Vietnamese Chicken Bites & Summer Rolls

This dinner is a new fave in our house. I first discovered these meat balls in the Best of Bridge series, and they fast became a staple. They are a flavour explosion in your mouth! But I just couldn’t figure out what would go well with them as a side dish. Then, while at my parents, my mom served summer rolls, and a light bulb went off! Summer rolls would be the perfect side dish!  And they are! They add the perfect amount of crunch and flavour!

this post!

(from the Best of Bridge) 

Vietnamese Chicken Bites

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 2 lb ground chicken or turkey
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 4 green onions (finely chopped)
• 4 cloves garlic (minced)
• 2 tbsp grated lemon zest
• 4 tsp cornstarch
• 2 tsp minced gingerroot
• 6 tbsp soy sauce

Instructions

1. Combine chicken, cilantro, onions, garlic, zest, cornstarch, gingerroot and soy sauce.
2. Roll into 1 inch meatballs.
3. Place on to a baking sheet, sprayed with cooking spray, or brushed with oil.
4. Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Turn once.

I put a lot of noodles in my rolls, but you don’t have to. You can add shredded cooked chicken or shrimp too!

The recipe for the fabulous Summer Rolls can be found over at my mom’s blog, Keeping up with the times.  Now don’t be intimidated!  The rolls aren’t as hard to make as they may seem.  Once you roll one, you will find that they are quite easy to make.  I will definitely make them again!

Summer Rolls Recipe

(Mom’s recipe)

Here are a couple of tips that I have:

1.  I used brown rice vermicelli noodles, just to make them a little more healthy.

2.  My mom suggested using 2 noodle sheets to wrap them so they don’t rip.  This works great!

3.  I couldn’t find Napa cabbage, so I just used purple cabbage.  Worked great as well!

4.  Double or triple the peanut sauce!  It’s so goooood!  AND it goes really well with the meatballs too!

5.  Speaking of the peanut sauce, I did not put any of this sauce inside the roll, because I wanted it all as a dip.  So instead I just spread on some hoisin sauce in the roll!  Super yummy!

Go for it!  This dinner is a teeny bit tedious to make, but so worth the efforts!  It served our family of 5, with leftovers for lunch the next day!  Super Yum!