Tsukune: Chicken Meatballs

I chalk it up to perfect timing. Just as we received a dinner invitation from B&B to try out their new Japanese yakatori charcoal grill, my May edition of Bon Appetit magazine featured Adam Sachs' attempt to recreate the yakatori experience at home, in his NYC apartment. Along with his article was this fantastic recipe for tsukune, or Japanese chicken meatballs. Except mine weren't ball-shaped - more like oblong patties. I have no idea why the recipe calls for the mixing of both cooked and raw ground chicken (I assume to either cut back on the cooking time or to prevent the meat from drying out while cooking) but the meatballs turned out super moist and flavorful. The recipe originally called for the stronger red miso. I substituted with yellow miso, the only thing I had on hand, and the meatballs still came out yummy. Everyone loved this recipe and I will definitely be making it again in the future!


Tsukune: Chicken Meatballs
adapted from Bon Appetit

Ingredients 
2 pounds ground chicken, preferably dark meat, divided 
1 cup minced scallions (about 6) 
2 tablespoons miso  
2 tablespoons sesame oil (not toasted) or canola oil, plus more for hands 


Directions
Heat a small nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add 2/3 lb. (1 1/2 cups) ground chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until chicken is opaque and just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Transfer chicken to a plate and let cool. Combine cooked chicken, remaining 1 1/3 lb. chicken, scallions, miso, and 2 Tbsp. oil in a large bowl. Knead with your hands until a homogenized, sticky mixture forms, about 5 minutes. 


Clean hands; lightly coat with oil to prevent meat mixture from sticking. Divide mixture into 16 equal portions. Roll each into a ball, then form each ball into a 4"-long cylinder. Hold 2 skewers, separating 1" apart at top to form a V shape. Insert tops lengthwise into 1 cylinder. Press meat gently to flatten slightly. Repeat with remaining skewers and meat. Build a medium-hot fire in a charcoal grill, or heat a gas grill to high. Working in batches, grill skewers, turning every minute, for 8 minutes.  


You can baste the meatball with a tare sauce made from soy sauce and mirin but since I oversalted the meat, I didn't apply the tare. Instead, I served the meat skewers with a drizzle of yuzu mayo. The tangy sauce paired well with the salty meat.