Sunday, April 19, 2009

Mighty, Mighty Meatballs – Asian Chicken Meatballs

Greetings all! Hope everyone had a lovely Easter Holiday as well as Spring Break. After taking an unplanned blogging hiatus, I’m pleased to be back with a real winner of a recipe to share. These little lovelies are so amazing that I just can’t wait to make them again. What’s so special about a meatball, you ask? Well, these little orbs surprised me in a big way ... they taste very similar to the filling found in pot stickers! Not to be confused with dense dunkers, these Asian Chicken Meatballs boast both light and varied texture as well as a mighty flavor. Don’t be put off by the list of ingredients and assembly instructions. I’m convinced that they would behave wonderfully with a variety of substitutions and would fit in marvelously with a variety of presentations. I served mine appetizer style, but they would be perfect over rice or wrapped up in lettuce cups or even in a noodle soup. Yum. Yum. YUM! Oh, my method is gluten free, but of course you could use whatever you have on hand.Here we go. For the meatballs:

1 lb ground chicken
2 eggs
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons minced onion (you could substitute green onion)
2 tablespoons chopped water chestnuts
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (you could use mint – I’m not a mint fan)
2 tablespoons gluten free soy sauce
1 teaspoon lemon grass paste (can substitute lemon juice)
1 teaspoon ginger paste (can substitute minced ginger or powder)
1 shake hot sesame oil
Couple shakes red pepper
Salt and Pepper
2 packages gluten free crackers, crushed (about ¾ cup) – can use regular crackers

In a large bowl, beat the eggs. Stir in the garlic, onion, water chestnuts, cilantro, soy sauce, lemon grass, ginger, sesame oil, red pepper, salt and pepper. Add the ground chicken and the crushed crackers. Combine lightly, but thoroughly. Using a large spoon, scoop out spoonful of meat and form into walnut sized meatballs. Continue until all the meat is formed into meatballs, about 20.

Heat up your grill. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Working in batches, carefully drop the meatballs into the boiling water and boil uncovered for 5-6 minutes. Remove and let drain on paper towels. Grill over medium heat about 4-5 minutes per side, or ... hehe ... use your handy, dandy George Foreman grill! (Hey Marjie ... I couldn’t resist getting one after you posted your panini sandwich! Plus, any appliance with a first name is way too cool! I got a no-frills version and it performs just lovely. For these meatballs, they cooked a total of 5 minutes since the top and bottom grill simultaneously.) Keep an eye on the meatballs because there is virtually no fat in them.Serve with your favorite sauce ... teriyaki, peanut, etc. I made a simple teriyaki out of gluten free soy sauce, mirin, sugar, sesame oil, and cornstarch. It complimented these meatballs perfectly.Aren't these sweet? These are just so amazingly good! I like the crunchy texture that the water chestnuts provide; however, if you prefer a smooth meatball, just whip everything up in the food processor instead of mincing by hand. I was so pleased with these little babies. They had great eye appeal, too. These go on the “repeat” list at my house! Mighty, mighty meatballs ... mmm, mmm, good!
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On a side note, kudos to my 7th grade daughter who won first place in the regional science fair, chemistry/earth science division! Well done, my sweet! I'm so proud! You go, girl!

20 comments:

Robynn's Ravings said...

BIG CONGRATS to your DAUGHTER! Way to go girly!

And these just look so good. I'm visiting my food blogs right now and I'm about to die. It all looks so delicious.

I have never heard of ginger paste or the other paste but thanks for the substitutions so I'll know what to do. There's not a flavor there we don't all love!

Maria Verivaki said...

1st prize - bravo for her!
delicious meatballs - i will be doing a kebab special soon
nice to have you back!

Manggy said...

Oh gosh, both you sauce suggestions sound fantastic! (Maybe I can have both, heh!) I'm salivating right now! :)
Congratulations to your daughter! I hope someone took a picture of the project :)

OhioMom said...

Congrats daughter!

I have made turkey meatballs, but I love the asian twist to these chicken ones, I will have to give these a try....yum!

Marjie said...

These look great! Glad you got a George. Ours is a no frills model, too, but all the kidlins can use it, so there's a plus to that! Do you grind your own chicken? I was thinking of making meatball grinders last weekend, but then my food loving son asked for that seafood pasta again, so he changed my menu plan...

Pam said...

What a fantastic recipe - I love the idea of Asian meatballs. Great to see you back posting.

La Bella Cooks said...

A big congratulations to your daughter! How proud I bet you are. These asian meatballs are a wonderful idea. I love all the flavors used here and I like the lighter version with chicken. This is a perfect recipe, Paula!

grace said...

these are some unique meatballs, and i like 'em!
i'm sure you're super-proud of your daughter, and you should be! give her a pat on the back (or perhaps a noogie) for me. :)

noble pig said...

First place awesome. Girls and science rock. And so do these balls of goodness by the way!

Lyndas recipe box said...

Congrats to your daughter! Bravo!
These meat balls look marvelous and I so wish I had some now as I'm getting very hungry! What a great combo of flavors!
Glad you're back; you were missed!

vanillasugarblog said...

oh my goodness those sound so good! I must try these. I love the addition of the water chestnuts.

Jennifer said...

YUM I love meatballs and these look over the top, I could imagine them on top of rice with some veggies, YUM! OK can I just tell you the verification word it has for me is "hymen" I am cracking up!

Annette said...

Congrats to your daughter! Will it be Caltech or MIT for her?!! Those meatballs look wonderful. Bet they would be good with pork too. I may need to get a "George"!

pam said...

Congrats to your daughter!

And thanks for sharing a fabulous recipe that is raising all my flavor flags!

Aggie said...

Yay for your little girl! ;)

These look so tasty!! I love your pictures Paula! Makes me want to take a bite!

Proud Italian Cook said...

I have a bunch of ground turkey, I'm so making these Paula!! Congrats to your daughter too!

The Blonde Duck said...

I love meatballs of any kind! Congrats to your daughter!

Jan said...

Well done to your daughter!!
I'm loving the idea of chicken meatballs, they look lovely and really yummy.

Gloria Baker said...

Paula congrats to your daugther, is nice!

I love these asian meatballs Paula are nice! xxGloria

Gourmet Mama said...

A loud woooohoooo to your daughter! And yes your meatballs do look mighty... mighty tasty!