Easy Baked Chicken Meatball Recipe

Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 20 mins
Total: 40 mins
Servings: 6 servings
Yield: 36 meatballs

Baked ground chicken meatballs are a delicious twist on the classic recipe. They are perfect for people who don't eat red meat, or if you just want a change of pace. Chicken makes a more tender and more mildly flavored meatball. Use these meatballs in place of beef or pork meatballs in any recipe. Do be aware that you should handle them more gently than ground beef meatballs.

You can use either white meat ground chicken, or choose chicken made with white and dark meat. Ground turkey is also an acceptable substitute for ground chicken in these recipes. For food safety, make sure to bake them until the internal temperature reaches 165 F. Check the temperature with an accurate food thermometer.

easy bake chicken meatball
The Spruce

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

  • 1/2 cup finely chopped onion

  • 1 clove garlic, minced

  • 1/3 cup fine dry breadcrumbs

  • 1 large egg

  • 1/4 cup milk

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

  • 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon

  • 1 pound ground chicken

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Baked Chicken Meatball Recipe ingredients
     The Spruce
  2. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

  3. In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic; cook and stir until the vegetables are tender—about 5 to 7 minutes. Don't let them brown; you want them to be soft and not at all crisp.

    Chicken meatballs recipe
     The Spruce
  4. Remove the saucepan from the heat and place the onion mixture in a medium bowl. Add the breadcrumbs, egg, milk, salt, pepper, and tarragon to the onion mixture in the bowl and mix well. Add the ground chicken; mix everything gently with your hands just until combined. At this point, the mixture needs to chill so the meatballs are easier to shape. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 1 to 3 hours.

    Chicken meatballs recipe
    The Spruce 
  5. Then form the mixture into 1-inch meatballs.

    Baked Chicken Meatball Recipe
    The Spruce
  6. Place them on a Silpat or parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

    Baked Chicken Meatball Recipe
    The Spruce 
  7. Bake the meatballs for 15 to 20 minutes or until the meatballs are thoroughly cooked to 165 F.

    Baked Chicken Meatball Recipe
     The Spruce
  8. Remove the meatballs from the oven and use them in your recipes.

    Baked Chicken Meatball Recipe
     The Spruce

Tips

  • To freeze the meatballs to use later, let them cool for 20 minutes, then chill the meatballs in the refrigerator. Place the chilled meatballs in a single layer on a cookie sheet and freeze them until they are solid. Pack the frozen meatballs into hard-sided freezer containers, label the container with the recipe name and the date it was prepared. After freezing, you should aim to use them within three months for the best quality.
  • To thaw the chicken meatballs, let the package stand in the refrigerator overnight. For many recipes, they can be added frozen straight from the freezer. For example, if you are going to put them into spaghetti sauce, barbecue sauce, or sweet and sour sauce you can add them frozen and they will heat up with the sauce.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
210 Calories
12g Fat
7g Carbs
20g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 6
Amount per serving
Calories 210
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 12g 15%
Saturated Fat 4g 20%
Cholesterol 118mg 39%
Sodium 206mg 9%
Total Carbohydrate 7g 3%
Dietary Fiber 1g 2%
Total Sugars 2g
Protein 20g
Vitamin C 1mg 6%
Calcium 41mg 3%
Iron 1mg 7%
Potassium 586mg 12%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)