Asian Spaghetti-and-Meatballs

I've been too busy to cook.  The last months have been insta-food, burgers, pizza, and even [gasp] eating out at restaurants.  I did it again today: I stayed at church far too long working and then rushed home to drive Mag to work and do some errands.  And then it would be time to eat -- boom.  Having eaten way too many hamburgers recently, I snatched up some Aldi ground turkey for a variation on our burgers.  My brain was thinking I might throw in some grated onion, carrot, and celery with a teriyaki sauce for the burgers.

Problem 1:  Teriyaki sauce was gone and I had to whip up my own sauce.
Problem 2:  We're nearly out of bread.  The grain would have to be noodles or rice.
Solution:  Get creative.  Besides, I hadn't had the fun of cooking creatively for months.  Pad Thai was the starting point.

Cut veggies:
about 5-6 cups slivered cabbage
about 1 cup julienned carrot
about 1 cup slivered onion
(Slaw mix with some onion would work nicely, if you have it.)

Meatballs:
1.5# ground turkey
lime juice
cilantro
2 eggs
1/4 sesame seeds
1/4 cup flour or fine bread crumbs
extra flavor: garlic, onion, chili powder, pepper, salt

Stir-fry the veggies.  I used a blend of coconut oil, olive oil, and sesame oil.  Remove from skillet and set aside.

Set a large pot of water to boil.
Start frying the meatballs in the skillet.
(Option: bake meatballs in the oven instead of cooking them in the skillet.)
Mix up a sauce of  soy sauce, lime juice, brown sugar, pineapple juice, chili-garlic paste, and garlic.
When meatballs are done, remove from skillet.  Pour sauce into skillet and use whisk to loosen meat-bits.  Return veggies to skillet and simmer for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook in the boiling water:
8 oz dry spaghetti, broken into 2" lengths
Drain.

Add pasta to the veggies and sauce.  Mix well.  Top with meatballs.


When Gary asked what I was making for supper, I told him what I was inventing.  He put on a brave face.  I was a bit leery too.  But I liked it.  As for my poor guinea pig of a husband, after a few bites, he declared, "Hey, this is pretty good!"  Success!