The Greatest Grouse Tsukune Meatballs
These Easy Oven-Baked Tsukune Meatballs are made with finely ground grouse meat and packed with amazing flavors!WHAT IS TSUKUNE?Tsukune is a term used for Japanese meatballs and a type of yakitori - a type of grilled chicken skewer popular in Japan. They are commonly cooked on a small charcoal grill and eaten as street food or at restaurants specializing in yakitori. It's now December in North Dakota and freezing cold, so I opted to not use the grill outside and instead try and make these in the oven. And it worked great!A popular protein for Tsukune meatballs is chicken, but I used sharp-tailed grouse from a recent hunt here in North Dakota. You could use any upland bird such as ruffed grouse, pheasant, partridge, or chukar. I love these Tsukune Japanese meatballs because they are SO EASY! The key to having these turn into nice juicy meatballs is keeping all the fat from your upland birds and putting it in the grind. You'll notice in the photo I served these Grouse Tsukune Meatballs with a Tomato Apple Chutney our neighbor gifted us, but we also love them with a Tsukune sauce (recipe below) or my daughter's favorite Yum Yum Sauce.HOW TO MAKE TSUKUNE SAUCE1. In a small saucepan, combine all of the Tsukune Sauce ingredients, mix well, and bring to a boil over high heat.2. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until it is reduced by half. This may take about 20 minutes. You'll be left with a delicious sauce that marries salty and sweet with a depth of flavors that are absolutely killer with these Grouse Tsukune Meatballs.HOW TO MAKE TSUKUNE MEATBALLS1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and a little cooking spray.2. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well with your hands. Shape meat mixture into 6 oval shapes and place on baking sheet.3. Bake for about 25 minutes, basting each meatball with ½ of the Tsukune Sauce after 15 minutes. Remove the meatballs from the oven when they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F using an instant-read meat thermometer. Baste the meatballs again with the remaining ½ of the sauce.4. Press each skewer through a meatball until it’s two thirds of the way down the skewer. Serve immediately.HUNTING SHARP TAILED GROUSE IN NORTH DAKOTAI shoot A LOT of sharp-tailed grouse every year. Here in North Dakota, you can find these upland birds in wide-open spaces of shortgrass prairie common in the same areas you'll find mule deer. A great area to start looking for sharp tailed grouse is the 1,000,000 acres of Little Missouri National Grasslands found in the western part of the state. Sharp tailed grouse are easily accessible when I'm looking to take a break from a waterfowl hunt or deer hunt and take a quick mid-day walk for upland birds. When you down a bird or two it gives you something worthwhile to take home and serve on the family dinner table in my extremely popular Grouse and Wild Rice Soup or Pot Pie. THE BEST SHOT SIZE FOR HUNTING GROUSEThere is no magic shot size, but my favorite for hunting grouse in North Dakota is 6-shot. Some might argue that it's too big and I should use 7 ½ or 8. But I'm also hunting areas where we commonly find pheasants, and I need a minimum of 6-shot to be able to kill a rooster.MORE MEATBALL RECIPESIf you love these Grouse Tsukune Meatballs and are looking for another meatball recipe, be sure and check out my Venison Sweet and Sour Meatballs or my Venison Swedish Meatballs. Or for more grouse and pheasant recipes, check out all of my Upland Birds and Small Game recipes here.COME HUNTING IN NORTH DAKOTAIf you would like to come to North Dakota and experience an amazing upland bird hunt for grouse and pheasants, check out the North Dakota Tourism website. And if you want me to come along with you as your camp cook, photographer, or butcher, you can find out more details here.CONNECT WITH ME AND JOIN OUR WILD GAME COOKING COMMUNITYIf you make these Grouse Tsukune Meatballs, I’d love for you to join our community and connect with me so we can all see pics of your creations on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter! Hashtag them #wildgameandfishDid you enjoy this Grouse Tsukune Meatballs recipe? Be sure to leave a rating RIGHT HERE!
Servings: 6 meatballs
Ingredients
Tsukune Sauce
- 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 2 Tablespoons sesame oil
- ½ teaspoon sugar
Grouse Meatballs
- 1 pound grouse meat, finely ground
- 2 green onions, finely chopped
- 2 teaspoons minced garlic
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger
- t Tablespoon oyster sauce
- 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 6 wooden skewers for serving
Instructions
Tsukune Sauce
- In a small saucepan, combine all of the Tsukune Sauce ingredients, mix well, and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Reduce the heat to low and simmer until it is reduced by half. This may take about 20 minutes.
Tsukune Meatballs
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and a little cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well with your hands.
- Shape meat mixture into 6 oval shapes and place on baking sheet.
- Bake for about 25 minutes, basting each meatball with ½ of the Tsukune Sauce after 15 minutes. Remove the meatballs from the oven when they reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F using an instant-read meat thermometer. Baste the meatballs again with the remaining ½ of the sauce.
- Press each skewer through a meatball until it’s two thirds of the way down the skewer. Serve immediately.
