Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
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These tasty Buffalo Chicken Meatballs have all delicious flavors of buffalo wings but in fun bite size meatballs. Easy to make, bursting with flavor and a whole lot less messy to eat than wings, they’re the perfect appetizer for game day, holiday parties or just for tasty snacking.
Buffalo Chicken Meatballs Recipe
If you like buffalo chicken wings, you’re in for a real treat with these delicious spicy chicken meatballs. They’re so tender and so full of such incredible flavors that you may never want traditional wings again.
Made with lean ground chicken, a variety of seasonings and panko breadcrumbs, these meatballs are baked in the oven until nice and brown. Then they’re tossed in buffalo sauce to give them that signature flavor everyone loves.
Whip up a batch of these tasty buffalo meatballs in just 30 minutes for your next game day party or holiday gathering. Like our Easy Bacon Wrapped Meatballs, they’re a guaranteed crowd favorite!
💖Why We Love This Recipe
- This recipe combines two ultimate appetizers, meatballs and chicken wings, in one delicious appetizer.
- Easy recipe that only takes a handful of simple ingredients easily found at the grocery store.
- Perfect party appetizer for the holidays, football season or anytime you’re entertaining guests.
🔪Recommended Tools
- Large mixing bowl
- Sheet pan
- Measuring spoons
- Small serving bowls (for sauce)
🛒 Ingredients
- Ground chicken
- Onion powder
- Garlic powder
- Egg
- Green onions plus more for serving
- Salt
- Ground black pepper
- Buffalo sauce
- Panko breadcrumbs
📖How to Make Easy Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
Preheat the oven to 400-degree F. Grease a baking pan with a little oil or cooking spray.
Tip: For super easy clean up, line the pan with parchment paper then add the cooking spray.
Step 1. In a large bowl combine ground chicken, onion powder, garlic powder, egg, green onions, salt, black pepper, buffalo sauce, and panko breadcrumbs.
Step 2. Mix just until all the meatball ingredients are incorporated.
Step 3. With clean hands, form meatball mixture into balls about the size of golf balls.
Tip: You can also use a small cookie scoop to help shape them.
Step 4. Place meatballs on prepared baking sheet and brush with a little olive oil.
Step 5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the meatballs is 165° F
Step 6. Remove from the oven and gently toss the meatballs, drizzle with wing sauce or just serve the meatballs with the buffalo wing sauce on the side.
Store leftover chicken meatballs in an airtight container for 5 days in the refrigerator or around 4 months in the freezer.
You sure can. For best results, you will want to brown them first in a skillet over medium heat until they have a little color on all sides. This helps give them flavor as well as helps them hold together.
Once they’ve browned, transfer meatballs to your crock pot with the buffalo sauce and just a little splash of water to keep them moist. Cook on low for about 4 hours or until they are completely cooked through.
How Do I Serve Buffalo Meatballs?
- Appetizer: Serve with celery sticks and with ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing and extra sauce for dipping.
- Pizza: Give your homemade buffalo chicken pizza a fun twist by using the baked buffalo meatballs instead of shredded chicken. To make it easier to eat, you may want to form them into smaller sized meatballs.
- Meatball subs: For a super flavorful sandwich, add the meatballs to a hoagie roll, drizzle with some of the sauce, a little blue cheese and enjoy! You can also use them to turn these classic meatball sliders into buffalo meatball sliders.
- Salads: Spice up the flavor of a traditional cobb salad by adding these buffalo meatballs instead of grilled or shredded chicken.
- Pasta: Add the meatballs over penne pasta or any of your favorite pasta noodles and serve with creamy Alfredo sauce. The flavor combination is amazing. They would even taste delicious added to this crock pot buffalo chicken mac and cheese!
How Do I Know My Meatballs are Done?
Ground chicken meatball recipes can be trickier than cooking with ground beef because of its color. For best results, you can check the internal temperature with an instant read meat thermometer. According to the USDA, ground poultry should be cooked until it reaches temperature of 165 °F.
Buffalo Chicken Meatball Recipe Variations
- Breadcrumbs: Instead of panko you can use regular breadcrumbs or Italian breadcrumbs. For a low carb version and healthier alternative, you can use pork rinds or a pork panko and almond flour mixture instead of regular panko.
- Spices: Adjust the spices to suit your personal preference. If you like spicy buffalo sauce, you can add some hot sauce or a little bit of cayenne pepper.
- Garnish: To add an extra special touch, garnish the meatballs with blue cheese crumbles. small slices of celery, chopped parsley or green onions.
- Chicken: We used lean ground chicken but feel free to add some ground pork or beef if you prefer.
Want More Appetizer Recipes?
- Baked Jalapeno Poppers
- 7 Layer Dip Cups
- Fried Goat Cheese
- Sausage Puff Pastry With Peppers & Onions
- Sausage Dip
- Hot Corn Dip
- Black Bean & Corn Salsa
- Avocado Deviled Eggs With Bacon & Blue Cheese
- Easy Brie & Proscuitto Appetizer
- Phyllo Wrapped Shrimp Appetizer
- Sausage Stuffed Mushrooms
- Creamy Pickle Dip
Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
Equipment
- mixing bowl
- Sheet pan
- Measuring spoons
- Small serving bowls (optional) for the sauce
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup chopped green onions plus more for serving
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup buffalo sauce plus more for serving
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400-degree F. Grease a baking pan with a little oil or cooking spray.
- In a large bowl combine ground chicken, onion powder, garlic powder, egg, green onions, salt, black pepper, buffalo sauce, and panko breadcrumbs.1 lb ground chicken, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 large egg, ¼ cup chopped green onions plus more for serving, ½ teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 1/3 cup buffalo sauce plus more for serving, ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- Mix just until all the meatball ingredients are incorporated.
- With clean hands, form meatball mixture into balls about the size of golf balls. You can also use a small cookie scoop to help shape them.
- Place meatballs on prepared baking sheet and brush with a little olive oil.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the meatballs is 165° F
- Remove from the oven and gently toss the meatballs in buffalo wing sauce, drizzle with wing sauce or just serve the meatballs with the sauce on the side.1/3 cup buffalo sauce plus more for serving
Notes
Nutrition
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