This Saturday we had some magical weather in the midst of winter. It was gorgeous outside…January it is, but it was unbelievably warm. The sun was shining bright, birds cooing & chirping everywhere, the sky spotless & azure, and the temperature was 72 degrees F! It was almost as if Spring has arrived. I saw some buds on the pear tree outside which just shed its leaves. On these days, we try to soak in as much fun as we can. The kids were let loose to play in the backyard.. we could hear voices from all over the neighborhood. Everyone was trying to absorb as much of the day as they could. Knowing how it is here, it could be 40 degrees tomorrow again.
Be it be spring time weather outside now, it is still officially winter & the grocery stores are full of winter goodies, I found some whole hazelnuts the other day, & bought a bag full, & all of us have been cracking & snacking .. They are just delicious! Look how gorgeous these are!
With some hazelnuts leftover, I decided on some hazelnut & raisin stuffed grilled chicken meatballs with some refreshing summer like orange mint yogurt sauce for lunch. It was just right. Felt just like the easy, breezy, delicious spring….
Ingredients:
- 1lb Minced/Ground Chicken
- 2 Tablespoons Chopped Fresh Cilantro/Coriander
- 4 Tablespoons Ginger Juice (Grate the ginger & squeeze out the juice)
- 2 teaspoon Garlic paste
- 1 Tablespoon Sour Cream
- 1 Teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Salt
- 2 Tablespoon Powdered Corn Starch
- A pinch of Turmeric
- 2 Tablespoons finely chopped Onions
- Hazelnuts (May be substituted with almonds)
- 3 Tablespoons of Raisins
- 1 Bunch of Green Spring Onions/Scallions preferably with Thick bulbs
- Olive Oil
For Sauce:
-
1 Cup Thick Yogurt (or Greek Yogurt)
-
1 Cup Canned or Fresh oranges – chopped into small pieces
-
1/2″ Ginger peeled & very thinly sliced
-
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or crushed black pepper
-
Salt
-
A pinch of sugar
-
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint leaves
Preparation:
Lightly roast/toast the hazelnuts if they are not already done. Set aside.
Mix the garlic paste, ginger juice, corn starch, coriander/cilantro, sour cream, Pepper, tumeric & salt with the minced chicken and set aside in the refrigerator for about an hour or more.
When ready to use, add the chopped the onions to the above mix.
Take a scoop of the mix, flatte it in the palm of your hand. Place a hazelnut & about 2 raisins in the meat and firmly seal in the shape of a ball so that the filling is all encased with the meat.
Grease a Skillet with Olive Oil & when hot, add the balls and cover & cook at low – medium heat, while ocassionally turning the balls around, so all the sides are equally cooked. Chicken cooks really fast, & you really do not need to boil them before grilling/pan grilling…
When no juice runs, increase the heat and cook till all the meatballs start to brown on all sides. Set aside.
For the Scallions:
Drizzle Olive oil on the scallions, Sprinkle some salt & grill them till they are slightly charred.
If you want to cook it indoors, broil it, or it can be done on a skillet over high heat.
Do not overcook. This will be ready in a few minutes.
The Sauce:
If you are using regular yogurt, strain it in a cheese cloth so all of the excess water drains off. Whisk the yogurt till smooth. Add the oranges, ginger, salt, sugar, pepper & chopped mint & mix gently till well blended.
To Assemble:
Serve the Meatballs over the grilled scallions … either topped with the sauce or with sauce on the side.
Squeeze some fresh lime over the grilled meat. Serve with fresh salad, rice or flatbreads.
Needless to say, everything came together really well. The Nut Stuffed meatballs were a new creation but tasted awesome, with the toasted nut & the sweet of the raisin at every bite. The Scallion were spilling sweet with beautiful flavor. The sauce was just right for the grilled meat, cool & refreshing!
Sending this to 
Culinarty’s Original Recipes.
Related Posts:
Murgh Malai Tikka Kabob
Sheekh Kabob With Rice
Pan Seared Chicken with Tomato, Olives & Onions
Beautiful and such mouth watering pictures! I like this recipe a lot. Especially the meatballs look so good. yum yum!
BTW, it#s amazing what all is easy breeezy for you. I would save this recipe for the day when i dare to experimen something. 😀
Its easy becoz there is hardly anything to do here:-) except gathering materials. what drives me nuts are the masala making in Indian Cooking.. which are all delicious but time consuming.
Wow tempting pictures..stuffed meatballs such a unique one…dish makes me hungry..very creative Soma!!
Thanks Priya!
This is amazing !! you have such a wonderous creative urge !!!
I really need to scoop out a special event to try this out !!
Thanks Mohana. Every day is a special occasion:-)
Absolutely yummy recipe..And the pictures make it perfect..nutritious as well..thanks
Thank you Ann:-)
beautil and tempting pictures soma….an easy and yummy recipe too…..will definitely try this….thanks for sharing….
Thanks Swapna… it is easy. didn’t take much time putting everything up
Wonderful yummy recipe, Soma…thanks for sharing. ….I have to try
Thanks Indrani. Let me know if u try it:-)
They re Gorgeous the meat balls with nuts and dry fruit. Gal, i am jealous reading ur outside temp!
Thanks! The outside temp. dropped .. that was just a tease LOL
Mmmmm … Soma … I can almost smell them. What lovely meat balls! Amaye ekta debe? Absolutely love the snaps too. 🙂
Thanks Sharmila. Niye nao shob:-)
This is such a nice blog. Your personality comes shining through!
We have had a basket of roasted nuts on our table through the holidays. We like to sit around the table after dinner, drink our coffee, take our time..and crack nuts 🙂
Thanks for the link. It’s much appreciated.
Thanks Maryann! There is a different charm in cracking the nuts & eating them, right:-)
meat balls stuffing with nuts wow what a nice idea intresting and yes dear you can use normal sugar for corn bread but powder it before useing that s it caster suger is nothing but super fine sugar so you can powder the normal sugar and measure it .thanks for your lovely comment.
Thanks Rekha! & thanks for the info too
I love how this sounds and looks! Sounds like a labor of love, really!
Thanks!
What a beautiful dish! I love the idea of the yogurt sauce to go along side! The weather has been rather crazy! I am enjoying all the warmth though 😉
Thanks ! & I envy you.. that warmth was just a tease for us
Hi Soma, thanks for dropping by and for the sweet words. You have a wonderful site yourself, beautiful pictures and great recipes. I will be back! 🙂 Happy New Year to you!
Thanks sig! That means a lot to me:-)
Hi Soma,
Thanks so much for your comment on my blog, and for reading–much appreciated! And I’m so glad I found your blog as a result–your photos are gorgeous (those hazelnuts!) and I see lots of terrific recipes I’d love to try. I’m adding your site to my Google Reader so I can keep up! 🙂
Thank you so much Ricki!
Love hazelnuts,stuffed in meat balls sounds exotic:)
I love hazelnuts too!..
I am a vegetarian, but I enjoy the pictures that you have Soma. I loved the Orange Mint yogurt sauce as it has all my favorite ingredients.
Supriya, That orange mint combo.. I would put it anyplace I could:-) My daughter ate that entire bowl of yogurt!!
lovely recipe Soma and sounds perfect.
Thanks Shibani! Where are u?
Hi Soma, Subho Nobo Borsho to you and your family!!!
Lovely recipe..will surely try it sometime..:)
Same to you & Thank U!
That’s a great dish, Soma! Too much work for me, I’ve never tried, actually, but I can always admire it from afar. 😀
SRA believe me.. it was much less work than cooking a chicken curry! & took much less time too.
WOWZA! Those look fantastic. I never thought of stuffing a meatball with a whole hazelnut, but I think it is a great idea! That orange-mint yogurt sauce sounds heavenly! Thanks for stopping by my blog! Nice to “meet” you!
Thanks Jenn!
Those nut stuffed chicken balls look good.
Thanks Kevin!
I know Bengali because I’ve been brought up in Asansol (near Kolkata) I’ve done my schooling from there..lived there for 14 yrs of my life.. 🙂 I loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee Bengali’s and Bengali foooooooooooooood..I believe the best cusine in India is Bengali cusine…truely divine :)…So wot do u do?? Full time at home? u can email me directly at jayashree.mudaliar@gmail.com 🙂 Speak to you from there..
Soma you’re always so creative with your dishes and these hazelnut stuffed meatballs are no different: delicious and exciting :D.
Thanks for sharing them with the Original Recipes Round-Up!
Sounds like a fun time — cracking nuts and enjoying seasonal winter foods 🙂
Nice recipes i will have to try one or two of them. The meatballs look like a good dinner main dish.