For the meatballs:
- 1–1¼ lb Ground Chicken thighs
- 1 cup White ricecooked, cooled to room temp or colder
- 1 Large eggs
- 1 Onionsmall , grated
- 1 clove Garlicpressed
- 1 tsp Salt
- ¼ tsp Black pepper
- ½ cup All-purpose flourfor dredging
- 2 tbsp Vegetable oil
For the cream sauce:
- 2 tbsp Butter
- 2 tbsp All-purpose flour
- 2 cups Chicken brothreduced sodium
- ¼ cup Sour creamor Greek yogurt, or heavy cream
- ½ - 1 tsp Ground paprikamore if you like a little spice in your life
- Saltto taste
- Black pepperto taste
- Parsleyfresh , chopped, for garnish
Russian Meatballs – Tefteli
My kids love these Tefteli – Chicken Meatballs in a Cream Sauce and I make them for dinner so often that I could now probably make them in my sleep! My daughter loves getting involved in rolling the meatballs and I don’t mind because that is probably the hardest part of this whole recipe. I add cooked rice to my meatball mixture which is a traditional Russian kitchen secret and the creamy, garlic sauce will have everyone licking their plates clean.
To make Russian Meatballs – Tefteli, you will need the following ingredients:
Steps to make Russian Meatballs – Tefteli
1 | Combine meatball mixture | 2 |
In a large bowl, mix 1–1¼ pounds of ground chicken, 1 cup cooked rice, 1 large egg, 1 grated onion, 1 pressed garlic clove, ½ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper until well combined. | ||
2 | Roll meatballs | 4 |
Using your hands, roll the mixture into 1-1¼-inch thick balls. | ||
3 | Dip in flour | 4 |
Dip the meatballs in a bowl filled with about ½ cup of flour, to coat and shake off any excess. | ||
4 | Cook meatballs | 7 |
In a large skillet over medium heat, heat 2 tablespoon of oil and add the prepared meatballs. Saute for about 4 minutes on one side, then turn over, cover the skillet with a lid and cook for another 3 minutes until golden brown on all over and cooked through the center. Set aside on a plate. | ||
5 | Combine butter and flour | 2 |
Prepare the sauce in the same pan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons of butter and then whisk in 2 tablespoons of flour. Continue mixing until combined and golden. | ||
6 | Add chicken broth | 3 |
Pour in 2 cups of chicken broth and whisk until the liquid begins to thicken. | ||
7 | Add sour cream | 1 |
Add ¼ cup of sour cream and stir to combine. | ||
8 | Add seasoning | 3 |
Season with ½ teaspoon of paprika, ½ teaspoon of sea salt and ⅛ teaspoon of black pepper, or more, to taste. Bring to a simmer and continuously stir until the sauce has thickened enough to lightly coat a meatball. | ||
9 | Add meatballs | 5 |
Once thick enough, add the meatballs back into the skillet and turn into the sauce to coat. Cook the meatballs until heated through then remove from the heat. | ||
10 | Serve | |
Garnish with sprinkles of fresh parsley or dill and serve with mashed potatoes or noodles, if you wish! | ||
Recipe Reviews
They needed a more creamy sauce..and BADLY because they are dry without it.
My kids gobbled these up with some cheesy garlic bread on the side! Very satisfied.
Can't say much about this because its hard to describe perfection in a single sentence ;)
Replaced a few things like vege oil for sunflower and white rice for brown.
Yummy and fun to make thanks a bunch.
This took forever to cook but well worth it, they melted in my mouth and were extremely flavorful, maybe slightly too much salt but still good meal for sure.
Not my personal favorite russian meal i much prefer lighter things like the Sauerkraut soup but it was still tasty.
Tefteli is very good glad I decided to make them but after two days they do go bad.
Added a bunch of cheese to these and will be serving it with macaroni next time around.
First Russian meal I've ever made really love them
Salty but delicious with sour cream on the top too.
Huge crowd pleaser my family was extremely happy and ended up taking some screenshots of the ingriedents hahaa.
There's just so much going on in this meal I'm not too sure if i'll be able to perfect it but going to try! Wish me luck.
Took me over 2 hours to make these not 30 minutes.
Parsley is overwhelming in this don't add it if youre not normally a fan of greens in your dishes.
I wanted to add a bit of a kick so tossed in a few slices of bell pepper and a drop of hot sauce.
Wonderful Russian meal loved every bite of it.
Creamy sauce in this really brings out the flavor going to be making it in other things too.
Proud to be a fan of Ruth's best dishes on this website so far in my opininon.
Good idea will make them tonight with a glass of red wine!
Well done! Approved!
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