice in a large bowl. With wet hands, mix the breadcrumbs and seasoning through the meat for about two minutes, then divide the mixture into 16 and roll into small meatballs each weighing about 20g.
Fill the kettle and put it on to boil. Meanwhile, put a large, wide frying pan on a high heat, then add the oil. When it is hot, put the meatballs in the pan, turn down the heat to medium and fry, turning regularly, for four or five minutes, until golden brown all over. The insides do not need to cook through at this stage because they will finish in the sauce later.
Meanwhile, halve and pit the plums, then finely slice the flesh into half-moons; set aside one plum half for the garnish. In a jug, mix 200ml boiling water with the miso, chili flakes, soy sauce and sugar.
Once the meatballs are golden, add the sesame seeds to the pan and toast, stirring regularly, for 30 seconds to a minute, until golden. Add the sliced plums, fry for a minute more, then pour in the boiling water-miso mix and simmer on high for four minutes, until the sauce is reduced and sticky. Take the pan off the heat.
Put the udon in a large bowl, cover with boiling water, leave to soften for two to three minutes, then drain into a colander. Divide the noodles between two bowls, then spoon the meatballs and sauce over each serving. Garnish with the reserved plum and sliced cucumber, finish with finely ground pepper, soy sauce, malt vinegar and/or chili oil to taste, and serve.