Weekend Gourmet Appetizer Flashback...Featuring Asian Chicken Meatballs with Sweet & Tangy Dipping Sauce

Today, I want to take a minute to flashback to January 2012...and my hands-down favorite appetizer recipe of last year: Asian Chicken Meatballs with Sweet & Tangy Dipping 
Sauce. These flavorful bites wow everyone who tastes them. The homemade quick sweet-tangy dipping sauce compliments the meatballs perfectly. With the Super Bowl and March Madness coming up soon, I wanted to share these bites again. They're not your typical gameday snack, but I promise that they are AMAZING! The meatballs are made with healthy ground chicken breast that are flavored with ginger, citrus, garlic, green onion, water chestnuts, and chopped cashews. But...the secret ingredient is a bit of softened cream cheese added as everything is mixed together.

The cream cheese brings little pockets of creaminess as you bit into these pan-fried meatballs. They are downright addictive...everyone I've served them to raves about them and asks how soon I can make them again. They're on my Super Bowl party menu for sure...and I hope you'll give them a try too. To save time, the meatball mixture and the dipping sauce can be made the day before and refrigerated. Then you simply dredge the meatballs mixture in flour and pan-fry  just before serving.

Asian Chicken Meatballs with Sweet & Tangy Dipping Sauce

adapted from Philadelphia Cream Cheese

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Step 1:  Add the following ingredients to a mixing bowl: 1 lb. ground chicken breast, 4 ounces softened cream cheese, zest of one lime, 2 tbs. chopped parsley, 3 sliced green onions, two grated or finely minced cloves garlic, 1/2 cup diced water chestnuts, 1/3 cup chopped cashews, 1 tsp. ground ginger, and 1 tsp. salt. Combine until all ingredients are evenly mixed together...a sturdy spoon is fine, but I found that clean hands work best of all!

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Step 2:  Heat 2 tbs. canola oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Shape the meatball mixture into 15 meatballs. Dredge the meatballs in flour, pushing down slightly to flatten a bit. Add half of the meatballs to the skillet; cook for 4 minutes per side, until golden. Drain on a plate lined with paper towels while you repeat with the remaining meatballs and an additional 2 tbs. of oil.

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Step 3:  Make the dipping sauce. Combine the following ingredients in a small saucepan on med-low heat: 1/2 cup white vinegar, 1/2 cup packed brown sugar, 1 tbs. fish sauce, 2 tbs. chile sauce, and 1 tbs. soy sauce. Stir until the sugar is dissolved, then simmer for five minutes to allow the sauce to thicken. Pour the sauce into a small bowl and place in the middle of the serving plate. Arrange the chicken meatballs around the bowl and serve.

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I wanted to make sure and include an interior picture so you can see how gorgeous these meatballs are inside: lots of texture and little streaks of melted cream cheese. They are moist and delicious. The pan sauteing gives them a slight crispiness on the outside. Combined with the sweet-tangy-spicy dipping sauce, it's a party for your mouth!! I simply cannot recommend this recipe highly enough...I'd say it's one of my Top 10 all-time favorite recipes I've posted on this blog.

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