Chicken and Chive Meatballs with Soy and Ginger Glaze

I know this looks like the sort of food you offer to guests at a cocktail party.  But seriously, if that were the case they'd never get made or eaten at our place. We don't have guests, we have friends, and we don't have cocktail parties, we just open bottles of Champagne at the first sight of someone pulling into the driveway. I don't know how many times the Australia Post man has heard the sound of corks popping as he's approached our front door!

Chicken and Chive Meatballs with Soy and Ginger Glaze
slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Makes 24

For the Glaze:
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup Japanese soy sauce
1/2 cup mirin
1/4 cup peeled, chopped ginger
1 teaspoon ground coriander
6 or so whole black peppercorns

For the Meatballs:
600g ground chicken

A generous bunch of chives, finely snipped or chopped
Half bunch coriander, leaves finely chopped
1 large egg
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Freshly ground black pepper
Vegetable oil

Make the Glaze:

Bring sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring until sugar melts completely. Reduce heat to a medium-low and add soy sauce, mirin, ginger, coriander and peppercorns. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until reduced by half, about 30 minutes, strain through a sieve.

Make Meatballs: 

Mix chicken chives, coriander leaves, egg, sesame oil, soy sauce and black pepper in a bowl. Roll tablespoon-sized potions of the mixture into balls. The mixture is very soft and a little tricky to handle. Wet your hands and toss the balls from one hand to another until you get a ball shape. Place them on a baking sheet lined with foil and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

In a frying pan over medium-high heat, generously cover bottom of pan with vegetable oil. Working in batches to avoid crowding, place meatballs in pan and cook, turning, until browned all over and cooked inside, about 8 minutes per batch. Arrange on a platter, spoon a little sauce over each meatball, and serve with toothpicks. Or serve over rice with a green bean stir-fry.