An authentic Lion’s head meatball recipe that uses breadcrumbs, water chestnuts, and aromatics to make super light, fluffy and juicy meatballs that are bursting with flavor.
Chinese pork meatballs are also called lion’s head (狮子头, shi zi tou). They feature tender, moist, and light meatballs with a savory taste. This dish is a staple food for my family, because it’s quite easy to cook in big batches and is so comforting to enjoy at any time. Eating savory meatballs with rice is as addictive as eating a burger. Juicy and flavorful meat and starch are the best combo in the world.
You’ll find quite a few versions of Lion’s Head in China. One popular rendition in northern China is braised meatballs. The cooking method for those is quite close to the one in this recipe. But instead of steaming, those meatballs are braised in a soy-sauce-based liquid after browning. Another type is meatballs cooked in chicken broth, from Shanghai cuisine. They’re usually served by themselves instead of over rice.
Today I’ll introduce a third type – a steamed lion’s head meatball. This recipe was passed down from my grandma. She used to make a huge batch of these every two weeks. After cooking them, she’d reserve a small amount to serve to guests who might be visiting her house. She would freeze the rest and give them away to family members, including my parents. These meatballs are my favorite and are even better than the ones from the restaurant. They are extremely fluffy and moist and are as tender as the pork in a slow-cooked Bolognese sauce.
How to make pork meatballs extra light
The secrets to creating super fluffy Lion’s head meatballs are:
- Mix water into the meat to make a very tender and moist patty
- Add plenty of breadcrumbs
- Add plenty of water chestnuts
The breadcrumbs create an airy texture. The water chestnuts add a really refreshing and crisp mouthfeel, so the meatballs will taste extra light.
How to make lion’s head meatballs
- Add water, seasonings and aromatics to the ground pork
- Mix in the water chestnuts
- Add eggs and breadcrumbs
- Mix in sesame oil
- Pan fry the meatballs
- Steam the pan fried meatballs
Mix the filling in order
It’s important to add all the liquid seasonings and water at the beginning, and mix until the liquid is fully absorbed. This will give the meatballs a moist texture and proper seasoning.
My mom always told me to add the sesame oil at the end, to seal the flavor and prevent the liquid from seeping out of the pork, if you’re not cooking the meatballs immediately.
One word about frying the meatballs
Once you shape the meatballs, you need to brown them to create the heavenly crust and seal the juiciness inside. It also helps the meatballs to keep their shape.
Since this is a very moist patty, it can be a bit tricky to pan fry while keeping them in an intact round shape. I wouldn’t worry if the meatballs are not perfectly shaped. And if you have trouble keeping them from falling apart, you can slightly press the meatballs so they have a slightly flat shape (but not as flat as a burger patty), so they’re easier to brown.
Steaming the meatballs
Once you steam the meatballs, some fat will be rendered out. The finished meatballs will be flavorful, tender, juicy yet not greasy.
How to serve lion’s meatballs
A lot of my American friends are not used to having meatballs without a sauce. But trust me, these Lion’s head meatballs are so well seasoned that they taste really good by themselves. I love to serve the meatballs as a main dish over steamed rice. And it’s always great to accompany them with some light and refreshing side dishes such as cucumber salad, okra stir-fry, or spinach salad.
The meatballs are one of my favorite lunch items, too. They freeze well and taste great after reheating. Stuff one of these into your lunchbox with steamed rice and some stir fried greens, and you’ll make all of your colleagues jealous when you heat it up in the office microwave.
Afterthought
My mom once told me, making the meatballs tender was not the original intention of adding so many other ingredients to the pork. It’s because pork was in short supply when she was a kid, so her parents needed to find a way to make these meatballs more filling with limited ingredients. Thus, the moist and tender texture of the meatballs was just a nice side effect of living poor. Even now, my family still enjoys cooking with this recipe. It tastes like home.
Other delicious pork recipes
- Chinese Braised Pork Trotters (红烧猪蹄)
- Pork Liver Stir Fry (炒猪肝)
- Pork and Chive Dumplings (猪肉韭菜水饺)
- Pork Chop Suey
- Sweet and Sour Ribs (糖醋小排)
- Jing Jiang Rou Si (Peking Shredded Pork, 京酱肉丝)
Lion’s Head Meatballs (狮子头, Shi Zi Tou)
Ingredients
- 1 lb (450 g) ground pork
- 4 tablespoons Shaoxing wine (or dry sherry)
- 3 tablespoons light soy sauce (or soy sauce)
- 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce
- 1 1/4 teaspoons salt (*Footnote 1)
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons grated ginger
- 4 green onions , minced
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 12 (one 8-oz / 227-g can) water chestnuts , finely chopped
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup (50 g) panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
- 2 tablespoons sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon peanut oil (or vegetable oil)
Instructions
Prepare the meatballs
- Add ground pork into a large bowl. Add 4 tablespoons of water. Mix well with a spatula until water is fully incorporated.
- Add Shaoxing wine, light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, salt, sugar, grated ginger, cornstarch, and scallion. Mix well.
- Add water chestnuts and eggs. Mix a few times. Then add panko. Mix well.
- At the end, add sesame oil. Mix until it forms a soft paste.
Cook the meatballs
- Heat the oil in a medium-sized skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Turn to medium heat.
- Brown the meatballs in batches. Scoop 1/3 cup of the ground meat mixture and shape it into a meatball. The meatball will be quite soft, barely able to hold its shape (so the finished meatballs will be tender and juicy). If the meatballs are too hard to handle and cannot hold their shape, add a bit more panko and mix again.
- Carefully place 3 to 4 meatballs in the skillet and make sure to leave enough space to flip them. When the bottom side turns golden brown, carefully roll the ball with a spatula to cook the other sides. Continue to do this until at least two sides are set and browned (*see footnote 2). Transfer to a deep plate or a bowl that can fit into your steamer rack. Continue to brown the rest of the meatballs.
- Steam the browned meatballs in batches. Heat water in a steamer until boiling. Place the plate of meatballs on the steaming rack and place the steaming rack onto the steamer. Cook covered until the meatballs are cooked through, 30 minutes or so.
- Cook the rest of the batches using the same method. After cooking the first batch, check the water level and add more if it runs too low. Serve hot as a main.
Storage and reheat
- Store the meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge for 3 days or in the freezer for up to 2 months. After steaming, the meatballs will render some fat and liquid. Drizzle it onto the meatballs before storage, to keep them tender and moist.
- The best way to reheat the meatballs is by steaming, the same method used to cook them. The meatballs will be heated evenly and still be moist inside. Alternatively, you can use the microwave. Make sure the container has some liquid (leftover grease or 1 teaspoon water) in it. Place a loose lid on top and heat it up in the microwave.
Notes
- I reduced the salt from my original recipe, since I received some feedback stating the meatballs were too salty. I think the current salt level (1 1/4 teaspoons) is great if you serve the meatballs as a main dish with greens. If you want to serve it with rice, consider using 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt.
- It can be difficult to keep the meatballs round shaped, because the meat mixture is quite runny. You need to handle them gently, so the balls won’t break apart. You can cook the top and bottom sides first, like cooking a very thick burger patty. Then you can use two spatulas to let the meatball stand, to cook the edges. The meatballs won’t look very pretty, but will still taste great.
Wow! These look amazing…I have some ground pork in the freezer and this is what I’m going to do with it!
Hi Maggie, I will try this recipe! I love Chinese and Asian food as I am from Japan living in Brisbane, Australia. I have been reading Nagi’s food bloggers central and I have just learnt how to hide long pinterest photos. Thank you. Shihoko
Hi Shihoko, thanks for stopping by! I have been living in Japan for two years and I LOVE Japanese food! Just followed back, and looking forward to reading more delicious Japanese recipes 🙂
These lion’s head looks amazingly delicious! It is a great idea to do a steam version. Much healthier! I will need a big bowl of rice to go along with them. Thank you for sharing your grandma’s recipe! The family’s recipes are the best treasure. They have the comforting flavors that we are always looking for and going back to. I got to try this for sure!
The Shaoxing wine is all I’m missing, and the big Spec’s on mopac (omg you’re moving to Austin! So am I! We just signed everything for our very first house, so no more boonyland living for a while, though finding just the right things may still rely on the almighty Amazon sometimes) might be able to order me some if they don’t have it stocked already.
TheHubs loves pork so this should please everybody.
Congratulations for you new house Mary! Moving is so exhausting, but it’s definitely rewarding after everything’s settled 🙂
I rely on Amazon for lots of shopping too. However, I don’t really recommend you to purchase the Shaoxing wine there. I remember it contains salt. The dish will turn up very salty if you’re not careful. If you have moved, check out H.E.B, WholeFoods or any liquor store for Japanese sake (rice wine). The flavor is a bit different from Shaoxing wine, but it’s a great alternative in Chinese cooking. Plus, you can drink it too 😉
It is! All of those things.
Also, very good to know. Spec’s ( liquor store in Austin ) claims to have some of the wine already, but I will check it to be sure it’s not mostly salt water. That I could use sake instead is excellent to know! Sake is much easier to come by, but I want to try the intended flavor first =)
The tricky part is, Shaoxing wine is drinkable, but the cheap ones are mostly used for cooking. I’ve checked the big Asian market in Austin, and unfortunately it’s the salty one. I didn’t check Spec’s yet, but I’m suspect the Shaoxing wine is not delicious enough for a liquor store. Anyhow, do let me know if you find Shaoxing wine! So I won’t need to drive to Houston to get it every time 🙂
Hi Maggie, I have made this recipe so many times, it’s amazing. Thanks! I have a suggestion in case Shaoxing wine is not available. In my opinion, though not the same taste, dry white Martini works well. I live in a region I can’t always get what I need so have to use the tools I have!
That is good to know! I always use dry sherry as an alternative but I’m glad that dry white martini worked as well 🙂
Thank you for leaving a positive review!
A Chinese friend introduced me to Chinese cooking 40-50 years ago, and plain sherry wine is the one ingredient she suggested, we didn’t have access to a Chinese grocery store at the time. Use it in all my Chinese dishes and spaghetti sauce too! Easy to purchase at most grocery or liquor stores.
I always use sake in your recipes – because its all I could find – they all turn out great!
I love the name of these meatballs. I”m always looking for new recipes and your sounds so flavorful I have to give this a try.
These meatballs sound wonderful. And I’m delighted to know that your visa was approved, and I hope your move to Austin goes smoothly.
Thanks Susan! I’m very happy about the visa too. I will keep you updated in my newsletter after the moving. Have a great week 🙂
These sound and look very delicious Maggie! I’ll make them, whenever I find some water chestnuts 🙂
I’d love to make these, Maggie, but I don’t cook wiht pork. What other ground meat would you substitute, turkey, maybe? Also, thanks for showing Nagi how to hide collage pins. That’s how I discovered your great blog, too.
Thanks for stopping by Marlene! I haven’t tried to use other ground meat with this recipe yet. I’m afraid turkey ground meat is too lean to create a tender texture by using this one. I’d like to try it out in my kitchen and report back how the dish turns out 🙂
Hello, I know this is a thread from a few years ago but here’s my experience in case people still have the same question. I made them with ground turkey and I’m not sure how true to the recipe they were but they were delicious! I followed pretty much everything else except I used white vermouth instead of the cooking sake. I just happened upon this blog and I’m so glad I did! Thank you!
Hi Katie, thanks so much for letting me know that the recipe works with ground turkey as well! I’m pretty sure those turkey meatballs you made were delicious 🙂 I will try it again the next time. We are trying to lose some weight lately, so we’d always prefer leaner meat.
I’m happy that you found my blog as well! Have a great week ahead 🙂
These are my favourite – and your recipe sounds exactly like the ones I order. Meltingly soft meatballs that somehow hold their shape. Yummo!
Recipes passed on from grandma’s are always the best! Your Lions head meatballs look so tender and delicious. I especially like the added water chestnuts, yum! This is a great meal to cook once and eat twice as freezing is a really good idea. sharing, Pinning, sending smoke signals…Take Care, BAM
Maggie, I made this last weekend and it was AMAZING !!!! *insert clapping sound* I was on a low carb diet so I skipped the corn starch and sugar, but it was still really yummy. This recipe rocks 😀
Hi Chi, I’m so glad you cooked my recipe! 🙂 And it’s great to know that skipping the cornstarch and sugar is fine. I will try it out myself next time. Thanks for leaving a feedback. Have a lovely day 🙂
Fresh chestnut? Can you use canned ones since it is hard to get fresh ones where I live
Yes you can totally use canned.
Hi, Maggie, I’m going to try these tomorrow using ground beef and ground veal, 50-50,, and I’ll report back. I was wondering if you’d ever tried browning them in the oven on broil or at 450 F, perhaps, instead of doing them on the stovetop. I was thinking the meatballs might hold together more easily for the transfer stage.
Reporting back, Maggie: I made them with a 50-50 mix of ground beef and veal, using two eggs and ginger-infused dry sherry instead of the Shaoxing wine. I made them smaller, using about 1/4 cup of he meat mixture or less, for 16 meatballs. Although they were a bit time-consuming, the results were outstanding. My husband, whose nickname is Mr. Fussy, said this was definitely a recipe to make again. I served them with sesame noodles. Thanks for a wonderful recipe!
Hi Marlene, thanks so much for keeping me updated on the cooking! The beef meatballs idea sounds great! I love cooking with beef too and I can’t wait to try out your idea 🙂
Did you brown the meatballs on stovetop or in the oven? Most of traditional Chinese cooking does not use oven since average family doesn’t have it in the kitchen. But I do think it should work for this recipe. It’s probably possible to cook the meatballs in the oven all the way through, not just the browning part (at a lower temperature of course). I’d love to do some experiments on this 🙂
So glad you and your husband love this dish. Have a great week ahead!
I browned them on the stove as the recipe says. And thank you for including storing and reheating directions. We had them again tonight and they steamed perfectly. Next time I’ll make more because they freeze so well. And I will see if the right kind of ground turkey might work..
Hi Marlene, thanks for leaving a comment and let me know! Yes they freeze very well. That’s why I always make a big batch and save them for later. I believe ground turkey will work if you get the one that contains 15% fat. I tried it the other day with a slightly different recipe, the meatballs turned out very tender and nice.
OMGoodness!!! It’s delicious, tender and moist! I added napa cabbage on the bottom of the meatballs before steaming it. Served it with steamed rice!!! YUMMIE!!!
Thanks for sharing!!!!!!
So glad to hear you cooked many of my dishes and enjoyed the result. You just made my day Cathleen!
The meatball recipes is a family recipe that was handed down from my grandma. I’m so glad the dish can be shared and enjoyed with people around the world 🙂
I’m only able to find the salty Shaoxing cooking wine variety. I plan on reducing the light soy sauce by a teaspoon and a 1/2 to balance the salt out. Should I omit more light soy? Can’t wait to make these
Hi Stephen, I never used the salty Shaoxing wine, so it’s really difficult for me to tell. I think you can try slightly reduce soy sauce. I won’t suggest omitting it because it adds nice flavor. Even if the meatballs turn out a bit salty, you can always serve them with a bit more rice.
Happy cooking!
Hi Maggie! Yours recipes are excellent. Can you suggest substitutes for water chestnuts?
There is no perfect substitutes because water chestnuts add a nice crispy texture that make the meatballs light. I’d suggest diced white onions if you don’t have water chestnuts. They do turn soft after cooking. The result won’t be the same, but should still be tasty.
Happy cooking!
Wouldn’t jicama work as a sub for water chestnuts?
I think you can, but the jicama might get very soft due to the long cooking time, therefore results in a very different texture. The chestnut will stay crunchy, so more of a contrast texture for the tender meatballs.
Hi Maggie, I came across your blog while searching for meatball recipe. Yours look very delicious, will try it soon. Do you have any recipe on pairing the meatball with some kind of sauce?
Hi Anita, sorry I do not have a sauce recipe that goes with this dish. We usually season the meatballs with plenty of spices so they will be flavorful enough to serve by themselves.
If you’d like to serve it with sauce, I think a yogurt based sauce (such as tzatziki) should go these meatballs.
Thank you for the reply Maggie! Yogurt is such a great idea 😀
eep… just tried the recipe and the flavor was good but it’s wayyyyy too salty for my taste. even paired with rice and veggies still salty I would cut the salt by 1/3 next time and just keep the soy. four tablespoons of soy is already pretty sodium heavy.
I’m sorry to hear it! Did you use a salted Shaoxing wine? This recipe uses a lot of wine and it might cause the problem (I was using a Shaoxing wine that does not contain salt). Also, there is only 1 teaspoon dark soy sauce. It is less powerful than light soy sauce. So if you’re using 4 tablespoons, it will increase the salt level. Anyhow, I hope they will turn out tastier the next time.
Just tried this recipe and oh my goodness! So flavoursome, delicious and moist just as you described. We also just as an accidental happinstance – tried them with tzaziki and they tasted amazing.
Thanks for a wonderful and authentic recipe – I love cooking outside of my cultural upbringing and these are delicious, light, fluffy and a bright addition to our ’round the world’ attitude to food x
Hi Melissa, I’m so glad to hear the recipe worked out well! And yes, I believe the tzaziki sauce will go very well with these meatballs. It is great that you’d like to venture out of your comfort zone and challenge new dishes! I’m happy to share the recipes from my culture with you 🙂
Have a great day!
Hello
Can I cook it in an oven instead of skillet, its oily and messy? Thank you for the recipe.
Kathryn
Hi Kathryn, I’ve never tried to make these meatballs in the oven but I think it should work. The meat patty in this recipe is quite tender. The meatballs won’t stay in perfect shape but it won’t affect the taste.
Happy cooking and hope the dish will turn out great 🙂
Thank you Maggie. I finally bought water chestnuts this morning, ready to make it today.
Happy cooking and let me know how the dish turns out 🙂
Oh wow! Maggie! This was absolutely mouth-watering. I missed the sesame oil, overbrowned the balls and had to braise them quickly with cabbage cos of time constraints. But, just WOW! I can’t wait for the weekend to make it the way you did. Thanks for the great recipe!
Hi Amanda, I’m so glad to hear you tried my recipe and enjoyed the dish! Braising these meatballs totally make sense and I believe they turned out delicious.
I can’t wait to hear your feedback on the steamed version!
Happy cooking and hope you have a great week ahead 🙂
Maggie, the Lion’s Head Meatballs that I first learned how to make some 40 years ago were about 70% ground pork and 30% crabmeat with crab coral added as well. And ginger, etc etc. I am wondering, is this a regular version of this dish? Have you ever heard of Lion’s Head Meatballs made with crab?? Perhaps it is a version from a seaside area?? Anyway, I highly recommend this version. Using homemade chicken broth and simmering the Meatballs for about 30 minutes makes a wonderful broth full ofmpork and crab goodness.
Hi Pamela, I think I know the version you mentioned. They are light covered meatballs that are braised in chicken stock. I think it is from Hangzhou or one of these adjacent cities of Shanghai. I’ve tried them in restaurants and really enjoyed them. I’d say it’s one of the regular versions of lion’s head in southern China. Mine is pure northern style 🙂
I love northern too! Good to know! I love Lion’s Head Meatballs! I will try this.
Awesome! Happy cooking and let me know how the dish turns out 🙂
Thank you!
Hi Maggie! This recipe sounds amazing but I don’t have a steamer. Do you have any ideas on the process of braising the meatballs in soy sauce?
Amazing recipe Maggie! Thank you so much for sharing your family’s tradition with us. I made these for dinner tonight and I couldn’t be more pleased. I subbed Sherry for the Saki (I live in the middle of nowhereville) and they were still great. Such a tender, moist meatball – I’ll be making these again and again! Can’t wait to share this with friends!
Hi Heide, thanks so much for taking time and leaving a comment! And I’m so glad to hear the recipe worked for you 🙂 Yes it’s totally OK to use saki to replace the sherry. We always make a big batch and freeze the rest. Their texture holds up well. I hope your friends will love these meatballs too 🙂
I don’t think it should use so much salt. 3 tsp of salt for 1 pound of pork is too much.
Hi Richard, this dish is on the salty side because we usually serve it with rice. Unlike western style meatballs, we do not serve it with any sauce, so the meatballs have to be a bit salty so it tastes just right with the rice. Plus the water chestnuts and breadcrumbs will add quite a bit volume. That’s being said, I think you can reduce the salt to 2 teaspoons without any problem.
I hope you can give the recipe a try some time. It’s really good 🙂
hello, I’m throwing a Chinese new year party for 8 friends. Should I double this recipe?
Also, I don’t have a steamer, but I like the idea of steaming because I want them to stay tender and moist.
What do you recommend I do, try or buy.
These meatballs were absolutely delicious. I served them with a dipping sauce of Chinese vinegar mixed with some soy sauce, green onions, grated ginger and a little sugar. Thank you Maggie.
I made your version of Lion’s Head for my family’s Chinese New Year dinner last night and it was very good. The meat mixture was quite liquidy, as you describe in the recipe, so I used a one-third cup measure to drop mounds of meat into the hot oil in my pan. This “technique” worked beautifully. Once the mounds began to brown, it was easy to turn them over to brown all sides and they held together. The meatballs were fluffy and delicious!
One more thing (and to answer Shellie’s question): using a one-third cup measure, this recipe made 13 meatballs.
How do you know when the meatballs are cooked through? I’ve been steaming them for a while now (around 40 mins) but the meat still looks a bit pinkish/translucent.
Love your recipes! I’m going to give this lion’s head recipe a try today! Thank you for sharing all these wonderful recipes with us.
So the water chestnuts need to be fresh or canned?
Hi Zhen – Maggie’s husband here. We made these with canned (drained) water chestnuts. They should also be great with fresh ones, if you’re lucky enough to have access to them 🙂 Good luck and happy cooking!
AMAZING!! These were So full of flavor and even the pick kids loved them! Thanks so much for sharing your grandmas recipe ?
I made these last night, froze the majority in 4 ball plastic packs. How do I reheat these, should I steam them over bok choy for 40 minutes straight from frozen, or do I have to thaw them first? Thanks.
I steamed from frozen and they turned out great!
These are AMAZING fresh and almost as amazing after freezing. Didn’t have dark soy sauce so just used double regular — tasted great even if they were a little less pretty. Thanks for the recipe 🙂
My Mom used to make these. Thank you for this recipe. Great memories and the dish came out perfect.
Hi Maggie! I was wondering if I could use an Instant Pot to steam the meatballs, and for how long you’d recommend steaming for. Thank you! I’ve been using recipes for ages and I’m so excited to try these 狮子头 this week!
I’ve never used Instant Pot to steam these but I think it should totally work. With high pressure, you should able to get them down in 20 to 25 minutes.
These look delicious and I like the steaming method vs. frying. Will these hold up in a broth?
Thank you
Hi Elizabeth, I’ve never tried cooking them in a broth but I think it should work as long as you brown them well, and don’t stir too much when adding to the broth.
Hi Maggie, I’ve made these twice now and they’re great! I’ve been looking at the pearl rice meatballs, too – do you think I could use this filling, roll it in soaked glutinous rice, and steam to cook? Or would it fall apart because it wasn’t browned first? LOVE YOUR RECIPES. Thanks!
Hi Amie, I’m glad to hear you like the recipe!
Re your question – I’ve never tried to steam these meatballs without browning but I imagine it might collapse or fall apart because the mixture is quite runny. The pearl rice meatball recipe uses a much firm mixture so you can actually roll the meatballs with rice.
Made these again tonight for the second time. It’s one of my favorite recipes… so far. Looking forward to trying new and more!Thank you for this!
The recipe was exactly what I was looking for. I DID have to be careful but they turned out well and very yummy. I’ll be making this recipe again and again.
Excellent, best I have ever tasted
This is by far the best recipe for 狮子头 that I have found online! the meatballs are crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, they are perfect!
Your recipe sounds amazing Maggie! What can I use to substitute water chestnut? Thanks!
It’s not often I follow a recipe as written. But this one was so crazy, I knew I had to on first foray. I always grind my own meat. Used pork loin – rib end. My hobby is making good food that tastes good. This recipe is stupid good! I was concerned with no garlic. Just no need for it. Crazy I know! I cut salt to a third. Otherwise all as instructed. Brilliant! Next time I will make meatballs half size and steam half as long. So so Good!
Thanks! These turned out really good but a tad sweet, maybe from the garlic, caramelization – going to remove the sugar next time.
All your recipes that I’ve made to date are super easy to follow and every dish turns out amazing. For this one, I didn’t have water chestnuts and no way of getting any, so I substituted with a firm apple, in the same quantity. Although the apple softened completely during the steaming process so that there was no crunch as it would have been with water chestnuts, the entire family LOVED them. Lion’s Head was the first dish I had upon landing in Beijing for the very first time back in 2011, and it’s still my favorite. Miss Beijing, miss the hutongs, but at least I have a way of making my favorite dishes now. Thank you!
Hi Maggie,
Chose your recipe because it is steamed, not deep fried. Incredible! So soft like a marshmallow!
I live in a city with only three Chinese restaurants, no Shanghainese restaurants. We used to always order this whenever at a Shanghainese restaurants before moving. My husband is Shanghainese and he said this was the softest meatball ever!
Many thanks and keep it up 🙂
They tasted awesome, soft and juicy! Aside from them being a tad on the salty side for our liking, they reminded us of the signature Ding Tai Fung xiao long bao meat filling. 5 stars for sure.
I love pork meatballs. I made some tweaks ( we are chefs right?) . I don’t have the wine but used Mirin and decided to back out the Table salt to compensate. I also cooked on the stove to light brown all sides and decided to use my simmer ring to lower the heat and added a little water in the pan to “steam” the meatballs. Love the Lions head meatball. I really enjoy your weekly email blogs and the website is so organized and beautifully photographed.
Made these along with some sautéed veggies. These meatballs were absolutely marvelous, packed with flavor and a delectable texture. The aroma as these cooked was enchanting. It took a little work to get the method down (my first time working with this consistency, but once I got the hang of it the shape was better – I think I over crowded the pan a bit in the beginning and maybe didn’t have the right amount of pressure when forming the first two or three – was fine as the ended up being perfect for chef’s tasting – my advice is to keep going and you’ll get the hang of it as I did). These ended up being delicious and I was sad when there weren’t any leftover for lunch the next day. I can’t wait to make them again.
Thanks for leaving a positive review and sharing your cooking experience 🙂
This is my grandma’s recipe and she was so good at shaping the super soft meatballs. My version is actually slightly harder than hers but I just can’t do as well 😛 Anyhow, so glad to hear you like the recipe. These meatballs freeze very well so you can make a bigger batch and save for later.
This was delicious! I made it for a group so doubled everything. It was honestly a big pain to fry then steam, but the flavor overall was definitely worth it. Mine didn’t end up like meatballs, more like wide meat patties, but so tender! Next time I will cut back on the salt and Shaoxing wine. I thought those were a bit too dominate. Thank you for sharing this old-school recipe!
Hi Cecilia, I’m glad to hear you like the recipe! It’s one of my family’s favorites. Yeah the patty is very tender and it’s hard to shape it into a meatball shape. My grandma actually adds more liquid to it and somehow able to fry it well. Hers meatballs always came out SO TENDER. I cannot deal with soft patty so skillful so I’ve reduced some liquid, but yeah, the frying is quite challenging.
Maggie, these were as wonderful as their name suggests, and as all of your other recipes. Truly savory delights. My wife had asked if there would be any sauce, what with it being served over rice, so I used your meatball recipe, and supplemented it with napa cabbage stir-fried in the pan I’d browned the meatballs in, then steamed the meatballs over a bed of the stir-fried cabbage (Virginia Lee and Craig Claiborne’s The Chinese Cookbook, was my intro to Chinese cooking in the 1970s and they serve it over cabbage). So very incredible!!!!
Just fabulous, like eating little clouds.
Wow tried these today and they were amazing. I added some green chillies into the mix too and made some home made soya and chilli dip on the side. Yummy
These are really good! Thanks for sharing and happy new year!
Made these last night and they were delicious! I may not have put enough bread crumbs so I had more like meatball pyramids – but they were super soft and my three kids plus husband loved them. Thank you for the recipe!!
Super easy and tasty!! Substituted with ground turkey (all I had) , even with the lean meat it was so good! Definitely will make again!
These were so tasty! We skipped the frying step and they did puff up in the steamer and develop craggily edges rather smooth round meatballs, but we didn’t mind that at all! The texture was incredible, the meatballs were super juicy, and the flavour was so so good. I’ll be surprised if my family doesn’t ask for these again this week.
Hi! I would love to try this recipe but unfortunately I only have the salted shaoxing wine. I was wondering if you have advice on what to cut back on to reduce the saltiness. I didn’t want to have to buy an unsalted bottle since I’d much rather finish the one I have first instead of tossing it.
I think you should reduce the salt to 1 teaspoon to balance it out. (This dish is slightly heavily seasoned because you don’t need a sauce and it’s usually served over rice)
Whoops! I just saw your response. I apologize for submitting the question again. Thank you! I will give this a try for sure.
Hi Maggie! I would love to try this recipe and I have all the ingredients. The only issue is I only have salted ShaoXing Wine. Would you be able to suggest how to alter the soysauce/wine ratio to accommodate for this? It sounds so good and I am eager to try it. I
Hi Maggie, just letting you know what a success these meatballs were! Tender, juicy, and savory! Definitely followed your advice on the salt since I used salted shaoxing wine and it was perfect. Looking forward to trying out your other recipes.
looks awesome can’t wait to try
I love all of your recipes you’re a great cook.
Just wanted to say thank you for posting this. I have made this multiple times and it’s absolutely perfect each time. Ive never used chestnuts cos I personally hate them, but ive usually replace it with chinese cabbage and once i even replaced it with kale! It always turns out awesome. Also i skip the pan fry step and just place the balls on a plate lined with chinese cabbage leaves and put it straight into the steamer. Its authentic chinese home cooked steamed meat balls!! Just made them for lunch and as usual they were fab. Thanks!
I not only made this recipe for the first time, but it’s also my first time making Chinese meatballs ever. I used Turkey instead of pork because I had it on hand. They recipe was easy to follow, pretty quick to pull together and the final result was delicious, moist meatballs!! Great recipe!!
Maggie this was so nice.I love chestnuts in it.I never had a steamer but Google told me if I had a casserole dish which I have and boil water in it have a wire rack and put meat balls on and cover with baking paper to steam,It worked so good and made the meat balls so nice over rice.Love your dishes Maggie.
Thanks so much for leaving comment and I’m glad you enjoyed the dish 🙂 Also that is a great tip! I will remember it and recommend to people who do not have a steamer. 🙂
Wow! And wow again! Never heard of or tried this before. Amazing.
Hi Maggie. I’m looking forward to trying these meatballs. I usually bake meatballs. Can these be baked instead of fried?
These meatballs are a lot softer than the baked type and I do not recommend baking. They will probably collapse, the outside won’t be browned properly and the inside drier.
That being said, if you decided to bake them, I can’t wait to hear your feedback 🙂 Happy cooking!
I live in Houston and would love to find the wine. Where do you shop for it?
There is Ranch 99 in Houston where you can find everything 🙂
Made these to freeze and a 1/4 cup size instead of the recipe 1/3, my lovely enjoyed the crunch of the water chestnuts. Very easy recipe. Thank you Maggie
These meatballs are excellent, so tender and flavorful.
the meatballs are tender but way too salty
This looks so delicious, Maggie! Could you sub the pork for ground chicken or turkey? I really like the idea of the water chestnuts and my husband loves them.
I think ground turkey will work nicely because it’s a bit fattier than ground chicken and more flavorful. If you decided to try out the recipe, let me know how it goes!
Is the egg used here as a binder? Can I use flax egg?
We’ve got one child with an egg allergy
Yes, the egg is used as a binder. You can use flax egg. As long as you whisk the ground meat very well, it should become sticky and bind together.
This recipe was great, my meatballs were cracking a bit and maybe it’s because I didn’t stir enough or make the batter “paste” like enough, to bind the meat together. The flavor is great and really authentic, taste like my childhood. There are a lot of other receipts that have less soy sauce in the actual meatball, but if you’re serving this without another braising sauce, it’s perfect.
These are easily the tastiest, juiciest meatballs I have ever made; I followed the recipe to the T, except in one thing – where I live, it’s really hard to get water chestnuts, so I looked for a sub. As I understand, water chestnuts are in fact nothing like chestnuts, and different sites recommend either omitting them or using vegetables such as turnips instead. I’ve made them three times so far, once with turnips, and two times with kohlrabi; obviously, I have no idea what they would taste like with actual water chestnuts, but as far as flavor goes, I have to say these are spectacular. Thank you for another foolproof recipe!
The meatballs turned out very moist and delicious. Will definitely make again.
I can’t wait to try this! Have you ever refrigerated the mixture before making the meatballs? I often do this with my Italian meatballs and it makes it MUCH easier to form and cook them.
I have not but it sounds like a good idea! Let me know how it goes and happy cooking 🙂
I am making this soon!
Just steaming this and I’m sure it will be delicious. I must point out that in the recipe you list: “1 cup (100 g) panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)”. This is a huge amount to add so I checked and 1 cup is 50g. I’ve gone with 50g as I think it would be too dry with 100g. Is this something that needs correcting.
Thanks so much for pointing out the panko measurement! I double checked again and it was indeed 50 g. I have updated the recipe to reflect the correct number.
I’m glad to hear you liked the dish! Yes, I do think you can simply steam the meatballs and have a nice result 🙂
I followed your recipe in every way except that I used less water chestnuts (about half). We all loved them and we all agreed that I should make them again! This is the third recipe by you that I have tried, and they have all been excellent. Thank you!
Excited to try this for Chinese New Year party. Thank you for sharing your Grandma’s recipe. What ground pork fat content does recipe call for (lean, regular, etc.).? Thanks in advance for your reply!
You should use the regular fatty pork for a more tender result. Happy cooking and hope you enjoy the dish 🙂
Very tasty tender meatballs which I ate with steamed rice. Just delicious. Best meatballs I’ve made in a long time. Thank you.