Chicken balls

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A tray of chicken balls in a Canadian Chinese restaurant
A tray of chicken balls in a Canadian Chinese restaurant

Chicken balls are a food consisting of small, spherical or nearly-spherical pieces of chicken. They are prepared and eaten in several different cuisines.

Contents

[edit] In Canadian and British Chinese cuisine

Chicken balls (Chinese: 鸡球; pinyin: jī qiú; Cantonese: gai1kau4) are a type of non-traditional Chinese food served in Canada[1][2][3] and the United Kingdom[4] as a staple of Chinese take-out. The dish consists of small chunks of fried chicken breast meat covered in a crispy batter coating. They are often served with sweet and sour sauce or plum sauce. These are largely unheard of in the United States,[citation needed] and apparently even China,[5] depending on the recipe and referred name.

[edit] In East and Southeast Asian cuisines

Another kind of chicken balls, which are similar to southern Chinese fish balls, may be found in countries in East and Southeast Asia, such as the Philippines[6] and Japan (tsukune).[7]

[edit] In other cuisines

Chicken balls are also a part of several other culinary traditions, including Italian Jewish cuisine[8] and Muslim cuisine.[9][10]photo

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Susan Sampson. "Great balls of flavour", Toronto Star, 2007-12-12. Retrieved on 2007-12-20. "She rounded out the theme with recipes for ... pecan-crusted chicken balls..." 
  2. ^ Terence Corcoran. "Toronto street-food project half-baked at best", National Post, 2007-11-23. Retrieved on 2007-12-20. 
  3. ^ "Shanghai palace offers foodie feasts", Calgary Sun, 2005-03-04. Retrieved on 2007-12-20. "...reminiscent of those deep fried chicken balls I do my best to avoid." 
  4. ^ Menu for Beijing Cuisine restaurant in Blackwater, Surrey, England
  5. ^ Oliver Moore. "The friendly skies of Moncton" (fee required), The Globe and Mail, 2007-11-29. Retrieved on 2007-12-20. "I say, 'It's chicken balls' and they say, 'We've never seen that in China.'" 
  6. ^ Saleema Devi Refran. "Making 'tusok-tusok' the fishballs", Philippine Daily Inquirer, 2002-09-25. Retrieved on 2007-12-20. 
  7. ^ Patricia Wells (1993-11-15). Rating the World's Best Restaurants:Tokyo. International Herald Tribune. Retrieved on 2007-12-20.
  8. ^ Marian Burros. "Distinctive foods of the Italian Jews", The New York Times, 1982-03-31. Retrieved on 2007-12-20. 
  9. ^ Yasmine El-Rashidi. "Pull up a chair", Al-Ahram Weekly, 2003-10-30. Retrieved on 2007-12-20. 
  10. ^ Gail Collins. "Pre-2K Thanksgiving", The New York Times, 1999-11-23. Retrieved on 2007-12-20. 

[edit] External links