Asian Quinoa Meatballs

My parents celebrated their birthdays this week by going out to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants in uptown Charlotte, Emzy! It’s a Japanese restaurant with the most amazing glazed orange chicken on the planet (no joke!) We got to indulge for a night, and it was well worth it… but being me I had to come up with some healthy recipes that make you feel like you’re indulging! So I gave this recipe a shot, and these asian quinoa meatballs were a hit! Instead of going out this week, stay home and enjoy a delicious home cooked meal that will make you feel like you’re at a restaurant!

ASIAN QUINOA MEATBALLS
Yield 20 meatballs

INGREDIENTS

1 pound ground turkey
3/4 cup cooked quinoa
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 green onions, thinly sliced, plus more for garnish
1 large egg
1 tablespoon soy sauce
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 teaspoon Sriracha, or more, to taste
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Sesame seeds, for garnish
FOR THE SAUCE
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 tablespoon brown sugar, packed
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon Sriracha, or more, to taste
2 teaspoons cornstarch

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly oil a 9×13 baking dish or coat with nonstick spray.
In a large bowl, combine ground turkey, quinoa, garlic, onions, egg, soy sauce, sesame oil, Sriracha, salt and pepper, to taste. Using a wooden spoon or clean hands, stir until well combined. Roll the mixture into 1 1/4-to-1 1/2-inch meatballs, forming about 18-20 meatballs.
Place meatballs onto the prepared baking dish and bake for 18-20 minutes, or until all sides are browned and meatballs are cooked through.
To make the sauce, whisk together soy sauce, rice vinegar, ginger, sugar, sesame oil, Sriracha and 1/2 cup water in a small saucepan over medium high heat.
In a small bowl, whisk together cornstarch and 1 tablespoon water. Stir into soy sauce mixture until thickened, about 2 minutes.
Serve meatballs immediately with sauce, garnished with green onion and sesame seeds.

Let me know what you guys think! Enjoy 🙂