Orange Chicken Meatballs

Orange Chicken Meatballs served with perfectly steamed broccoli is an easy and delicious gluten free Asian dinner recipe.

Prep Time20

Cook Time20

Total Time40

Servings: people (about 12 meatballs)

Calories: 424kcal

Author: Laura Miner

Ingredients

Orange Chicken Meatballs and Broccoli

1 lb ground chicken
4 Tablespoon almond flour
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoons ginger minced
1 egg
1/2 teaspoons orange zest
1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoons pepper
2 Tablespoon sesame oil
4 cups broccoli florets about 2 heads

Easy Orange Hoisin Sauce

2 Tablespoon almond butter
3 dates
2 medium oranges, juice only
2 cloves garlic
1 teaspoons minced ginger
1/4 cup coconut aminos
1/2 teaspoons Chinese five spice seasoning
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoons pepper
1 teaspoons apple cider vinegar

Garnishes

1 teaspoons sesame seeds
1 green onion sliced
1 teaspoons sesame seeds
1 teaspoons orange zest

Instructions

Prep the Orange Sauce

Zest and juice the oranges. Set the zest aside for later, and add all the sauce ingredients to a blender. Blend on medium-high until well combined. Set the sauce aside until you're ready to cook! *You can do this in advance, if you'd like!

Make the Chicken Meatballs

Lightly beat the egg. Mince the garlic and ginger and zest the orange.
Mix all ingredients except the sesame oil together in a bowl. Cover and set the mixture aside for at least 10 minutes to allow the almond flour to absorb the liquid a bit.
Using your hands, form the mixture into balls, about 2 tbsp each. It should make around 12 meatballs.
Add the sesame oil to a large pan and heat it over medium heat. Add the meatballs in and brown them, about 1-2 minutes per side.
Pour in the Orange Sauce and bring to a simmer. Lower the heat and allow the meatballs to finish cooking in the simmering sauce for about 5 minutes. Stir and turn the meatballs occasionally (see note below).

Steam the Broccoli

Add the broccoli to a large skillet with 1/4 cup of water. Cover and set the heat to medium-low. Steam for about 5 minutes or until bright green, then drain and season lightly with salt.

Assemble the Dish

Serve the broccoli in a large dish with the meatballs on top. Spoon any extra sauce from the pan onto the meatballs, then sprinkle with sesame seeds, sliced green onion, and orange zest.

Notes

*The sauce should reduce by about half as it cooks with the meatballs, until it gets to be sticky and thickened slightly, but if you find it's reducing a little too quickly, squeeze some more orange juice into the pan and stir gently. You can also cover the skillet to keep it from reducing too quickly.

*The sauce freezes beautifully, so you can make it in advance or make a double batch and freeze half for later!

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