Asian Chicken Meatballs in Savory Hoisin Sauce

Greg said these are the best meatballs he ever had and to put this recipe in the keeper file. I've made them twice now, to the same rave reviews from the Man on the Couch.

Good news: they are made with ground chicken so they are lean, but you'd never know it by the taste.

Asian Chicken Meatballs

Preheat over to 400 degrees.

Into a food processor put:

1 lb ground chicken (preferably ground chicken breast meat)

3 peeled cloves garlic
1/4 red onion
1/2 t. salt and 1 t. pepper
1 T. sesame oil
1 T. olive oil
1 egg
1 and 1/2 pieces soft fresh bread, torn into small pieces
1 inch square, fresh peeled ginger

Process the above into a thick meatloaf like mixture. Add more oil or a little water if needed to keep the processor moving.

Roll and pat this mixture into 1 1/2 inch meatballs. Mixture will be a little sticky so you may want to grease your hands with a little olive oil, to help the process. Don't worry, the meatballs firm up beautifully, but also stay moist, when cooked. )Bake uncovered 400 degrees in an oblong Pyrex pan that has been sprinkled with olive oil, turning periodically, and baking until the meatballs are golden on the outside and cooked on the inside about 20 minutes. If they are cooked through but not browned, run them under the broiler to get the outsides nice and brown and crispy!

Savory Hoison Sauce

Into a large skillet put:

2/3 c. bottled hoison sauce
1/4 white or rice vinegar
1 grated garlic clove
1 t. grated fresh ginger
1 T. soy sauce
Juice of 1/2 fresh lime

Stir and cook until just heated, through. Gently put cooked meatballs in sauce and cover them all with sauce. Sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds and chopped green onion, to taste. Serve over rice (jasmine is our favorite) with any steamed or sauteed vegetables that you like and garnish with chopped peanuts and cilantro.

Serves 4