Chicken Miso Meatballs

By Kay Chun

Updated Dec. 6, 2021

Chicken Miso Meatballs
Julia Gartland for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.
Total Time
20 minutes
Rating
4(2,733)
Comments
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Ground chicken breast meat is fairly lean, so milk is added to this recipe to keep them moist and tender. As the meatballs bake, the miso caramelizes into savory bites of sweet-salty umami. Crumbled Ritz crackers add richness and create a more juicy meatball (but plain, dry bread crumbs will also work). To make the Ritz crumbs, place the crackers in a resealable plastic bag and lightly crush them with the back of a wooden spoon or measuring cup. These also make a tasty hors d’oeuvre: Simply roll the mixture into smaller 1-inch balls. For a quick dipping sauce, combine 2 parts soy sauce to 1 part distilled white vinegar, and add sliced scallions, or red-pepper flakes, if you like heat.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • ¼cup whole milk
  • 3tablespoons sweet white miso
  • 1tablespoon minced garlic
  • 1teaspoons kosher salt
  • ¾teaspoon black pepper
  • ½cup finely crushed Ritz crackers (12 crackers)
  • 1pound ground chicken
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

250 calories; 13 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 11 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 23 grams protein; 638 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Heat oven to 425 degrees. In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients, and use your hands to gently mix. The mixture will be very sticky. Lightly wet your hands to prevent sticking during mixing and shaping meatballs.

  2. Step 2

    Shape the meat into 12 golf-ball-size rounds (about 2 inches in diameter), and arrange on a greased rimmed baking sheet.

  3. Step 3

    Bake until golden and cooked through, about 15 minutes. Serve warm.

Tip
  •  Leftover meatballs freeze well; simply reheat in the oven at 375 degrees until warmed through (about 20 minutes).

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Ratings

4 out of 5
2,733 user ratings
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Comments

Brian

Try heating the milk and dissolving the miso in it, rather than trying to get it evenly distributed as-is in the meat, which can lead to overworking the meat.

me

added crushed red chili & green onion used panko, not ritz crackers served w/Thai Kitchen sweet red chili sauce

Patty H.

Made these last night...delish! The only changes: I used 1/2 tsp salt as miso is salty enough and 1% milk as it was what I had on hand. The texture was really nice but they might benefit from some chopped scallions or even water chestnuts for crunch. Served them with a mess of steamed broccoli. Next time I need quick and delicious hors d'oeuvres, I'll make them bite sized.

Julia

Omitted the salt, added scallions and about 1/2 tbsp ginger as was all I had, and used oat milk and panko. Texture was great, but could have done with a full tsp or two of ginger, and maybe coriander. I do like things salty, so would try 1/2 tsp next time. Served with broccoli, gochujang and tahini noodles and kimchi. It needs something acidic to pair it with. Easy and tasty, would make again.

Jane

Followed advice comments on salt, panko and mixed everything together except panko and meat first. Also used ground turkey. These were so good! At lunch the next day, my husband grabbed the leftover meatballs and said “I get these!” 😂 Next time, definitely doubling! 😁

GB

This was way too salty, and my palate favours salty food as it is. It was also one of the few times that I didn’t read the comments so I totally missed older comments saying how salty these are. I used panko breadcrumbs and cut the salt by half and it was still inedible. I reused it as meatball soup and let the meatballs boil for a while to let the saltiness leach out into the broth, it worked with the saltiness, but ultimately the flavor and texture was just sad as it is. We tried our best not to waste food, but we ended up throwing the remaining half of the meatballs.

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