Description
Calling all meatball lovers! This easy Baked Chicken Meatballs recipe is the one you’ve been waiting for!
Made with ground chicken, breadcrumbs, eggs, garlic, fresh herbs, and ricotta cheese (my secret ingredient for extra-juicy meatballs), every bite is melt-in-your-mouth tender and packed with Italian-inspired flavor—never dry or bland.
Simply bake them on a sheet pan and finish under the broiler for a golden-brown crust—just as good as pan-fried, with none of the mess!
Ingredients
Scale
- nonstick cooking spray
- 1 pound 93% lean ground chicken
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ½ cup grated parmesan
- ⅓ cup whole milk ricotta
- kosher salt and ground black pepper, to season
- ½ medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
- 6 cloves garlic
- ½ cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves and tender stems
- ½ cup loosely packed fresh parsley leaves and tender stems
- 2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- optional: up to 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F, ensuring one rack is positioned in the center of the oven and a second rack is positioned directly under the broiler. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Prepare the ricotta panade: To a large bowl, add the egg, panko breadcrumbs, grated parmesan, and ricotta cheese. Season with 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt and ground black pepper as desired. Set aside.
- Finely chop the aromatics: To the bowl of a food processor, add the remaining listed ingredients (onion – red pepper flakes). Pulse until the mixture is finely chopped, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Alternatively, if you do not have a food processor, you can finely chop the aromatics by hand.
- Mix the chicken meatballs: Transfer the aromatic mixture to the mixing bowl with the ricotta panade. Add the ground chicken turkey. Using your hands, mix just until combined—take care to avoid over-mixing.
- Form the chicken meatballs: Divide the chicken meatball mixture into equal portions slightly larger than the size of a golf ball. Gently form each portion into a meatball, rolling just until smooth. For quickness and ease, I like using a spring-loaded scoop. The mixture yields about 16-18 2-inch meatballs. Arrange the meatballs on the prepared baking sheet.
- Bake the chicken meatballs: Lightly spritz the chicken meatballs with cooking spray for a golden finish, then transfer the baking sheet to the oven. Bake 12-14 minutes, until nearly cooked through. Remove from the oven and carefully slide the parchment paper off the baking sheet. Spritz the meatballs once more with cooking spray. Switch the oven to broil on its highest setting and transfer the meatballs to the oven rack directly below the broiler. Broil 3-4 minutes for a golden brown crust—be sure to check them every so often and rotate the sheet pan as needed to broil evenly.
- Serve: Serve the chicken meatballs immediately as desired. Feel free to toss them into a quick pesto or simple tomato sauce, then serve them with pasta or in a meatball sub, etc. A Caesar Salad and a few slices of Garlic Lover’s Garlic Bread on the side never hurt either. Enjoy!
Notes
Jess’ Tips and Tricks:
- Ground chicken: The secret to seriously juicy and tender chicken meatballs is using the right ground chicken—it needs a decent fat content, otherwise the meatballs will dry out. I like to use ground chicken thighs or dark meat, which is typically available at the butcher counter at most conventional grocery stores. If you’re purchasing packaged ground chicken, look for 93% lean at most, though if you can find 90-92%, that’s even better! These meatballs also work beautifully with ground turkey if that’s what’s most readily available to you—similar to chicken, opt for ground thigh or dark meat or 93% lean at most.
- 15-20 Minute Meal Prep: Nearly all of the active prep work for this recipe comes from prepping and forming the chicken meatballs. Take care of some of this in advance and you can jump straight in to cooking during the week:
- Mix and form the chicken meatballs according to Step 2-5 of Recipe Directions, above. You can roll out the meatballs immediately or save the rolling for dinnertime; either way, the mixture will keep for up to 3 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. (15 minutes active for meatball mixture prep, 5 minutes active for forming the chicken meatballs)
Storage and Freezing:
- Storage and Reheating: Transfer cooled chicken meatballs to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until warmed through, adding a splash of water or chicken stock as needed to help them steam up and loosen any sauce that may be on the meatballs.
- Freezer Instructions: These chicken meatballs are also incredibly freezer-friendly. To freeze, transfer the baked and cooled meatballs to a freezer container or divide between multiple freezer containers for smaller portions. Freeze up to 3 months. To thaw, place the frozen chicken meatballs in the refrigerator overnight. Easily reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until warmed through, adding a splash of water or chicken stock as needed to help them steam up and loosen any sauce that may be on the meatballs.