Thai turkey meatballs with peanut sauce

5 from 13 votes

Tender, juicy turkey meatballs flavored with green curry, ginger and garlic, served with peanut sauce for a delicious midweek meal.

Prep Time10

Cook Time20

Total Time30

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: Thai - American

Servings: servings

Calories: 649kcal

Author: Cheryl Bennett

1 pound ground turkey
2 cloves garlic peeled and finely minced
1 ½ teaspoons fresh grated ginger about an inch piece
2 tablespoons Thai green curry paste *reduce to 1 tablespoon if you don't like it spicy
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 lime zest and juice
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ Thai red chili finely diced (WEAR GLOVES) / omit if you not like a lot of heat
3 tablespoons cilantro chopped / reserve the remainder of the bunch for later
2 tablespoons neutral oil canola, grapeseed, avocado oil are all good options
3 tablespoons scallions chopped / reserve the remainder for garnish

Combine all the ingredients in a small sauce pot over low heat and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cover, and set aside.

Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Mix gently using a clean hand until completely combined.
Gently roll, using clean hands, into small balls. (I use a small cookie scoop to make sure they are uniform.)
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium/medium-high heat, then add meatballs. Brown in batches to avoid overcrowding, and continue cooking, partially covered, for an additional 18 - 20 minutes. *See note
Serve with jasmine rice and peanut sauce, garnish with cilantro and/or scallions.

Meatballs can be baked in the oven - 350°F for about 20 - 24 minutes.
Ground chicken, ground beef or ground pork can be subbed for ground turkey.
Adjust sauce ingredients to suit your tastes - add more or less of any ingredient. Sauce can be thinned with a few tablespoons of water if needed.
The type of peanut butter can affect the consistency of the sauce. Natural peanut butters tend to be runnier and a little grainy.
Omit Thai chili if you do not like extra spicy food - they are HOT.