My Chicken Parmesan obsession runs deep. We kicked off the week with a classic chicken parmesan recipe and today we're getting fancy with Chicken Parmesan Meatballs!!
Table of Contents
Why I Love This Recipe
My cooking skills were somewhat limited in college. If you came over for dinner it was either chicken parm or a roasted chicken with salad. That's it. The only options you got! You could say I’ve expanded my repertoire a bit since then (with over 1000 recipes on this site I think culinary school has officially paid off), but I always come back to chicken parm. My classic chicken parm recipe is a winner, but I wanted to jazz things up a bit today.
So I took each and every ingredient from the chicken parm recipe, and turned it into meatballs. So all those herbs - into the meatballs! The parmesan and breadcrumbs - into the meatballs. The mozzarella, well, you get the point! There’s even a bit of flour on the outside of every meatball to give it a bit of a crust.
I kinda of hate myself for not making these earlier, because to say I’m obsessed would be an understatement. I practically licked the skillet clean when I made these. You absolutely, positively, must try these!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- Ground Chicken
- Parmesan grated
- Panko Breadcrumbs
- Egg
- Salt
- Black Pepper freshly cracked
- Dried Oregano
- Dried Parsley
- Red Pepper Flakes
- Flour
- Bocconcini Mozzarella Balls
- Olive Oil
- Basil Leaves
*For a full list of ingredients and instructions please see recipe card below.
How to Make Chicken Parm Meatballs
Step 1: In a large mixing bowl, combine the chicken, parmesan, breadcrumbs, egg, salt, pepper, oregano, parsley and red pepper flakes. Carefully combine everything with your hands until the ingredients are evenly mixed.
Step 2: Form the ground chicken mixture into small meatballs, each the size of a golf ball. Insert a small bocconcini ball in the center of each meatball, taking care to reform the meatball around the cheese once it’s been inserted. The mozzarella should be completely hidden from sight.
Step 3: Dredge each meatball in the flour to lightly coat it and gently tap off any excess flour. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Step 4: Heat the olive oil in a large heavy bottom skillet over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, add half of the meatballs and sauté for a 3-4 minutes, turning every so often to brown the outside.
Step 5: Once all meatballs are browned, add the tomato sauce to the skillet and place the browned meatballs on top of the sauce.
Step 6: Transfer the skillet, meatballs and all, into the oven and let the meatballs continue to bake for 15-20 minutes until cooked through. Remove the skillet from the oven and dusting with salt, pepper, freshly chopped basil and extra bocconcini if desired. Serve immediately.
How to Store Chicken Parm Meatballs
You can store these meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. To reheat on the stovetop, microwave or oven until warmed through.
How to Freeze Chicken Parm Meatballs
You can sure freeze these meatballs! You can decide at what point you want to freeze them. You can freeze uncooked meatballs, or after they are sautéed. Line the meatballs in a single layer in a baking sheet in the freezer, and once they are firm, transfer them to a freezer bag. Store up to three months.
Tips & Tricks
If you haven't heard of this technique, I highly recommend dredging the raw meatballs in flour. This helps them form a delightful crust when you brown them in the pan!
FAQs
Making a big meal for hosting or Thanksgiving, can I prep these ahead?
If you're trying to prep these Chicken Parm Meatballs ahead of time - you could make the mixture and scoop it into balls 2 days before serving. Just make sure to cover with plastic wrap to keep all the moisture. Then you'll add the cheese and sauté day of to keep them fresh and get that golden crust.
Can I make these with spaghetti or a different sauce?
Yes!! You can pair these meatballs with any grain, or another sauce that you like!
Stuck in a dinner rut? Looking for new delicious dinner ideas? Check out my roundup of 50+ easy dinner ideas here.
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If you tried this recipe, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting today
Chicken Parmesan Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- ½ cup grated parmesan
- ⅓ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¾ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ cups flour
- bocconcini mozzarella balls
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 jar marinara sauce
- handful of basil leaves torn
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the chicken, parmesan, breadcrumbs, egg, salt, pepper, oregano, parsley and red pepper flakes. Carefully combine everything with your hands until the ingredients are evenly mixed.
- Form the ground chicken mixture into small meatballs, each the size of a golf ball.
- Insert a small bocconcini ball in the center of each meatball, taking care to reform the meatball around the cheese once it’s been inserted. The mozzarella should be completely hidden from sight.
- Dredge each meatball in the flour to lightly coat it and gently tap off any excess flour.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Heat the olive oil in a large heavy bottom skillet over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, add half of the meatballs and sauté for a 3-4 minutes, turning every so often to brown the outside.
- Once the meatballs are browned, remove them from the oil and repeat the process with the remaining meatballs.
- Once all meatballs are browned, add the tomato sauce to the skillet and place the browned meatballs on top of the sauce.
- Transfer the skillet, meatballs and all, into the oven and let the meatballs continue to bake for 15-20 minutes until cooked through.
- Remove the skillet from the oven and dusting with salt, pepper, freshly chopped basil and extra bocconcini if desired. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Photo by Matt Armendariz / Food Styling by Adam Pearson / Recipe from What’s Gaby Cooking
I’ve made this recipe twice now and it has been such a hit with my fam! Tonight, I forewent the oven and just simmered them in sauce on the stovetop. They were great both ways!
I’ve had this on my list of recipes to try for ages and finally made it tonight. I omitted th breadcrumbs (because I realized I was out once I looked in the pantry) and use turkey instead of chicken. I only used 1 egg because of the lack of breadcrumbs. It was very hard to roll the balls because it was a bit wet but all I had to do is wet my hands between each ball (how many times can I say “ball” in one comment?). Anywho... it was super delicious! Light and flavorful. I made my favorite marinara sauce to go with it. Thanks Gaby 🙂
Gaby! This looks amazing! Can you share with me what kind of pasta sauce you use?
thanks
kim
the one from trader joes!!
Any tips on how to freeze these? We love them but would be so happy to make it a bit easier for a weeknight meal.
I'd just make them and freeze them and reheat in some bubbling hot red sauce to serve!
Thank you!!
I had been wanting to try these out for a while and I finally did! However all I had was ground turkey, I added some dry thyme and more red pepper flakes (I love spicy food!!!) I used a cast iron as well it worked out awesome! I served the meatballs with whole grain rotini and our fav tomato sauce. Delicious!!! Always come to Gaby when in doubt
I make these chicken meatballs gluten-free by skipping the flour and breadcrumbs. My family really enjoys this meal!
Can u use regular bread crumbs?
yes!!
Delicious balls
Made these tonite! The meatballs were a little wet as others mentioned, but once I floured them and put them in the skillet all was well! I also loved how quickly this dish came together. Served it with spaghetti and sautéed squash and zucchini.
Made these for dinner last - holy moly were they amazing! My 5 yo declared that this was the yummiest dinner I ever made! Thanks so much for the recipe!
These are delicious and the recipe was so easy to follow. I actually forgot to add the eggs, but they still turned out delicious. My husband is cheese-averse so I left the mozzarella out of the centers and melted it on top for my kids. Oh miracle of miracles: They both asked for seconds. Adding this into the weekly rotation. Thanks, Gaby, for keeping my kids well fed.
Gaby - I recently discovered your site and I love, love, love your food (in fact, I've been telling my sister and mom about your site for several weeks now, and your Chocolate Crinkle Cookies were a huge hit with the girls in my office!)
But - I had a bunch of issues with this chicken meatballs recipe! First, the meatballs seemed too wet, so maybe I'll try with just one egg next time), and then my bocconcini balls were so big that I had to cut them in quarters for the meatballs - even at that, the meatballs were pretty big, so maybe I didn't get the right ratio of meat to cheese. And then finally, they didn't brown in the pan well, so finally I just stuck them in the oven, but they were falling apart.
Based on the reviews here and your other incredible recipes, I know that the problem is with me, not this recipe! Have you ever done a video of how you make these? I have so many questions (how big the balls should be, ratio of meat to cheese, how brown they need to be before going in the oven and after, etc.). I want to be successful with these next time!
Thanks for the video!
yes!! the video is at the top of this post
These were so simple to make and so delicious.. I served them with your spicy garlic green beans and a ceasar salad and it was such an yummy Friday night dinner! Every recipe of yours I’ve made is a hit, thank you for another keeper for my family!
LOVE this!! xox
I LOVE this recipe and have made it probably a dozen times now! I'd like to make it for a big family event on sunday - what's the best "make ahead" tip for this? Cook it fully in the oven (follow recipe) and heat back up, or just brown the meatballs and then cook in the sauce when it's time to eat? I once tried browning and baking them without the sauce and they were a bit too dry/dense. Any tips would be hugely appreciated!
I would make it in it's entirety and then stick them in a slow cooker on low the day of the event to re-heat!
In the middle of making but they seem to be too wet and not forming into meatballs well however this is my first time working with ground chicken. Is not supposed to feel same consistency as beef/pin does? I thought maybe 2 eggs was too much? Gonna keep trekking but wanted to see if I did something wrong ?
how did it end up turning out?!
I had the same issue. I think one egg would have been fine. I also had to add some more breadcrumbs out of desperation last night. I refrigerated overnight in muffin tins (had actually planned to bake them this way) but was able to roll them out into balls today. In fact, just threw the skillet in the oven!
Two eggs is WAY too many! I used two eggs, and knew better because it was only 1lb of meat, but followed the recipe anyway. It was SO wet, so I added more breadcrumbs and cheese in equal proportions and they turned out just fine. Next time one egg is the way to go.