Tsukune - Japanese Meatballs

Tsukune which is pronounced ‘sue-koon e’ is a form of Japanese meatball that gets a lot of flavor from ingredients such as shiitake mushrooms, ginger, garlic and soy

We are preparing this dish as an appetizer but these are so good they can definitely be a main

Make them a bit bigger and serve them with some steamed rice and salad and you have a full meal

You can use any protein that you want, beef, pork, even seafood but we are taking a more traditional approach and using ground chicken

So let’s start prepping

First off, we will need 4 ounces of shiitake mushrooms

Shiitake stems are woody so let’s twist them off and give the caps a slice

Discard the stems

Repeat until they are all sliced

Next we will need 2 tablespoons of sesame oil, 2 grated garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger and 2 tablespoons of dry sherry

Heat the sesame oil in a pan over medium heat

Add in the mushrooms, garlic and ginger

Cook stirring occasionally for 3-4 minutes or until the mushrooms and garlic start to soften

Deglaze the pan with the sherry and cook another 2-3 minutes or until the sherry is mostly absorbed

Remove the mushrooms from the heat and allow to cool

Once cooled you will need 2 teaspoons of red miso which is a fermented soybean paste

Add the mushrooms and miso to a chopper or blender

Pulse until finely chopped

Time to start making some meatballs!

We will need 2 pounds of ground chicken

We’ll need the miso mushroom mixture, 3/4 cups of panko (Japanese bread crumbs), 2 scallions chopped, 1 egg white, 2 grated garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger and 2 teaspoons of cornstarch

Add all of these ingredients to the ground chicken

Sprinkle with kosher salt and ground black pepper

Using your hands, gently mix the ingredients all together

Since we are using these as starters, I’m going to use a 1/8 cup as a scoop, you can the increase the size of the scoop and change the size of the meatball

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and give it a light spray of oil

Start scooping the meat, we will come back and roll them later

Once they are all scooped, start rolling

I find that wetting my hands a bit makes rolling easier

We actually made a perfect 30 meatballs out of this mixture

Place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to allow them to meld and solidify

You can also do these a day ahead

Preheat the oven to 350 F

You can also grill or pan fry these

Place in the oven and cook 18-20 minutes or until lightly brown and firm to the touch

While the meatballs are in the oven doing their thing, we are going to make a sauce

To start we will need 1/3 cup of mirin, 1/3 cup of soy, 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and 1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar

Place these four ingredients into a sauce pan and whisk together

Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer and cook 6-8 minutes or until slightly reduced and thickened

Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly

To finish the sauce we will need the juice and zest of 1 lime, 1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger and 1 serrano pepper sliced thinly

We will also need a tablespoon of toasted sesame seeds for a garnish

Add the lime, ginger and pepper to the sauce

Mix to combine

I believe in full transparency… I’m going to admit to a blog blooper

Remember those toasted sesame seeds from a couple pictures back?

The ones I labored to toast perfectly myself, the ones that would have added some extra flavor and texture to these meatballs?

Well, they remained in their bowl behind a roll of paper towels on my counter after we completed our photo shoot!

That’s right folks, I left a basket ingredient off the plate

I guess I’m chopped!

You, however, don’t have to be chopped so feel free to add some toasted sesame seeds as a garnish!

To serve, we are using flat skewers with 2 meatballs on each

Place the meatballs on a serving platter and spread the sauce over them

We also served this with extra serrano peppers and slices of lime!

Enjoy!!!

Simply Sundays! ~ Tsukune - Japanese Meatball

Servings: 30 Meatballs
Time: Prep 20 Min, Chill 30 Min, Cook 18-20 Min
Difficulty: Medium
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Ingredients

For the mushroom mixture

4 ounces of shiitake mushrooms

2 tablespoons of sesame oil

2 grated garlic cloves

1 tablespoon of grated fresh ginger

2 tablespoons of dry sherry

2 teaspoons of red miso paste

For the meatballs

2 pounds of ground chicken

mushroom mixture (see above)

3/4 cup of panko (japanese bread crumb)

2 scallions chopped

1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger

2 grated garlic cloves

1 egg white

2 teaspoons of cornstarch

kosher salt

ground black pepper

For the sauce

1/3 cup of mirin

1/3 cup of soy sauce

2 tablespoons of brown sugar

1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar

1 lime zested and juiced

1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger

1 thinly sliced serrano pepper

For garnish

1 lime sliced

sliced serrano

toasted sesame seeds (apparently optional, see above)

Directions

For the mushroom mixture

Remove the stems from 4 ounces of shiitake mushrooms and slice the caps. Heat 2 tablespoon of sesame oil over medium heat and add in the sliced mushroom caps along with 2 grated garlic cloves and 1 tablespoon of freshly grated ginger

Cook stirring occasionally for 3-4 minutes or until the mushrooms and garlic start to soften. Deglaze the pan with the sherry and cook another 2-3 minutes or until the sherry is mostly absorbed

Remove the mushrooms from the heat and allow to cool. Add the mushrooms and 2 teaspoons of miso to a chopper or blender. Pulse until finely chopped

For the meatballs

Place 2 pounds of ground chicken in a large mixing bowl. Add the miso mushroom mixture, 3/4 cups of panko (Japanese bread crumbs), 2 scallions chopped, 1 egg white, 2 grated garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon of fresh grated ginger and 2 teaspoons of cornstarch, then sprinkle with kosher salt a ground black pepper

Using your hands gently mix the ingredients all together. Use 1/8 cup as a scoop for the meatballs. You can use larger scoops for larger meatballs

Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and give it a light spray of oil. Start scooping the meat. Lightly wet the palms of your hands and start rolling the meatballs. I find that wetting my hands a bit makes rolling easier

We actually made a perfect 30 meatballs out of this mixture. Place in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes to allow them to meld and solidify. You can also do these a day ahead. Preheat your oven to 350 F. You can also grill or pan fry these. Place in the oven and cook 18-20 minutes or until lightly brown and firm to the touch

For the sauce

In a saucepan add 1/3 cup of mirin, 1/3 cup of soy, 2 tablespoons of brown sugar and 1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar and whisk together

Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer and cook 6-8 minutes or until slightly reduced and thickened. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly

To the sauce add the juice and zest of 1 lime, 1 tablespoon of grated fresh ginger and 1 thinly sliced serrano pepper. Mix to combine

Serve the meatballs covered in the sauce and sprinkle with toasted sesame seeds. Garnish with more serrano peppers and slices of lime

Tools used to make this recipe

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Cuisinart Boxed Grater

Architec Carving Board, Gripperwood

Mini Prep Glass Bowl

NuWave Flex Precision Induction Cooktop

Pyrex Mixing Bowl

Reynolds Kitchens Parchment Paper

Royal Classique 10 Piece Stainless Steel Measuring Cups and Spoons Set with Silicone Handles

Wilton Recipe Right Non-stick Cookie Sheet Set, 2-Piece