By Fall. LSU football Saturdays with Rémy on the couch, venison chili. The season of gumbo weather and hunting mornings and the slow darkening of the days that matches the slow darkening of the roux, and both are beautiful, and both are necessary, and the dark is where the flavor lives.
The dinner table conversations are getting deeper as the kids get older. Colette talks about art and meaning and the responsibility of the artist to preserve what\'s disappearing. Rémy talks about food philosophy and sustainability and the relationship between the hunter and the hunted. These are my children, cher. These are the people the roux built. They think in layers. They see in seasons. They understand that the food on the table is not just fuel but language, and the language is Cajun, and the Cajun is alive.
When Rémy started talking about the relationship between the hunter and the hunted like he’d been sitting with that thought for years, I knew the conversation called for food that matched it — something with layers, something that surprises you by being both sweet and savory at once, the way the best ideas are. These Pineapple Ham Balls have been on our fall table long enough that they’re practically part of the language now: a little smoky, a little bright, unpretentious but deliberate, which is exactly the kind of cook — and the kind of people — this kitchen has always been trying to make.
Pineapple Ham Balls
Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 35 min | Total Time: 55 min | Servings: 8 (about 24 balls)
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 lbs ground ham
- 1/2 lb ground pork
- 1 cup plain breadcrumbs
- 2 eggs, beaten
- 1/2 cup whole milk
- 1/4 cup finely diced yellow onion
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- Pineapple Glaze:
- 1 cup crushed pineapple, undrained
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
- 1 tbsp yellow mustard
- 1/2 tsp ground cloves
Instructions
- Preheat. Heat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish and set aside.
- Mix the balls. In a large bowl, combine ground ham, ground pork, breadcrumbs, beaten eggs, milk, onion, black pepper, and garlic powder. Mix until just combined — do not overwork the meat or the balls will be dense.
- Form. Roll mixture into balls about 1 1/2 inches in diameter (roughly the size of a golf ball). Arrange in a single layer in the prepared baking dish.
- Make the glaze. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine crushed pineapple with its juice, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, mustard, and ground cloves. Stir and bring to a gentle simmer, cooking 3–4 minutes until the sugar dissolves and the glaze thickens slightly.
- Glaze and bake. Pour the pineapple glaze evenly over the ham balls. Bake uncovered for 30–35 minutes, spooning glaze back over the balls halfway through, until cooked through and caramelized on top.
- Rest and serve. Let rest 5 minutes before serving. Spoon extra pan glaze over the top. Serve warm as an appetizer or alongside rice.
Nutrition (per serving)
Calories: 310 | Protein: 22g | Fat: 13g | Carbs: 26g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 780mg