Chicken Meatballs with Tomato-Balsamic Glaze
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These balsamic-glazed chicken meatballs are what weeknight dinner dreams are made of: minimal effort, maximum flavor. Bonus–they’re also great served cocktail-party style with toothpicks.
If you’re looking for an alternative to traditional spaghetti and meatballs or turkey meatballs in marinara sauce, this light and elegant chicken meatball recipe fits the bill. I love them with mashed potatoes, puréed cauliflower, polenta, or buttered pasta for a quick and easy weeknight meal.
You can also make these chicken meatballs as an appetizer—just make them smaller and spear them with toothpicks.
“I have MANY meatball recipes – this one ranks high! Sometimes I make a double batch and use leftovers for meatball subs and meal-prep.”
What You’ll Need To Make Chicken Meatballs With Tomato-Balsamic Glaze
- Egg: Helps bind the meatball mixture together for a cohesive, tender texture.
- Fresh Parsley: Adds freshness and a pop of color to the meatballs.
- Tomato Paste: Adds rich, concentrated tomato flavor to both the meatball mixture and glaze. I recommend buying the tomato paste that comes in a tube, which is nice because you can use just what you need and store it in the fridge until you need it again.
- Garlic: Brings bold, savory flavor to the meatballs—just one clove goes a long way.
- Milk: Adds moisture to the meatballs and helps keep them tender.
- Ground Chicken: The base of the meatballs. Choose a variety with a bit of fat for moist, flavorful results—skip the extra-lean breast meat. You can substitute ground turkey, just make sure it’s not too lean.
- Grated Pecorino Romano Cheese: Adds salty, tangy richness to the meatballs. Similar to Parmesan cheese/Parmigianno Reggiano, but sharper and more robust in flavor.
- Italian Bread Crumbs: Help hold the meatballs together while adding texture and herby flavor. If you’re cooking gluten-free, a number of brands make gluten-free versions that work well.
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Used in the glaze to bring everything together and add richness.
- Balsamic Vinegar: Adds a tangy-sweet note to the glaze that balances the tomato and sugar.
- Sugar: Rounds out the glaze with a hint of sweetness.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1: Mix the base. In a large bowl, whisk together the egg, parsley, tomato paste, garlic, milk, salt, and pepper until the tomato paste is fully dissolved.
Step 2: Add the meat and fillers. Add the ground chicken, grated cheese, and breadcrumbs.
Step 3: Combine. Use your hands to gently mix everything together—the mixture will be a bit wet.
Step 4: Form the meatballs. With damp hands, shape the mixture into medium-sized balls and place them in an ungreased 9×13-inch baking dish.
Step 5: Make the glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together the tomato paste, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and sugar.
Step 6: Glaze the meatballs. Brush the glaze evenly over the meatballs. It may seem like it’s not enough, but a little glaze goes a long way (it’s boldly flavored) and too much will overpower the flavor of the meatballs.
Step 7: Bake and serve. Bake in a 325°F oven for about 30 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center of a meatball reads 160°F. Serve the meatballs hot and enjoy!
More Meatball Recipes You May Like
Chicken Meatballs with Tomato-Balsamic Glaze
Ingredients
For the Meatballs
- 1 large egg
- 3 tablespoons freshly chopped parsley
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ¼ cup milk
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 lb ground chicken (preferably Purdue, not extra lean all breast meat)
- ½ cup grated pecorino Romano cheese
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons Italian seasoned bread crumbs
For the Glaze
- 1½ tablespoons tomato paste
- 1½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
- ¾ teaspoon sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F (165°C) and set a rack in the middle position.
- In a large bowl, combine the egg, parsley, tomato paste, garlic, milk, salt and pepper. Mix well with a wire whisk, making sure the tomato paste is completely dissolved.
- Add the ground chicken, grated cheese and breadcrumbs. Use your hand to mix the ingredients together; it will be somewhat wet. Form medium-sized balls and place into an ungreased 9 x 13-in (23 x 33-cm) baking dish.
- Make the glaze by combining all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Brush evenly over the meatballs. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of a meatball registers 160°F (71°C). Remove from the oven and serve.
Notes
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Hi Jenn! If making these the night before–what would be the best way to reheat and serve to company? I’m not a microwave person, so would love your thoughts and if this would even be smart to do with these given the glaze, etc. vs. sitting in sauce like more traditional meatballs. As always, thanks for your expert advice and hard work.
Hi Diane, I think you can get away with it. I’d reheat them, covered, in a 325-degree oven until heated through. Enjoy!
These were great! Thanks for sharing this recipe.
This was very tasty! The glaze is important and gives it nice flavor. I made fettucine with a light alfredo sauce, sprinkled on top diced roma tomatoes seasoned with Italian Seasonings, put the meatballs on top, added some toasted pine nuts. The combo with the tomatoes made a beautiful plating and the entire dish was good! Used 85% ground turkey, so it had dark meat in it.
Thanks Jenn!
I have MANY meatball recipes – this one ranks high! Sometimes I make a double batch of these and use leftovers for meatball subs and meal-prep.
Delicious! Made these last week and making a double batch today. You are going to want leftovers. I used ground turkey as that is all I had and they were really tasty and moist. Leftovers and a small salad was a perfect lunch.
Thanks Jenn for all the great recipes. I have loved every one!
I made these tonight. They were absolutely delicious! I used ground dark meat turkey instead of ground chicken. We loved them! I’ll definitely make them again!
My local grocery store only carries lean ground chicken. Is there anything I could incorporate (oil, butter, rendered animal fat) so the meatballs do not dry out?
Yes, you can add about a tablespoon of olive oil to the ground chicken to give it a little more fat/moisture. Hope you enjoy! 🙂
I made these meatballs for the first time today and they were delicious. I had 7 people for dinner and everyone loved them. They were quick and easy to make. I followed the recipe and made 15 meatballs. This is another great Once Upon A Chef recipe.
This recipe is a keeper! I made these meatballs last night and they will now become part of my endless list of rotating recipes! So so tasty especially with the glaze. This was the first time making chicken meatballs (actually I used a combination of ground turkey and chicken meat) and I doubled the recipe which I am glad I did because my husband and I now have wonderful leftovers. Instead of using Italian herb flavoured bread crumbs I used regular breadcrumbs then added an excellent blend of dried Italian herbs I have in my pantry. I also added fresh chopped basil which someone in in this comment section recommended, excellent added flavour. I prepared the meatball mix several hours in advance which probably allowed all the flavours to blend longer.
I look forward to making these for appetizers in the near future!
Thanks for this wonderful recipe.
Simple and sooo good!
Thank you!