Thai Snack – Stuffed Sago Balls (สาคูไส้หมู)

Whenever I visit home in Bangkok, my darling aunt (my mom’s younger sister) will cook for me my favourite childhood food. One of the dishes she cooked this time is stuffed sago balls (สาคูไส้หมู). Stuffed sago balls are sort of common snack in Thailand but what set my aunts’ apart from street style are quality of the filling (lean pork) and the size. They should be on a smallish side rather than big – they will be morish that way.

The following is not exactly her recipe but sort of similar – it’s adapted from an old, old Thai snack recipe book by Tuangthip Food Institute given to me 20+ years ago.

Filling:
100 gram Pork mince
1 cup Finely chopped onion
½ cup Ground peanuts
2 tbsp Palm sugar, chopped
2 tbsp Fish sauce
Oil for frying and basting
3 cloves of garlic
2 coriander roots
½ tsp white peppercorns
Garlic flakes

Shell:
¾ cup Sago pearls (tiny ones)
½ cup very warm water

Lettuce, coriander and chillies for garnish

Pound coriander roots, white peppercorns and garlic together (best using pestle and mortar) to form a paste. Fry the mixture in a little bit of oil over medium heat until fragrant.  Add pork, fish sauce and sugar and fry a little bit further then add onion and peanuts. Taste and add more seasoning if needed. Fry until nicely brown then remove from heat and leave to cool. This will be our filling.

For the shell, add warm water to sago bit by bit and knead with your hand until soft. Use teaspoon to scoop the mixture up and roll into a ball, about 1.5 cm. Repeat the process with the rest.

Press each sago ball thinly and place about 1 teaspoon of filing in the middle, wrap and roll tightly. Steam for 15 minutes. Drizzle with oil and garlic flakes when cooked, so they will not stick together.