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4.81 from 26 votes
Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links.
Ground chicken meatballs, coated in a Marsala cream sauce are by far our favorite dinner recipe. A simple dinner that feels decadent with this amazing cream sauce. Brown the meatballs in a skillet first to create the base for the Marsala sauce. Go ahead and make a double batch and freeze for later.
Favorite Chicken Dinner with Ground Chicken
I developed this meatball recipe several years ago while trying to find a new way to cook chicken, aren’t we always looking for new ways to cook chicken! It was such a hit, that it’s on my regular rotation. Natalie likes it so much that I make a double batch and freeze it so she’ll l have some home cooked meals in the big city.
You’ll start by cooking some onions and then adding them to ground chicken to form the meatballs. These are browned in a skillet then removed and the sauce is made in the same skillet with all the browned chicken bits adding so much flavor. The pan is deglazed with Marsala wine leaving a rich flavor to a simple sauce.
It’s not just my gang that loves it, it’s one of the more popular posts on the blog. Here’s just one comment from a fan:
“Wonderful recipe! We have made it twice and everyone in the family loves it. First time we have made chicken meatballs and love the creamy texture of the meatballs. The sauce is amazing!“
What is traditional Chicken Marsala
Chicken marsala is a traditional Italian dish that can be served many ways, but typically it’s thin chicken cutlets, served with a rich, Marsala wine sauce. Marsala wine has a unique taste that adds so much flavor to this dish. You can recreate the flavors from a traditional Marsala sauce in this ground chicken meatball recipe.
Marsala wine is a fortified wine which means it will last in your pantry for months. Just replace the cork or cap. It does not need to be refrigerated.
Why You’ll Add These to Your Dinner Rotation
- This classic Italian-American dinner recipe is revamped in a delicious and simple meal you can enjoy in a new way.
- Meatballs are fun to eat over a bed of pasta or even on their own with a side salad!
- This is a scrumptious meal that you can feel good about serving your family.
- Meatballs freeze so well and are easily reheated for another meal.
Ground Chicken Meatballs Ingredients
- Ground chicken – Ground turkey will work too. If you can’t find it, ask the butcher, they will grind chicken breasts for you in most grocery stores.
- Panko breadcrumbs – this will bind the ingredients.
- Marsala wine – good for all kinds of meals, you can store in your pantry and it lasts forever. I typically use a dry versus a sweet variety but either will create a wonderful sauce.
- Chicken broth – the flavor will help build the layers of flavor in the sauce.
- Cream –this adds a great texture to the sauce.
- Pantry staples: Egg, flour, olive oil, butter, salt, pepper and onion
How to make Chicken Marsala Meatballs
This recipe doesn’t take much time, it’s basically two steps.
Step 1 – make a flavorful meatball
Cook some onions and add them to ground chicken, an egg and panko.
Step 2 -form into balls
Using an ice-cream scoop to form meatballs.
Step 3 – brown
Brown the meatballs and remove them to a plate. When browning chicken, the meatballs will stay together better if you let them brown on one side before trying to move them around. Once they have started to cook they’ll stay together better. Use a meat thermometer to tell when they’re done, it should read 160º.
Step 4 – make the Marsala sauce
Make a béchamel sauce starting first with Marsala wine, then adding butter, flour and chicken broth. At the end add just a bit of cream. If the sauce is too thick, add a little more chicken broth. Sometimes, I’ll double the amount of sauce, it’s that good. Add the meatballs back to the pan.
Step – let it simmer
Simmer coating the meatballs with the sauce. These meatballs are best served over egg noodles.
If you’re tired of chicken breasts, meatballs are a great alternative, they’re delicious all by themselves. If you can’t find ground chicken at the grocery, most will grind it for you if you ask.
We love this meatball recipe over egg noodles which is the perfect base for this amazing sauce. If you love a creamy marsala sauce as much as we do, try creamy pork marsala with mushrooms or steak marsala.
How long to cook chicken meatballs
It will take about 30 minutes to make this recipe, but only part of that time is for cooking the meatballs themselves. The rest of the time is spent cooking the onions and making the sauce. The meatballs will cook for about five to eight minutes.
What to Serve With Chicken Meatballs Recipe
Serve this chicken meatballs recipe over egg noodles, pasta or rice so that you can sop up all the scrumptious sauce. All you need for a complete meal is a salad or veggies. A light spinach and strawberry salad goes great with the rich flavors or roast some asparagus with mushrooms, my go-to veggie side dish.
How to Store Leftovers
Leftovers will stay fresh in the fridge in an airtight container for about a week.
To Freeze: In order to avoid freezer burn, I like to put a single serving with some sauce in a vacuum seal bag and flash freeze them. Once frozen, it’s easier to vacuum seal them. This way you don’t have to worry about the liquid being sucked out.
If you don’t have a vacuum sealer, you can freeze them in an airtight container, they just won’t last quite as long.
Tips for Chicken versus Beef Meatballs
If you haven’t made chicken meatballs before, I think you’ll be surprised at how delicious they are even without a Marsala sauce. The only difference in making chicken meatballs is that you need to let them cook in the skillet without moving them around at the beginning. Once they’ve started to cook through a bit, you can move them and they will stay together. If you try to move them around before they’ve started to cook, they can fall apart.
If you like chicken meatballs, then try Chicken Parmesan Meatballsfor more of an Italian flare.
I predict that once you try these, you’ll be adding them to your weekly rotation. I have to make a double batch every time either of the girls come home, one to eat for dinner and a batch for them to take home.
More chicken dinners you’ll love
- Chicken and Roasted Potatoes
- Chicken with Sun Dried Tomato Cream Sauce
- Savory Chicken Adobo Recipe
- Slow Cooker Coq Au Vin
If you loved this recipe, give it a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating! Also, snap a picture of your finished dish and share it with me onInstagramusing the hashtag #butterandbaggage and tagging me @butterandbaggage.
Ground Chicken Meatballs Recipe with Marsala
Author: Barbara Curry
4.81 from 26 votes
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PREP: 20 minutes minutes
COOK: 30 minutes minutes
Servings: 6
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Ingredients
MEATBALLS
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 onion minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1 egg
SAUCE
- ¼ cup Marsala wine
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 1 ¼ cups chicken broth
- ¼ cup cream
- salt and pepper
- egg noodles
Instructions
Meatballs:
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter and once melted, add onion with a sprinkle of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Let cool slightly.
Add ground chicken to a bowl with panko, egg, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Add slightly cooled onions to the mixture and combine. Using a 2 tablespoon ice-cream scoop, scoop out the meatballs forming them with your hands if needed into round balls and place on a plate.
Add a tablespoon of olive oil and a tablespoon of butter to the pan over medium heat, and when hot, add the meatballs. Let them cook without moving them for a couple of minutes. Once they have started to cook, they will hold together and you can turn them so that all sides are brown. You can use a meat thermometer to check when they are done, it should taek about 5 minutes. (They will cook a little bit more at the end but if you’re going to nibble on them, cook to 160º) Remove to a clean plate.
Sauce:
Add the Marsala wine to the pan and scrape up all the brown bits. Cook until it has cooked off. Add butter to the pan and when melted whisk in flour, stirring for about a minute, then slowly add the broth whisking the whole time. It should be slightly thick. Add cream and salt and pepper to taste and then add the meatballs back to the pan and reduce heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes until your meatballs are heated through.
Barbara’s Tips + Notes
- When browning chicken meatballs, let them cook without touching them for a few minutes, so that they are browned completely on one side before turning.
- You can substitute Madeira or red wine for Marsala but it will not have the unique Marsala flavor. Marsala can be stored for a long time after opening in the pantry.
- This recipe can easily be doubled, you will just need a very large skillet or two 10 inch skillet.
- Chicken meatballs freeze very well. When re-heating, add a little milk, chicken broth or even water to them to thin down the sauce which will have thickened while frozen.
- It makes about 32 large meatballs.
Nutrition
Calories: 337kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 25g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Cholesterol: 131mg | Sodium: 748mg | Potassium: 497mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 477IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 1mg
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