Delicious chicken parmesan meatballs, smothered in sauce and cheese, and baked until bubbly hot. This new twist on an Italian classic is easy to make and will quickly become a family favorite!
I prepare a lot of recipes. Many make it to the blog, some make it to the garbage, and some find a special place in my heart – this recipe for chicken parmesan meatballs found a place in my heart.Â
I don’t know what it is but I’m a sucker for anything smothered in cheese and sauce, maybe because my mom’s Italian, and I grew up eating Italian food. Who knows? All I know is the smell of anything Italian cooking just brings me to a happy place.
This Baked Chicken Meatball Parmesan has been lurking around in my head for a while. In general, I’m a big meatball fan. I didn’t used to be but over the years I’ve learned to appreciate meatballs for a variety of reasons.
- Meatballs are super easy to make. Mix everything together, roll into balls, and bake. Bam, done!
- I can make A TON ahead of time and they freeze great. You know how I feel about meal prep. I live by it and it’s been the cornerstone to keeping my healthy lifestyle.
- I can get really creative with meatballs. No need to make the same boring meatball over and over again. Anything can be mixed into a meatball.
- When made with chicken or turkey meatballs are very healthy and fit nicely into a lower-carb lifestyle.
- Meatballs are filling! Sure you can eat them with pasta but most of the time I’ll enjoy a serving of meatballs with a salad or vegetables. Think beyond spaghetti and meatballs.
Oh and all of these principles apply to meatloaf too.
Anyway, have I converted you to a meatball lover yet?
If not, then I think these Chicken Parmesan Meatballs might do the trick. Let’s get to it.
A couple of notes about the ingredients.
Adding marinara to the chicken provides moisture and flavor. It’s very easy for chicken to dry out because it doesn’t have any fat, adding liquid helps with that. My favorite store-bought marinara is Rao’s
Using Worcestershire sauce in any meatball, meatloaf, or burger recipe that uses ground chicken or turkey adds a rich “meaty” flavor. It’s actually my “secret” ingredient that I guess isn’t so secret anymore.
How to Make Chicken Parmesan Meatballs
I started with 1lb ground chicken, 1 large egg, 1/2 cup unseasoned breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup grated romano or parmesan cheese, 1/4 cup marinara sauce, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and seasonings.
After I mixed all the ingredients together I used a medium cookie scoop to measure out 18 meatballs. Please note this chicken mixture is going to be wet so it’s helpful to have some water close by to wet your hands. This keeps the meat from sticking to your hands and helps to roll the meatballs.
Then I baked the meatballs in a 375-degree oven for 20 minutes. As you can see, the meatballs firm right up.
Next, I pour 1/2 cup of spaghetti sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish and then nestle all the meatballs on top of the sauce. I pour another cup of sauce over the meatballs.
Before putting it in the oven I sprinkle 1 cup of shredded mozzarella on the meatballs. Then I cover it with foil and bake for another 20 minutes in a 375 degree oven.
Mama mia the smells coming from my kitchen! Scrumptious!
Let’s touch base about the sauce I use. Yes, I use jarred sauce. I’m not ashamed to admit it because heck I need some convenience in my life too and jarred spaghetti sauce is a convenience food I depend on for recipes like this.
It works and taste great.
Also, I’m willing to spend a little extra to splurge on quality jarred sauce brands like Rao’s and Dellalo, both are my favorites.
This Chicken Meatball Parmesan is delicious. It’s everything you love about chicken parm but rolled into a meatball.
Of course, you can eat this with pasta but I recommend keeping it low-carb and enjoy it with zoodles, salad, or a vegetable. I’m telling ya, these meatballs are filling and super tasty so, in my opinion, pasta just gets in the way.
I decided to portion the chicken meatballs out in glass containers to have ready for dinners during the week. You can easily freeze this for a future meal too. The bowls below are simply stored glass pyrex bowls.
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken breast
- 1 egg
- 3 garlic cloves grated or finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon Worcestershire
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan or romano cheese
- 1/2 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
- 2 cups spaghetti sauce divided
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- In a medium bowl mix together the ground chicken, egg, garlic, onion powder, Italian seasoning, salt, black pepper, Worcestershire sauce, grated cheese, breadcrumbs, and 1/4 cup of the spaghetti sauce.
- Form into 18 meatballs and place onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. I lay the foil on the sheet to help with clean-up.
- Bake for 20 minutes.
- As the meatballs are cook, cover the bottom of a 9 x 13 baking dish with 1/2 cup of the spaghetti sauce. After the meatballs are done place them in the baking dish. Pour the rest of the spaghetti sauce, and sprinkle the mozzarella cheese, over the top of the meatballs.
- Cover the dish with foil and bake for another 20 minutes.
- Serve hot.
