Coconut Meatballs with Wild Rice

Coconut Meatballs1
Another comforting curry dish for Daniel’s post-workout meal. Using lean beef mince and low fat coconut milk will reduce the amount of fat in this dish, but doesn’t compromise the flavour. Plus nutty wild rice adds more flavour and texture. Thai curry and coconut milk is satisfying and flavourful, but…your waistline might not like it.

Coconut milk is high in calories and fat. So you need to control how much you put in your smoothies, breakfast bowls, curries and sweets. Having said that, as long as you don’t go overboard, it is quite good for you. It has a high amount of fibre. Each cup of coconut milk contains about 5g of fibre (you need about 30g a day!). Coconut milk has high plant-based saturated fat which has a high HDL, beneficial to your heart. It is rich in minerals – iron for oxygen supply to your cells, magnesium, phosphorus and manganese for bone health, selenium and zinc for immune function.

So should I have it or not? For me, it is definitely sometimes foods. I choose to buy a low fat option and use only half of the recipe plus water or stock or non-dairy milk. I think a touch of coconut flavour is enough for the dish. You don’t have to use a whole can of it if you are concerned about calories and fat content. Same rule goes to other coconut products such as coconut cream, coconut butter, desiccated coconut, coconut flakes, etc. Enjoy in moderation!

Coconut MeatballsIngredients

200g Lean ground beef
1 tsp all spice
1 tsp coriander ground
1 tsp of Himalayan salt
1 tsp of ground black pepper
1 tbsp of coconut oil

100g coconut milk
1 tsp of green curry paste
1 tsp of cayenne pepper
1 cup of chopped leek
1/2 chopped tomato
1/2 chopped onion
1/2 tsp of fish sauce
1 tsp of coconut sugar
1 tsp of cardamom

Mix the ground beef with all spice, coriander ground, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Make 8-10 little meatballs and set aside. Finely chop the leek, tomato and onion. Heat a pan over medium heat. Cook meatballs with coconut oil. Once the meatballs are caramelised outside, add vegetables in and cook for a few minutes. Keep stirring. Add other ingredients in and simmer for 10 minutes until the sauce is combined and thickened. Turn off the heat and serve with cooked wild rice.