Easy Chicken Meatballs Recipe made with 8 ingredients and baked to juicy, golden brown perfection in 30 minutes. A great match for grains, salads, or your meal prep routine!
We also love these juicy buffalo chicken bites and turkey meatballs!
Table of Contents
This chicken meatballs recipe is a 30ish minute meal that’s lighter than the classic beef meatballs. You can pair them with rice, toss with spaghetti, enjoy as an appetizer, or turn into marry me chicken meatballs.
They go with just about anything, and I always make extra to stash in the freezer for busy nights!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Juicy and not dry: Don’t skip the cheese! It melts into the lean chicken meatballs making every bite tender and flavorful.
- Baked and not fried: A healthy dinner with less oil, minimal mess, and easy cleanup.
- Quick and easy: Unlike with other meatball recipes like my Thai meatballs or sweet and sour meatballs, this recipe has no searing and no chopping. Just mix, scoop, and bake.
- Versatile for serving: Whatever you’re in the mood for, these meatballs have got you covered!
Ingredients for Chicken Meatballs
These meatballs are packed with flavor, and all you need are 8 simple ingredients.
- Ground chicken: You’ll need 1 pound lean or extra lean ground chicken. Ground turkey will work too.
- Egg: Add 1 large egg to bind the ingredients.
- Panko breadcrumbs: The other binding agent. I like using panko because it keeps the meatballs light and crispy, but you can use regular, whole wheat, or gluten free breadcrumbs depending on what you have on hand.
- Parmesan cheese: The cheese is the secret! As the meatballs bake, it melts in, keeping them moist and adding a creamy richness.
- Seasoning: I kept it simple with salt, pepper, and freshly grated garlic cloves. Feel free to add in some onion powder, dried oregano, basil or Italian seasoning for extra flavor.
- Oil: Olive oil keeps the meatballs moist and gives them a golden, crispy exterior when baking. Avocado oil works just as well.
How to Make Chicken Meatballs
Here’s a quick overview on how to whip up these meatballs in no time and easily add protein to almost any meal.
Since we’re baking, not frying, start by preheating the oven to 400 F and lining a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Mix the ingredients: In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, egg, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Stir gently with a spatula until mixed, don’t overdo it!
- Shape the meatballs: Use a small trigger scoop to form about 26 meatballs, occasionally dipping your hands in cold water, and place them on the prepared baking pan.
- Bake and flip: Bake for 15-20 minutes, then toss with a spatula to remove any ground chicken residue (if any), flip the meatballs, and bake for another 5 minutes.
Tips for Best Results
Here are my top tips for making juicy, tender chicken meatballs.
- Grate your own cheese: Freshly grated Parmesan gives the meatballs a fresher, creamier texture and melts better than pre-shredded cheese. Plus, it’s a small step that makes a big difference in flavor.
- Don’t over mix: Overmixing can make them tough and dense.
- Make meatballs same size: Using a small scoop makes portioning fast and simple, ensuring the meatballs cook evenly.
- Don’t over bake: Meatballs will become dry if you cook them too long. Keep an eye on them and remove once golden and cooked through.
- Double the recipe: If you’re serving more than 4 people or want to have leftovers for meal prep.
Serving Ideas
This has to be one of the easiest, tastiest, most versatile healthy chicken recipes in my collection! Here are just a few ways to enjoy the meatballs:
- Over a bed of fluffy Instant Pot brown rice, basmati rice, or jasmine rice.
- On top your favorite pasta, zucchini noodles, or spaghetti squash paired with marinara sauce or healthy alfredo sauce.
- Serve with a side of crispy air fryer sweet potato fries or air fryer broccoli.
- Next to a simple green salad, Caesar salad or Greek salad.
- As an appetizer with dipping sauces like Thai sweet chili sauce, Greek yogurt blue cheese dressing or honey mustard.
How to Store and Reheat
Store leftovers: Transfer cooled leftovers to an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Freeze unbaked: Place raw meatballs on a baking sheet and pop them in the freezer until frozen. Transfer to a freezer bag for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to cook, bake straight from the freezer at 400 F for 25 minutes. Easy!
Freeze baked: Bake the meatballs, let them cool, and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen at 400 F for 15-18 minutes.
Reheat: I recommend reheating meatballs in the microwave to keep them moist. Avoid using the oven, as it could dry them out.
FAQs
You might have accidentally overmixed the mixture or overcooked the meatballs or packed too tightly. If they’re too tight, they can turn out rubbery.
Bake meatballs until an instant read thermometer reads 165 F. It should take about 20-25 minutes, depending on your oven.
Yes, ground chicken and ground turkey are very interchangeable.
More Meatball Recipes to Try
- Mexican meatballs
- Instant Pot meatballs
- Turkey meatball soup
- Slow cooker porcupine meatballs
- Cranberry turkey meatballs
Juicy Chicken Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
- 1 small garlic clove grated
- 2 tablespoons olive oil extra virgin
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, add ground chicken, egg, breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, garlic, olive oil, salt and pepper. Mix with a spatula until combined and do not overmix.
- Using small trigger scoop, form about 26 meatballs (it helps to dip hands into a bowl with cold water occasionally) and lay on previously prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, turn and toss with spatula (mostly to get rid off of that ground chicken residue) and bake for 5 more minutes.
- Serve hot with your favorite side and salad, as an appetizer or make Marry Me Chicken Meatballs.
Notes
- Store: Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Reheat in a microwave. I would not bake them in the oven to avoid drying out.
- Freeze cooked meatballs: Bake, cool and freeze meatballs in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Then bake from frozen at 400 F for 15-18 minutes.
- Freeze raw meatballs: Freeze on a baking sheet until frozen, transfer to a freezer safe storage bag for up to 3 months. Then bake from frozen at 400 F for 25 minutes.
- Only bake until done: To prevent over baking (and dry meatballs!) bake only until an instant-read thermometer inserted in center reads 165 degrees. Your meatballs should be white in the center when cut in half.
