Ingredients
Meatballs
1 lb ground chicken
1/2 cup of panko breadcrumbs
1 egg
2 stalks of green onions (white and green part separated)
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
2 tbsp of orange juice – just to keep the meatballs moist* (see note below)
2 tsp of grated ginger
Zest of 2 medium oranges (about 1 tbsp of zest)
1 tsp salt and black pepper
Pan Frying
2 tbsp of grapeseed oil
2 cloves of smashed garlic
Sauce
Cornstarch slurry (3 tbsp of water, 1 tbsp of cornstarch)
Juice of 2 medium oranges (about 1/2 cup)
3 tbsp of kecap manis (sweet dark soy sauce)**
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp of honey
Pinch of salt and pepper
Optional: chili crunch or chili oil
Garnish
Green part of the green onion
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
- MEATBALLS: Mince the garlic, Separate the white part and green part of the green onions. Mince the white part.
- In a bowl, add the ground chicken, minced garlic, minced white part of the green onion, grated ginger, orange zest, salt and pepper, panko breadcrumbs and an egg.
- Mix well. Use an ice cream scoop to form equal size meatballs. Set aside.
- SAUCE: Make the cornstarch slurry. In a large bowl, mix the water and cornstarch and make sure there are no lumps. Add the rest of the sauce ingredients orange juice, sweet dark soy sauce, sesame oil, honey and a pinch of salt and pepper into the same bowl. Mix well and set aside. Optional: add chili oil or chii crunch for added flavor and heat.
- PAN FRY: In an oven safe skillet or a cast iron pan, medium heat, add 2 tbsp of grapeseed oil.
- In batches, sear each side of the chicken meatballs.
- When all the meatballs are browned on each side, use a paper towel to get rid of excess oil. Leave 1 tbsp of oil in the pan.
- Add the 2 smashed garlic cloves and white part of the green onions and saute until fragrant.
- Add back the chicken meatballs and the sauce. Bring it to a boil. Once it starts to boil, turn off the heat and finish cooking in the oven for 10 minutes at 375 degrees. The sauce should be thick and glossy.
- Garnish with green onions. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
*add 2 tbsp of the orange juice from the 1/2 cup of juice from the sauce. This helps keeps the meatballs moist. No one wants a dry ball.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: mains
- Method: pan fry
- Cuisine: asian
Keywords: orange chicken meatballs, orange chicken balls, baked orange chicken meatballs, orange sauce for meatballs