Sous Vide Chicken Parmesan Meatballs

These are delicate chicken meatballs, filled with mozzarella (or your favorite cheese), then tossed with tomato sauce and topped with Parmesan and crispy panko crumbs—a few ingredients coming together for some great chicken parmesan flavor. You can pass these as appetizers with toothpicks or on top of pasta for a great main dish.

Author

Barbara Freda

I grew up in a cooking family and after getting a degree in Spanish and Anthropology, realized what I really wanted to do was to go to culinary school. After working in a NYC bank for a few years, I managed to get to culinary school and got my first jobs in NYC kitchens, including a long stint at Union Square Cafe in its earliest years. After (sadly) leaving NYC, I realized I needed to step away from the 80-hour work weeks, so I left the heat of the kitchen for the cool of the computer keyboard: I started writing about food, the business of food, and technology in the food industry, as well as teaching cooking classes. Recipe development remains one of my top loves, and the opportunity to develop recipes for Anova has been fun every step of the way.

Prep Time: 00:30

Recipe Time: 00:45

Temperature : 145F / 62.8C

Ingredients

• 1 pound (.5 kg) ground chicken
• 2 tablespoons (28g) finely chopped onion
• 1/4 teaspoon (2g) garlic powder
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons (28g) seasoned breadcrumbs
• 1 egg
• 32 small-dice cubes mozzarella or herbed cheese
• 1 tablespoon (15g) butter
• 3 tablespoons (40g) panko
• 1/2 cup (118ml) tomato sauce
• 1/2 ounce (15g) Parmesan cheese, grated
• Chopped parsley for garnish

Directions

1. Heat water to 145ºF/62.7ºC
2. While water heat, mix chicken with onion, garlic powder, salt and pepper, seasoned breadcrumbs, and egg. Use small scoop to scoop out 32 balls of mixture.
3. Top each ball with 1 cube cheese. Gently press meat around cheese, shaping mixture into ball and gently placing into zip-close plastic bag (Note: use 4 quart size bags—you’ll have better luck at keeping the meatballs apart. when they cook) Place bags of meatballs in freezer 20 minutes before sealing them using water immersion method to create vacuum. (The meatballs will get slightly flattened.) Place in water and cook 45 minutes.

Finishing Steps: Garnish and Serve

1. Remove from cooking water and remove meatballs from bags, gently breaking apart any meatballs that have cooked together.
2. Melt butter over medium-high heat. Add panko and cook, stirring, until golden brown. Warm tomato sauce over medium heat.
3. Place meatballs in serving dish. Top with tomato sauce, then bread crumbs, then cheese and finally, chopped parsley. Serve immediately, passing with toothpicks or small forks.