Everyone knows meatballs are a versatile food that can convey the flavors of a country or cuisine in a single bite. They can be enjoyed as appetizers, sides, and even main dish components making them the ultimate little flavor bombs of umami deliciousness! Whether made from beef, chicken, pork, lamb, or just about any protein imaginable, these simple little balls of flavor easily represent local, regional, and even national cuisines with few ingredients and minimal prep work. Today's recipe, Thai Chicken Meatballs, combines Thailand's love of sweet, sour, spicy, and salty into tasty morsels of chicken and herbs with a refreshing simple dipping sauce! Don't fret, though, as these chicken meatballs are actually quite mild and can be enjoyed by everyone as a gameday snack, appetizer, or even main dish. If you love Asian cuisine and can't resist a meatball, this recipe is perfect for you....Let's Get Cooking!
The late, great Anthony Bourdain once said, "An ounce of sauce covers a multitude of sins." Well, since I'm a white guy making up a Thai-inspired meatball I think I may have committed a few sins, but for the betterment of everyone's eating pleasures, of course! So, with my confession out of the way and soul back in the favor of the Food Gods, this recipe starts out with that sauce Bourdain mentioned. Combine the Sweet Chili Sauce, ketchup, soy sauce, and lime juice in a small bowl and mix until well incorporated. Call it what you will, but it's my take on those four contrasting flavor notes common to most Thai dishes. We will be using this same mixture as our final meatball dipping sauce so separate out about a 1/2 cup for the meatball flavoring itself and reserve the rest for serving. Obviously, this is just a base starting point so feel free to tweak your version as you wish. Adding some fish sauce, sriracha, and maybe even some ginger or lemongrass paste would also work well for these meatballs.
With the dipping sauce and partial meatball seasoning out of the way, we can now move on to making our drab, plain ground chicken into something fab! Start with the ground chicken in a large mixing bowl and add that 1/2 cup of sauce we just made. Dice some green onions and cilantro and add them to the bowl as well. Finally, add a couple eggs and panko breadcrumbs as a binder along with some garlic and a bit of salt. I used granulated garlic for my first batch of these meatballs, but regular minced garlic would also work well.
The next step is to mix together all these ingredients, but you want to be careful not to overwork the mixture and make the chicken end up tough and dry. Throw on some gloves and use your hands to gently combine everything just enough so that it is evenly distributed and homogenous but minimally worked. If you are making a meatloaf at home you should also follow this same procedure. I can't exactly explain it, so just trust me and mix the ingredients as little as possible to get everything combined.
Once your chicken mixture is ready, use a cookie scoop or similar-sized spoon to portion out the mixture into 24 to 30 meatballs, about the size of a golf ball. Again, be careful not to overwork the chicken so scoop out a bit, roll it in your hands just enough to form a ball, set it down, and repeat the process. It may seem a bit daunting and tedious in the beginning, but this process really only takes 5 or 6 minutes to knock out the entire batch. The key takeaway is to make sure they are all evenly sized, so they require the same amount of time when cooking. You want to avoid overcooking smaller ones and drying them out while any larger meatballs may remain raw in the middle.
Next, we are going to preheat our Air Fryer to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. When it is ready, give the tray a quick spray of nonstick oil and arrange the meatballs accordingly so they do not touch one another. Once aligned, I like to spray the tops with a bit more oil to help with making a crispy exterior, but otherwise close the Air Fryer and cook the meatballs for 12 minutes, flipping at the halfway point. You will have to do this step in batches, so break it down into whatever fits in your Air Fryer without overcrowding the tray. You could just bake them all at once in your oven, but the Air Frying process makes for a better, crispy exterior so spend the few extra minutes on a couple smaller batches.
Just like that you have made some delicious Thai Chicken Meatballs! Be sure to serve them hot with the remaining sauce we made earlier. These little umami bombs are great for snacking on while watching the big game, as an appetizer for your Asian-inspired dinner, or even as a meal in themselves. Swap the panko for crushed pork rinds and you easily drop the carbs and make this recipe a little more Low Carb-friendly! That Sweet Chili Sauce messes up the sugars so you would also have to find an alternative for it, so maybe just stick with the original recipe and call it a cheat day meal. For everyone else, even with the sugars and carbs, since ground chicken is the base protein, it keeps these meatballs close enough to the "healthy side of the dietary spectrum" you can enjoy a few extra with minimal regret! Make a batch of your own and tell me if you added or swapped any of the sauce ingredients and how your meatballs turned out. These Thai Chicken Meatballs may just be some white boy made up thing, but they prove anyone can get in the kitchen and make something quite unique and tasty....Just Keep Cooking!
THAI CHICKEN MEATBALLS
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