Shishito Tsukune Recipes

TSUKUNE (JAPANESE CHICKEN MEATBALLS)

Steps:

• Add all the Sauce ingredients to a pot and bring it to the boil. Turn down the heat to medium or medium low and simmer for about 4-5 minutes to reduce the quantity by about a third (note 2).
• Add chicken mince, chicken fat and salt in a bowl and mix well until the chicken mince becomes sticky.
• Add the remaining ingredients, except 1 tablespoon of sake, to the bowl and mix well.
• Add the remaining sake to the bowl gradually while mixing. The mixture is quite soft but do not add all of the sake specified if the mixture is too soft to grab by hand and form a ball.
• Boil water in a pot. Coat a cutlery spoon with oil (not in ingredients).
• Grab chicken mince with the left hand (I am a right hander) and squeeze out mince through the thumb and the index finger. The mince will come out forming a round shape (note 3).
• Take the meatball with the spoon and drop it into the pot. Repeat this for the rest of the mince (see the step-by-step photo in post).
• Boil meatballs for 5-7 minutes until cooked through (note 4). Take the meatballs out and put aside. Cook them in batches so that the surface of the boiling water is filled with no more than one layer of the meatballs.
• Heat griller, griddle or BBQ (note 6). Oil the rack/grill where you place the meatballs.
• Thread 3 Tsukune onto flat skewers (note 7).
• Baste tsukune with the sauce using a brush and cook under the griller or on the griddle/BBQ for 1-2 minutes until the meatballs are slightly burnt.
• Turn over the skewers and cook further 1-2 minutes. Then baste with the sauce, cook 30 seconds on both sides.
• Serve immediately.

SHISHITO TSUKUNE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• In a pan over medium/high heat, add oil, ginger, garlic and onions. Cook until onions are transparent (about 3 minutes). Transfer mixture into a bowl and let cool (put in fridge or freezer to speed up the process.) When the mixture is room temperature, add ground chicken, sake, soy and salt . Mix well with your fingers (not for too long.)
• With a knife, spread a generous amount of the mixture on each piece of shishito pepper. Discard the rest or save for later (if I have any left, I'll usually make mini burger patties or eat it on top of Japanese rice with ichimi and soy sauce). Lay each piece on a tray covered with aluminum foil (or parchment paper). Bake for 15-17 minutes, until chicken has cooked through. While shisihitos are cooking, make your sauce.
• Mix all the ingredients and microwave for 20-30 seconds (to melt the sugar). Take shishitos out of the oven and with a basting brush, dab the sauce over each piece. Put leftover sauce in a small bowl and serve next to shishito tsukune (people can use is as a dip).