Basic Boudin Balls Recipes

BOUDIN BALLS

Steps:

• Stir pork shoulder, livers, onion, celery, poblano pepper, jalapeno pepper, garlic, kosher salt, 1 1/2 tablespoons ground black pepper, chili powder, and 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper together in a large pot. Cover the pot with a lid and refrigerate until flavors combine, 2 hours to overnight.
• Pour enough water into the pork mixture to cover by 2-inches; bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and simmer until meat is tender, about 1 1/2 hours. Remove from heat. Pour mixture through a strainer, reserving strained liquid and meat separately.
• Transfer drained meat mixture to a cutting board and finely chop.
• Stir chopped meat, rice, parsley, and green onion together in a bowl. Gradually add reserved cooking liquid, 1 ladleful at a time, to meat mixture, stirring until completely incorporated between each addition, until mixture has a paste-like consistency. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, at least 2 hours to overnight.
• Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large saucepan to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Roll chilled meat mixture into 1-inch balls.
• Whisk flour, 1 pinch cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper together in a shallow bowl. Pour breadcrumbs into another shallow bowl. Beat eggs in another shallow bowl.
• Gently press 1 ball into flour mixture to coat; shake off the excess flour. Dip ball into the beaten egg; press ball into bread crumbs. Place breaded ball onto a plate and repeat breading process with remaining meat balls.
• Working in batches, cook boudin balls in preheated oil, turning once, until crispy on the outside and hot on the inside, 3 to 4 minutes.

BASIC BOUDIN BALLS

Steps:

• Remove boudin from casing; mix in fresh chiles.
• Shape mixture into balls about the size of a golf ball or smaller.
• Dip in beaten egg mixture and then into seasoned bread crumbs.
• I like to either use a large bowl with the bread crumbs in it and tossing 10 balls in it at a time and"tossing" to coat.
• [Bestto coat only as many balls as you can fry at one time; seasoning gets soggy if allowed to sit].
• Or, put bread crumbs in a large plastic bag, add balls, and"shake".
• Heat approx 1 1/2 inch of oil in a large, heavy bottomed (cast iron is excellent) skillet.
• Deep fat fry balls at 375 degrees (temp may be lowered, but no lower than 345 degrees) until golden brown, about 10 minutes per batch.
• Drain on paper towels.

CAJUN BOUDIN

Steps:

• Combine the pork shoulder, liver, and 4 cups of water in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the pork cubes are tender, about 1 1/2 hours.
• Bring the rice and 4 cups of water to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until the rice is tender and the liquid has been absorbed, 20 to 25 minutes. Set aside.
• Once the pork is tender, remove from the saucepan with a slotted spoon and allow to cool a bit. While the pork is cooling, stir the green onion, chopped onion, celery, bell pepper, parsley, cilantro, and garlic into the simmering pork broth. Season with salt, cayenne pepper, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook until the onion is tender. Meanwhile, grind the meat using the coarse plate of a meat grinder. Stir the ground meat into the vegetable mixture, and cook, stirring frequently until the water has nearly evaporated, about 10 minutes. Stir in the cooked rice, and set aside to cool.
• While the meat mixture is cooling, rinse the sausage casings inside and out with plenty of warm water. Keep the casings in a bowl of warm water until ready to stuff. Once the sausage mixture is cool enough to handle, stuff into the prepared casings using a sausage stuffer. Prick the sausage with a needle every 4 to 6 inches.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to keep the water at a very gentle simmer. Add the sausage and cook gently until the sausage is hot on the inside, firm to the touch, and has plumped, about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.