Sweet & Spicy Sesame Chicken Meatball Bowls
Delicious sesame chicken meatballs with crispy broccoli and a sweet and spicy ginger sesame sauce. These flavorful, protein-packed sesame chicken meatball bowls make the best weeknight dinner served with coconut rice, brown rice or quinoa! Customize these bowls with your fav sides & garnishes.
Servings 4 servings
Calories 309cal
Ingredients
- Sweet and Spicy Ginger Sesame Sauce:
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds
- 1 tablespoon red chili paste (such as sambal oelek)
- 1 tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar (or coconut sugar)
- 1 teaspoon arrowroot starch (or sub cornstarch)
- For the meatballs:
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1 pound lean ground chicken (or sub ground turkey)
- 1 egg
- ½ cup panko or gluten free breadcrumbs
- 2 green onions, finely diced (about ¼ cup green onion)
- ½ cup finely diced cilantro
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ tablespoon fresh grated ginger
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- For the broccoli:
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 3-4 cups broccoli florets
- For serving:
- Coconut rice or brown rice
- Scallions
- Cilantro
- Chopped roasted peanuts
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together soy sauce, water, sesame oil, sesame seeds, red chili paste, ginger, garlic, brown sugar and arrowroot (or corn) starch.
- In a large bowl, add the ground chicken, egg, breadcrumbs, green onion, cilantro, garlic, ginger, cayenne, salt and pepper. Use clean hands to mix and form into 16 golf ball sized meatballs.
- Place a large deep skillet over medium-high heat and add in sesame oil. Add the meatballs and brown on all sides and cook until done and the meat thermometer reads 165 degrees F. This should take about 10-12 minutes total. You may need to do this in batches, depending on how many meatballs you can fit in your skillet without overcrowding them. When the meatballs are done cooking, transfer them to a plate and set aside. Keep the heat in the pan.
- Wipe the skillet clean and add in 1 tablespoon sesame oil. Next add in broccoli florets, and cook, stirring frequently, for 6-8 minutes or until broccoli is slightly tender but still has a bite. The broccoli should get somewhat charred and slightly golden and crispy in places. Yum!
- Add chicken meatballs back to the pan with the broccoli and pour the sauce over, simmer on low until the sauce thickens slightly, about 2-5 minutes.
- Serve over rice of choice (we love my coconut rice!) and top with scallions, cilantro and chopped peanuts if desired.
Notes
Tip: to keep the ground chicken/turkey from sticking to your hands, wet your hands or spray them with nonstick cooking spray or coat them in a little oil before forming the meatballs.
To make paleo and/or gluten free: sub 2-3 tablespoons coconut flour instead of using breadcrumbs.
If you like it extra saucy: feel free to double the sauce mixture in the recipe. We've had comments that readers felt like there wasn't enough sauce, but this is likely due to the fact that the heat was too high and evaporated/cooked down most of the sauce quickly.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving (just meatballs & broccoli) | Calories: 309cal | Carbohydrates: 18.3g | Protein: 28.1g | Fat: 14.1g | Fiber: 2.4g | Sugar: 6.6g