Chicken Meatballs

Baked Chicken Meatballs

If your family loves a nice comforting bowl of spaghetti with meatballs, you’re going to LOVE the lighter version of my easy homemade meatballs! These chicken meatballs will soon be on your most requested list by kids and adults alike.

Seasoned with garlic, onion powder, and Parmesan cheese then held together with Panko breadcrumbs, these baked chicken meatballs are tasty every time. Serve over cooked pasta with marinara sauce or try them on a meatball sub!

Chicken Meatball Recipe Ingredients

It takes only a handful of ingredients and a few pantry staples to make these addictive and easily customizable chicken meatballs.

Find the full printable recipe with measurements below.

• Ground chicken: I like to use 80% lean ground chicken to make these meatballs hold their shape.
• Egg: This is not only a binder but also helps add moisture to keep the chicken meatballs from getting too tough.
• Olive oil: This helps keep the ingredients together and also adds a nice richness.
• Panko crumbs: I like to use panko as a binder that holds the meat together but also adds a nice texture.
• Parmesan cheese: I love the salty, nutty flavor this adds, but also it’s cheese. I love cheese.
• Green onion: This helps balance the other flavors while adding a little extra boost.
• Garlic: I like to use freshly minced garlic, but you can use 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder in a pinch.
• Seasoning: You only need onion powder, Kosher salt, and black pepper to help round out the flavor of these chicken meatballs.

How to Make Chicken Meatballs

The hardest part of this chicken meatball recipe involves shaping the meat mixture into balls. Other than that, it is simply stirring and baking.

1. Prep. Heat the oven and prepare a baking sheet with foil and spray with a non-stick spray. You definitely want to spray the foil as these have a tendency to stick while baking. And we want to keep the meatballs nice and intact!
2. Combine. In a bowl, combine the ground meat, egg, olive oil, Panko breadcrumbs, grated parmesan cheese, minced garlic, onion powder, salt, and pepper. In other words, combine everything. Mix together, being careful not to overmix. Doing so may cause a loss of moisture and tough meatballs.
3. Scoop. Scoop out the meat and form it into 1 1/2″ balls and place them individually on the pan, leaving a bit of room in between each one.
4. Bake. Bake uncovered until no longer pink in the middle. If you are worried about one side browning more than the other, feel free to turn them over halfway through.

Tips and Variations

• Lean meat. When buying your ground chicken, look for lean meat (I use 80%).
• Ground turkey. Sub ground turkey for chicken to make turkey meatballs.
• Greek chicken meatballs: Add some lemon zest, red onion, fresh dill, dried oregano, cumin and red pepper flakes.
• Non-stick. When forming your chicken meatballs, try using a bit of oil on your hands to help form the balls.
• Fried version. If you want to fry the chicken meatballs instead, cook them in a pan with 2 Tbsp of oil over medium-high heat until cooked through or make air fryer meatballs.
• Keep them moist. Don’t overbake! Baked chicken meatballs are done when they are golden brown, firm and a meat thermometer registers an internal temperature of 160 – 165°F.

Storing and Freezing

• Store: Store chicken meatballs in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 1 week. So you’ll have leftovers for days!
• Freeze: Freeze them in a freezer friendly bag for up to 3 months. To avoid having them freeze in a clump, flash freeze them on the baking tray first before transferring them to the bag.
• Make ahead: Meal prep easy peasy with ground chicken meatballs! These are an easy freezer meal that can be made in big batches to pull out on busy weeknights or lazy weekends.