Description
Delicious and tender chicken meatballs baked to perfection and served with a rich, flavorful homemade gravy sauce. Perfect as a main course paired with mashed potatoes and roasted green beans, this recipe combines ground chicken and pork with fresh herbs and spices for a satisfying comfort meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Meatballs
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup parsley, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ cup half and half
- 1 large egg, whisked
- 1/3 cup yellow onion, very finely minced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 lb. ground chicken
- ½ lb. ground pork
Sauce
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 2 cups chicken broth
- ½ beef bouillon cube (or ½ teaspoon Better Than Bouillon)
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon half and half
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon parsley
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ¼ teaspoon ground sage
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 2-3 drops gravy master (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat Oven and Prepare Meatball Mixture: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine the panko breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, parsley, Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper. Add the half and half, whisked egg, finely minced onion, and minced garlic. Mix until well combined.
- Add Meat and Form Meatballs: Gently mix in the ground chicken and ground pork with your hands or a silicone spatula until just combined, being careful not to overwork the mixture to keep the meatballs tender. If too wet, add 1-2 tablespoons of additional breadcrumbs. Roll the mixture into 24 meatballs, each about 1 ½ inches in diameter. Place them on a lightly greased, light-colored baking sheet.
- Chill and Smooth Meatballs: Refrigerate the meatballs for up to 5 minutes, then roll them again to smooth out their shape. This helps them hold together better while baking.
- Bake Meatballs: Bake the meatballs in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove them from the oven and set aside.
- Prepare Sauce Mixture: While the meatballs bake, combine the chicken broth, crumbled beef bouillon cube, Worcestershire sauce, half and half, onion powder, garlic powder, parsley, mustard powder, dried rosemary, ground sage, and pepper in a medium measuring cup with a spout. Set aside.
- Make Roux and Sauce: In a medium pan over medium heat, melt the butter and stir in the flour. Cook continuously for 2 minutes until the flour turns light brown and the raw smell cooks off. Gradually add the prepared broth mixture in small splashes, stirring constantly to avoid lumps and ensure a thick sauce. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Optionally add 2-3 drops of gravy master for deeper color.
- Add Meatballs to Sauce: Return the baked meatballs to the pan with the sauce, spooning sauce over them. Simmer for 5 minutes or until the internal temperature of the meatballs reaches 165 degrees F.
- Serve: Serve the meatballs and sauce hot, ideally alongside mashed potatoes and roasted green beans for a complete meal.
Notes
- You can prepare the meatballs ahead of time, refrigerate or freeze them; bake when ready to serve or ahead of time and reheat in the sauce.
- The sauce can be mixed up to 2 days in advance (all ingredients except butter and flour) and stored in the fridge.
- Use ground pork or chicken sausage as alternatives for pork; total meat should be 1.5 lbs.
- Grinding your own chicken can be more economical and gives fresher flavor.
- Baking the meatballs instead of pan frying keeps them from falling apart, especially since chicken is quite lean.
- Leftovers can be refrigerated for 3 days or frozen for 3 months. To reheat, bake covered at 300 degrees F for 15 minutes (thaw first if frozen).
- For deeper sauce color and flavor, add gravy master but it is optional.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 meatball with sauce
- Calories: 110 kcal
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 220 mg
- Fat: 6 g
- Saturated Fat: 2 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 6 g
- Fiber: 0.5 g
- Protein: 8 g
- Cholesterol: 35 mg
