Buffalo chicken meatballs are great on their own or in a sandwich with lettuce, tomato and blue cheese dressing. These meatballs are made with ground chicken, onion, garlic, spices and a little hot sauce. Then they’re baked and tossed in a simple, two ingredient buffalo sauce.
This buffalo sauce is delicious; it’s not too spicy but it is flavorful with a little zing. If you can’t get enough buffalo sauce, try these buffalo chicken bites or this buffalo chicken sandwich they’ll become new family favorites.
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Ingredients
- 1 pound Ground Chicken
- 1 tablespoon Grated or Finely Minced Onion
- 1 Garlic Clove, grated or minced
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 Egg, slightly beaten
- 5 tablespoons Hot Sauce, divided (use a cayenne pepper and vinegar based sauce like Crystal or Frank’s Red Hot) – You’ll need 1 tablespoon for the meatballs and 4 tablespoons for the sauce
- ½ cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- 4 tablespoons Butter, melted
You will also need
- Cooking spray or oil for hands to make it easier to form the meatballs
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Meat thermometer
Suggested Serving Ingredients
- Celery or Carrot Sticks
- Baguette, Hoagie or Sub Rolls, Shredded Lettuce, Sliced Tomatoes, Blue Cheese or Ranch Dressing
Prep Work
- Use a microplane zester to grate the onion and the garlic. If you don’t have a zester, finely mince both ingredients.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Tips for making the chicken meatballs
These meatballs are simple to make but forming them can be a little bit of a challenge. I find that the ground chicken is stickier than ground turkey, beef and even sausage. Here are a couple of tips to make forming them easier:
- Refrigerating the ground chicken mixture until it is chilled helps with the stickiness.
- Rub oil on your hands a few times while forming the meatballs. If you have a cooking partner have them lightly coat your hands with cooking spray every so often. If you’re flying solo: add a little bit of oil to a small bowl and keep it next to your workstation. Help yourself as needed. As a reference, I used olive oil.
Make and bake the chicken meatballs
- Add the ground chicken, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, 1 tablespoon hot sauce, egg and panko breadcrumbs to a large bowl.
- Use a fork (or your hands) to combine the ground chicken mixture. Do not overwork the meat, mix just enough to incorporate all of the ingredients.
- Refrigerate the chicken mixture until it’s chilled, recommended.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Lightly coat your hands with oil and form the ground chicken mixture into small balls. Make them about 1 - 1½ inch in diameter.
- Place the meatballs on the baking sheet, leaving some space between them so they’re not touching. You should get about 24 meatballs.
Bake on 350°F for approximately 20 minutes or until they are fully cooked. They should register at least 165°F on an instant read thermometer.
Make the sauce
Put together this easy buffalo sauce while the meatballs bake. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. When the butter is melted, add 4 tablespoons of hot sauce and stir well with a small whisk or fork until combined. Leave the sauce over low heat for 3-4 minutes to warm through. Give it a good stir occasionally. Do not over heat and do not let it come to a boil or even a simmer.
Add the meatballs to a large bowl while they’re still hot. Make sure to use a bowl that’s big enough to hold all of them and still have enough room to get in there and toss without spilling over.
Pour the buffalo sauce over the meatballs. Toss gently with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon – use something that won’t tear them.
Serve on a sandwich roll with lettuce, tomato and blue cheese or on their own with sliced vegetables, blue cheese, ranch or your favorite dipping sauce. Enjoy!
You may also like these recipes:
- Baked Buffalo Wings
- Cold Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Buffalo Chicken Wrap
- Salisbury Steak Meatballs
- Cuban Style Meatballs
- Italian Sausage Meatballs
📖 Recipe
Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound Ground Chicken
- 1 tablespoon Grated or Finely Minced Onion
- 1 Garlic Clove minced or grated
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 Egg slightly beaten
- 5 tablespoons Hot Sauce divided (use a cayenne pepper and vinegar based sauce like Crystal or Frank’s Red Hot) – You’ll need 1 tablespoon for the meatballs and 4 tablespoons for the sauce
- ½ cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- 4 tablespoons Butter melted
Instructions
- You will also need: Cooking spray or oil for hands, Baking sheet, Parchment paper, Meat thermometer
- Preheat the oven to 350°F.
- Add the ground chicken, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, 1 tablespoon hot sauce, egg and panko breadcrumbs to a large bowl.
- Use a fork (or your hands) to combine the ground chicken mixture. Do not overwork the meat, mix just enough to incorporate all of the ingredients. Refrigerate the chicken mixture until it’s chilled, if desired.
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Lightly coat your hands with oil and form the ground chicken mixture into small balls, about 1-1½ inch in diameter.
- Place the meatballs on the baking sheet, leaving some space between them so they’re not touching.
- Bake the chicken meatballs on 350°F approximately 20 minutes or until they are fully cooked. Make sure they register at least 165°F on an instant read thermometer.
Make the sauce
- While the meatballs bake, melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat.
- When the butter is melted, add 4 tablespoons of hot sauce and stir well until combined. Heat gently for 3-4 minutes to warm through. Stir occasionally. Do not over heat and do not let it come to a boil or even a simmer.
- Add the meatballs to a large bowl while they’re still hot. Make sure to use a bowl that’s large enough to hold all of them and still have enough room to toss.
- Pour the buffalo sauce over the meatballs. Toss gently with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
- Serve on a sandwich roll with lettuce, tomato and blue cheese or on their own with sliced vegetables, blue cheese, ranch or your favorite dipping sauce.
- Makes approximately 24 meatballs.
Notes
Rub oil on your hands a few times while forming the meatballs. Suggested Serving Sides:
Baguette, Hoagie or Sub Rolls
Shredded Lettuce and Sliced Tomatoes
Blue Cheese or Ranch Dressing
Celery or Carrot Sticks
Nutrition
The nutritional information above is computer generated and is only an estimate. There is no guarantee that it is accurate. This data is provided as a courtesy for informational purposes only.
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