Simmered Chicken Tsukune (Japanese Chicken Meatballs) (Egg & Milk-Free)
鶏ひき肉のつくね煮（卵乳なし） · Tori Hikiniku no Tsukune-ni
By Aoi, licensed nutritionist · From a Japanese preschool lunch menu
Tsukune are Japanese chicken meatballs, and in this version they are gently simmered in a dashi broth seasoned with sugar and soy sauce instead of being grilled. Finely chopped carrot and onion are kneaded right into the mixture, so the vegetables disappear into the meat and the meatballs stay soft enough for little ones to eat with a spoon. The binder is panko and potato starch moistened with soy milk, so there is no egg or dairy at all. Poaching the meatballs directly in the seasoned broth keeps them juicy and lets them soak up the mild, comforting flavor.
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Ingredients
Amounts for 1 child (1 serving). An adult counts as 2 servings.
One serving here is 1.5× the portion served to a child in a Japanese preschool, sized for Western appetites. An adult counts as two servings. Tap an ingredient to check it off.
Ingredients
- 12 gcarrot
- 24 gonion
- 82.5 gground chicken
Seasonings
- 0.6 gginger paste (tube)Grated ginger sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh ginger for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated ginger in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- 0.1 gsalt
- to tastepepper
- 10.5 gsweetened soy milk (Japanese chosei tonyu)Japanese 'prepared' soy milk that is lightly sweetened and flavored to taste milder than plain soy milk. Substitute: Regular (original, lightly sweetened) soy milk from the supermarket.
- 6 gpanko
- 3.8 gpotato starch (katakuriko)Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness.
- 90 gdashi stockJapanese soup stock, usually made from kombu (dried kelp) and/or bonito flakes; the base of most Japanese soups and simmered dishes. Substitute: Instant dashi granules dissolved in water, or a mild unsalted chicken or vegetable stock.
- 2.4 gsugar
- 3 gsoy sauce
About the Japanese ingredients in this recipe
- ginger paste (tube) (しょうがチューブ)
- Grated ginger sold ready to use in a squeeze tube, a staple in Japanese kitchens. Japanese school lunch kitchens grate fresh ginger for its aroma, but for cooking at home Aoi says the tube works just fine. Tube pastes often contain added salt, oil and other ingredients, so check the label. Substitute: Use freshly grated ginger in the same amount. 1 teaspoon of paste is about 5 g.
- sweetened soy milk (Japanese chosei tonyu) (調製豆乳)
- Japanese 'prepared' soy milk that is lightly sweetened and flavored to taste milder than plain soy milk. Substitute: Regular (original, lightly sweetened) soy milk from the supermarket.
- potato starch (katakuriko) (かたくり粉)
- Japanese potato starch used for thickening sauces and coating fried foods. Substitute: Cornstarch: start with the same amount and add a little more if it is still thin. It thickens a little less than potato starch and needs a couple of minutes at a gentle bubble to reach full thickness. Read the guide: Katakuriko (Japanese Potato Starch) and What to Use Instead → Guide: japanese-school-lunch.com/articles/katakuriko-potato-starch/
- dashi stock (だし汁)
- Japanese soup stock, usually made from kombu (dried kelp) and/or bonito flakes; the base of most Japanese soups and simmered dishes. Substitute: Instant dashi granules dissolved in water, or a mild unsalted chicken or vegetable stock.
Directions
- 1
Finely chop the carrot and onion.
- 2
Combine the ground chicken with the chopped vegetables from step 1, the ginger paste, salt, pepper, soy milk, panko and potato starch, and knead well until the mixture becomes sticky.
- 3
Add the sugar and soy sauce to the dashi stock and bring to a boil. Shape the mixture from step 2 into balls with a spoon, drop them into the broth and simmer well until cooked through. (To work efficiently, squeeze the mixture out between your thumb and index finger into balls about 3 cm across, then scoop each one off with a spoon in your other hand.)
Nutrition
| Per | 1 serving | 1 adult serving | Your total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 205.5 kcal | 411 kcal | 205.5 kcal |
| Protein | 16.7 g | 33.3 g | 16.7 g |
| Fat | 10.6 g | 21.3 g | 10.6 g |
| Carbohydrates | 13.5 g | 27 g | 13.5 g |
| Fiber | 1.2 g | 2.4 g | 1.2 g |
| Salt equivalent | 1 g | 2.1 g | 1 g |
| Calcium | 22.5 mg | 45 mg | 22.5 mg |
| Iron | 0.8 mg | 1.5 mg | 0.8 mg |
| Potassium | 378 mg | 756 mg | 378 mg |
| Energy | Protein | Fat | Carbs | Fiber | Salt equiv. | Calcium | Iron | Potassium | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 serving | 205.5 kcal | 16.7 g | 10.6 g | 13.5 g | 1.2 g | 1 g | 22.5 mg | 0.8 mg | 378 mg |
| 1 adult serving | 411 kcal | 33.3 g | 21.3 g | 27 g | 2.4 g | 2.1 g | 45 mg | 1.5 mg | 756 mg |
Values are per serving (1.5× the Japanese preschool portion); an adult serving is double. They were calculated by a licensed Japanese nutritionist using the Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan. "Salt equivalent" is sodium × 2.54, the standard Japanese measure. Allergen flags cover egg, milk and wheat only and come from the nutritionist's records. Soy sauce and miso are made with wheat but are usually allowed on Japanese wheat-free school menus, so check with your doctor.
Ingredients in this recipe
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