Jerk Meatball and Plantain Melt
Sweet and spicy magic is what you get in every bite of this jerk meatball and plantain melt! There is nothing like jerk seasoning and it tastes great mixed into meatballs! For me, jerk is great with something sweet. The combo of sweet plantains and bbq sauce really pairs great with the spicy savory meatballs in this sandwich!
The inspiration for this recipe
I have been obsessed with jerk chicken this summer, and I get it every chance I have. So as you can imagine, I have been coming up with ideas to feature it in new recipes. I thought it would be fun to put the jerk marinade ingredients into a meatball. Then I thought to serve it in a grilled cheese with some sweet tender plantains. It came out awesome. This recipe is originally from a stream, and you can watch the replay here, or keep scrolling for the recipe.
The bread is important
I used a sweet Cuban roll from a nearby bakery. I wanted this to be like a Cubano or medianoche sandwich with the super crisp exterior and soft bread in the middle. Since I was new to the city at the time I had to drive around to a handful of places to find the right bread!
The plantains
Make sure you get a mostly black plantain so when you cook them, they are soft and sweet.
Mine could have been slightly riper to be honest, but they were right on the edge so they still came out how I wanted them to be in the sandwich.
The meatballs were full of jerk flavor and were tender and spicy. I use this recipe as a guide when I am making jerk paste.
Build the jerk meatball and plantain melt
Lots of cheese, bbq sauce, sliced meatballs, plantains, and more bbq sauce!
Nice crispy edges and melty goodness in the center. YUM! Everything in this sandwich was in perfect balance, the cheese calmed down the heat from the meatballs, and the sweetness from the bread, bbq sauce, and plantains was a counterpoint to the savory meatballs and cheese.
I have never had sweet plantains in a sandwich and wasn’t sure how it would be, but I loved how it came out!
Twists on the jerk meatball and plantain melt
I used beef and chicken for my meatballs but you could do full chicken if you wanted this sandwich to be more “jerk chicken” than “jerk meatballs” You could also just do some jerk chicken thighs instead of meatballs! If you smothered the chicken in jerk seasoning and smoked it it would be incredible in this sandwich.
You could also use other bread if you prefer. Some sort of store bought flatbread or naan would actually be great.
For more jerk seasoning ideas, check out my rasta jajangmyeon, or this ribeye sandwich that also has plantains!
Jerk Meatball and Plantain Melt
Ingredients
MEATBALLS
- 3/4 pound ground Beef 85% lean
- 3/4 pound ground chicken
- 1 egg
- 2 habaneros seeds removed and minced
- 2 scallions minced
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 2 cloves garlic grated
- 1/4 teaspoon 5 spice powder
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon thyme
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
OTHER
- 2 black ripe plantains
- 3 Cuban bread rolls
- BBQ sauce
- chihuahua cheese
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix all of the meatball ingredients together until well combined. Preheat the broiler and form golf ball sized meatballs. Spread the meatballs out on a baking sheet and broil for about 5 minutes per side to brown. Remove from heat.
- Slice the plantains into 1 inch slices. Preheat some vegetable oil in a pan and shallow fry the plantains for about 3 minutes per side until golden brown and soft.
- Build the sandwich first with the bread, then the cheese, then bbq sauce, then meatballs sliced in half, then plantains, more bbq sauce, and more cheese. Put the top bread on.
- Cook the sandwich in a pan with some butter, pressing it so it is very thin and gets a nice crunch on the top and bottom. Once the cheese is melted, remove from heat, slice, and serve.