Description
Juicy, Thai-inspired chicken meatballs simmered in a rich & flavorful coconut peanut sauce, served with a bright and zingy cilantro-lime cucumber salad. I like to serve it all over brown rice. So good!
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 3 cloves garlic, grated
- 3 green onions, minced
- 1/2 inch ginger, grated (about 1/2 tbsp)
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
- 1 egg, scrambled
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 tbsp fish sauce or soy sauce
- zest of 2 limes
- high-heat oil like avocado oil for sautéing
Coconut Peanut Sauce:
- 1/2 inch ginger, grated (about 1/2 tbsp)
- 3 cloves garlic, grated
- 2 tbsp red curry paste
- 14 oz can unsweetened coconut milk
- 1/4 cup peanut butter (I use regular Skippy but if you want to use natural peanut butter, add a tbsp of brown sugar, or more, to taste)
- 2 tbsp lime juice (juice of 1 lime)
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1–2 tbsp of sriracha, optional
Cilantro-Lime Cucumber Salad
- 1 cucumber, chopped into 1/4-inch chunks
- 2 tbsp lime juice (juice from 1 lime)
- 1/4 cup cilantro, roughly chopped
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
Serve over rice, optional.
Instructions
- Mix up the meatballs. Add all meatball ingredients to a large bowl and gently mix with your hands until ingredients are evenly dispersed.
- Form the meatballs. Shape about 2 heaping tbsp of chicken mixture into a ball and repeat with rest of the chicken. Set aside.
- Sauté the meatballs. In a large skillet, heat a few glugs of oil over medium heat. Once oil is shimmering, add meatballs, at least an inch apart. You will probably have to do this in a couple batches. Sauté for 3–4 minutes, then rotate and sauté for another 3–4 minutes. Remove from pan and set aside on a paper-towel lined plate.
- Make the sauce. In the same pan, add the 1/2-inch grated ginger, 3 cloves grated garlic, and 2 tbsp red curry paste. Sauté for just a minute, then add the can of coconut milk, 1/4 cup peanut butter, 2 tbsp lime juice, 1/4 cup soy sauce, and 1–2 tbsp sriracha. Stir until smooth and combined. Bring to a light simmer.
- Simmer the meatballs in the sauce. Turn the heat on the sauce down to low. Add the meatballs back into the sauce, flipping so they are covered in sauce, and cook for 15 minutes. The meatballs should be cooked all the way through and the sauce should thicken.
- Make the cilantro-lime cucumber salad. While the meatballs are cooking in the sauce, combine the chopped cucumber, 2 tbsp lime juice, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro, and 1/2 tsp kosher salt.
- Serve! Serve the meatballs over rice with spoonfuls of sauce and cilantro-lime cucumber salad. Enjoy!
Notes
- Makes ~13 meatballs.
- See “Ingredients” header above for substitution and modification ideas.
Keywords: thai, asian, meatballs, chicken, peanut sauce
