Carolina BBQ Meatballs (Low Carb and Gluten Free)
Try this Carolina BBQ Meatballs (Low Carb and Gluten Free) recipe, or contribute your own.
Try this Carolina BBQ Meatballs (Low Carb and Gluten Free) recipe, or contribute your own.
- 1 egg
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/2 tsp ground cumin
- 1/4 cup yellow mustard
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tbsp water
- 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup almond flour
- 1 tsp paprika (smoked if you have it)
- 1 tbsp dried onion flakes
- 1 lb. ground pork
- 1 tsp granulated sugar substitute (honey for paleo)
- 1/4 tsp celery salt
- 2 tsp frank's hot sauce
- 3 tbsp granulated sugar substitute (honey for paleo)
- 2 tbsp low sugar ketchup
- Carbohydrate 0.870534141669534 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 0.908527083744852 g
- Fiber 0.35428905806293 g
- Protein 0.528770104673396 g
- Saturated Fat 0.0674247526290089 g
- Serving Size 1 1 meatball (37g)
- Sodium 63.0821582808517 mg
- Sugar 0.516245083606605 g
- Trans Fat 0.0521048802248074 g
- Calories 13 calories
Step-by-step
- Start the sauce first so the flavors have time to develop while you are making the meatballs.
- Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan, stirring until smooth. Simmer on low heat for about 8 minutes.
- Combine all of the meatball ingredients in a medium bowl and mix thoroughly. Form into 16 meatballs.
- In a large, nonstick saute pan, fry the meatballs over medium heat until golden on all sides and cooked through. About 3 - 4 minutes per side.
- Toss the meatballs gently in the sauce, then spread on a parchment lined baking sheet and broil (carefully!!) for 2 - 3 minutes.
- Serve with low carb cole slaw for the authentic BBQ experience!
Yellow mustard forms the acid-driven backbone of traditional South Carolina low-country barbecue sauce, replacing tomato bases with a sharp, pungent profile that cuts through rich pork. Vinegar and mustard deliver a distinctively bright sharpness, reacting with heat to mellow the raw bite while preserving the condiment's characteristic tang. Simmering this sauce for eight minutes allows the pungent volatile compounds to soften before the mixture contacts the meat.
Almond flour replaces conventional breadcrumbs here, introducing high fat and protein content without gluten networks. This substitution demands careful handling because nut meals lack elasticity; mixing the ground pork gently prevents the fats from smearing and keeps the resulting texture tender rather than dense. When frying these formed spheres in a nonstick skillet, maintain medium heat for three to four minutes per side to achieve a deep golden crust without scorching the mustard sugars present in the glaze.
Broiling the coated meatballs for two to three minutes caramelizes the exterior sugars and thickens the sauce into a sticky coating. Doubling this recipe requires working in multiple skillet batches to avoid overcrowding, which lowers pan temperature and causes the pork to steam rather than sear.
Historical barbecue regionalism dictates pairing mustard sauces with pork cuts, reflecting a German immigrant influence in the American Southeast that favored vinegar-and-mustard preservation techniques over sweet molasses.
