Baked Chicken Meatballs in Spicy Orange Sauce

Hello Everyone,

How are you all doing today? Guys I wanted to share with you all, that since I have commenced studying, I have been really busy lately with assignments and stuffs. I know, I have really missed out on so many posts from you all. But I promise to catch up on them soon. I really need to get things in order and practice time-management now. Hehe. 😉 I have also slowed down on posting my recipes and thus there are so many queued now.

As Oranges were in the season, I wanted to make an orange ice-cream. But after considering the weather and my son’s health, I decided to try something else. And thus came across this recipe which I had saved in my To-do List months back. This extra moist meatballs are baked and then tossed in a sweet, tangy and spicy glaze.

These baked meatballs tasted awesome on its own and is a great healthier option. I had served this baked chicken meatballs in spicy orange sauce along with chicken fried rice. I am sure you guys are gonna love this sweet, spicy and tangy meatballs. Enjoy!!

Recipe Courtesy: Kelly Senyei

Ingredients:

For the meatballs:

• 500 grams Minced Chicken
• 2 cloves Garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons Ginger, minced
• 
2 Tablespoons Spring Onion, fine chopped
• 1/4 cup Milk
• 1/4 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
• 2 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
• 2 Red Chili, fine chopped
• 1/4 teaspoon Salt
• 
1/4 teaspoon Black Pepper

For the sauce:

• 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
• 3 cloves Garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon Ginger, minced
• 2 teaspoons crushed Red Chili Flakes
• 1 1/4 cup Orange Juice, freshly squeezed
• 1/4 cup Sugar
• 1/4 cup Hoisin Sauce

Method:

For the Meatballs:

1. Preheat the oven to 260°C. Spray a mini-muffin pan or baking dish with cooking spray.
2. In a small bowl, stir together the milk and Panko breadcrumbs and let sit for 5 minutes.
3. In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, garlic, ginger, spring onions, soy sauce, chili, salt, pepper and soaked breadcrumbs. Use your hands to thoroughly combine the meat mixture and then shape it into balls using 2 to 3 tablespoons of meat per meatball.
4. Place the shaped meatballs into the prepared pan and bake for 12 to 15 minutes until the meatballs are fully cooked. While the meatballs are baking, prepare the sauce.

For the Sauce:

1. In a sauce pan, take orange juice and sugar. Stir in low flame until the sugar has dissolved. Now turn the heat to medium high and let it cook for 5-8 mins until the juice has concentrated and reduced to half.
2. Add olive oil to a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes until golden brown.
3. Add the red pepper flakes, concentrated orange juice and hoisin sauce. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes until the sauce has thickened slightly.
4. Remove the meatballs from the oven and transfer them into a large bowl. Pour the sauce on top and toss to coat.
5. Serve hot immediately with some fried rice.

Note:

• You can also use minced Turkey instead of Chicken.
• You can skip Step 1 – for the sauce, and use 3/4th cup Orange Marmalade instead.
• I wanted semi gravy for this recipe. But if you want it little dry and using fresh orange juice like me, then let the juice to concentrate and cook for few more minutes.