Chicken Verde Meatball with Salsa Verde Sauce

(WJBK) - Get this recipe courtesy of Chef Joe Nader, executive chef at Ford Field.

Chicken Verde Meatball Ingredients:
1 ½ lbs. - Ground Chicken
1 - Large egg
12 - Corn tortillas
4 oz - Whipping cream
1 large - Yellow onion
½ cup - Olive oil
2 tablespoons - Cumin
1 tablespoon - Dried oregano
2 - Poblano peppers diced
½ bunch - Cilantro chopped
½ - Cojita cheese grated
3 tablespoons - Kosher salt
1 tablespoon - Black pepper

Chef's Notes:
1. Combine egg, cream and tortillas in a blender and puree till smooth.
2. In a medium size sauté pan: sauté onions poblano pepper, cumin and oregano with the olive oil until soft. Let cool.
3. Now combine all ingredients together in a large bowl, do not over mix. Set in the refrigerator for 30 to 40 minutes to let flavors come together.
4. Take a small amount and form into a patty to sample, sear in a sauté pan till fully cooked, taste it to ensure that the seasonings are correct.
5. To form the meatballs, take a one once ice cream scoop and use it to give yourself a consistent measure. Once you scoop out all the mixture you can roll the balls in your hand to make them uniform in shape.
6. Pre-heat oven to 350°.
7. To cook the meatballs, you will need a large skillet or sauté pan.
8. Place the stove burner on medium to high and add a bit of canola oil.
9. Next, place meatballs in pan and sear them on all sides to get a nice brown crust, locking in the flavor and moisture.
10. Once all meatballs are seared place them on a baking dish to finish in the oven for 7 to 10 minutes at 350°.
11. Add your Salsa Verde Sauce (see below) to your meatballs and let simmer on low heat for 30 minutes.

Salsa Verde Sauce Ingredients:
7 cans - Crushed tomatillos (8oz cans)
½ cup - Olive oil
1 - Serrano chili fresh chopped
1 large - Yellow onions fine dice
½ bunch - Scallion minced
¼ cup - Chopped fresh garlic
2 tablespoons - Sugar
1 medium size chili and 3 tablespoons - Chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1 ½ cups - Water
Juice from 2 fresh limes
2 ½ tablespoons - Kosher salt

Chef's Notes:
1. In a large sauce pan add the olive oil with heat on high.
2. Add diced onions and Serrano pepper and cook until soft.
3. Then, add the garlic and cook till just slightly browned; you do not want to burn your garlic.
4. Once the garlic is browned, combine the rest of ingredients except for the scallion and cream.
5. Reduce heat to medium and let simmer for 30 minutes stirring occasionally.
6. Next, taste it to make sure that seasoning is to your liking, it may be a bit spicy but the cream we will be added later and should help tone it down.
7. Blend the mixture with a hand blender until smooth.
8. Let mixture cool, then whisk in cream and scallion.
9. Serve hot