Chicken Teriyaki Meatballs

I love making new dishes and trying new ingredients. Sure, I have some "tried and true" dishes that make an appearance every now and then, but a big part of my love of cooking (and eating!) is tasting new things. 

I had ground chicken in my refrigerator for my son. The plan was to set aside four ounces for him, and use the rest for dinner for The Mister and myself. We were out and about in the afternoon, and stopped at a local Mexican restaurant for lunch. When it started getting close to dinner time, I started to wonder what I was going to do with the ground chicken (yeah, meal planning was non-existent this week). Searching my favorite recipe sites, I saw mostly Mexican dishes: burritos, quesadillas, tacos, enchiladas. 

Finally, on MyRecipes.com, I saw a recipe from Real Simple magazine for Chicken Teriyaki Meatballs. We don't cook Asian-inspired dishes very often, so this was something, well, not new, but uncommon. Personally, I got to try two new ingredients: edamame and udon noodles. To be honest, I was expecting to dislike the edamame, so I was pleasantly surprised when I did like it. Udon noodles are thicker than spaghetti, and made of wheat. The noodles by themselves are pretty bland, which makes them ideal for this strong-flavored teriyaki dish. You can also serve these meatballs over basmati rice. 

Chicken Teriyaki Meatballs
Source: Real Simple
Serves 4

Ingredients

• 1 ¼ lbs ground chicken
• 2 scallions (green onions), thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
• ½ cup panko bread crumbs, if needed
• 2 tablespoon canola oil, divided
• 8 ounces snow peas, ends trimmed
• 1 cup frozen shelled edamame, thawed
• ½ cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 2 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 lb fresh udon noodles

Directions

1. Combine the ground chicken, sliced scallions and ginger in a mixing bowl. If the mixture is very wet, add just enough of the bread crumbs so that the meat mixture doesn't stick to your hands. Shape into 16 meatballs. 
2. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Place the meatballs in the skillet, and cook for 10 to 12 minutes until cooked through, turning to brown all sides. Remove to a plate and wipe out the skillet. 
3. Combine the soy sauce and the brown sugar in a measuring cup. Heat water (use package directions for guidance) in a saucepan for the noodles. 
4. Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil, and add the snow peas and edamame. Cook for two minutes, tossing to coat with the oil. Add the meatballs back into the skillet, then pour in the soy sauce and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. While the teriyaki sauce is finishing, add the udon noodles to the water and cook according to package directions. 
5. Serve the meatballs, snow peas and edamame over udon noodles.