Ready, Set, Weekend with Simply Beautiful Eating
You may not know this about me, so here goes. I’m definitely a meatball person. I love the shape, the size and the variety of recipes you can do with a meatball. One of my “go to” recipes for meatballs is the one I make for the holidays and consists of a sauce made with cranberries and believe it or not, a can of soda pop.
I can make this recipe with my eyes closed and have shared it with family and friends. They are truly THE BEST.
So, what’s up with these meatballs today? I think I have stacked the cards against my all time favourite recipe and made another winner of a meatball dinner.
These meatballs are all about the sauce, which is a mix of hoisin, vinegar, brown sugar and soy sauce. The sauce bakes and caramelizes over the meatballs creating a sweet, sticky and heavenly glaze. I used ground chicken, but you can sub in any ground meat.
Oh, and am I the only person obsessed with colorful garnishes? I chopped up some purple cabbage to sprinkle over these meatballs and let me tell you something……..I got so distracted by the colour pop in the dish, I ended up taking 300 photos of these stupid balls. That’s exactly when my Ipad flashed a warning that my storage is LOW and I need to start deleting stuff. YIKES!
One more thing, I always make my meatballs and drop them into a large pot of sauce to cook. NOT THIS TIME. I actually tried baking them and guess what? They came out GOOOOOOOOOD. Hassle free, no frying, no messing up your stovetop. The perfect solution to all your meal prep fears.
So, if anyone is looking for a fun appetizer or stellar weeknight meal, trust me, these are your balls.
CHICKEN MEATBALLS
use half this recipe for the chicken meatballs - about 2 lbs of ground chicken 1) Preheat oven to 400F. 2) Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 3) Place meatballs on sheet and bake for 15 minutes or until golden brown and cooked inside. I made mine about 1 inch in circumference.
STICKY SWEET TERIYAKI SAUCE
½ cup hoisin sauce ¼ cup rice vinegar ¼ cup brown sugar packed ½ cup barbecue sauce 3 garlic cloves, minced 3 tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce 1 tsp. sesame oil ¼ tsp. ground ginger
1) While the meatballs are baking, prepare your sauce by whisking all ingredients together in a small bowl. 2) When the meatballs are cooked, transfer them to a 9" x 13" baking dish. 3) Lower oven temperature to 325F. 4) Pour sauce over meatballs and cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 1 hour, basting the meatballs every 15 minutes. You want them to be glazed and evenly coated. Serve with cooked udon noodles or rice and garnish with sesame seeds, microgreens and minced purple cabbage if desired.
See you next week!