About
Not all Italian dishes require a red sauce. Take Momma's Chicken Meatballs for instance. These seasoned and savory spheres of chicken are oven-baked and brushed with a lemon-garlic-herb-butter sauce that is simply amazing! Added atop pasta or zucchini noodles, Momma's Chicken Meatballs will become a beloved family meal of choice. Thanks Momma!
Ingredients
- For the meatballs:
- 2 pounds 94% lean ground chicken
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
- For the herb-butter sauce:
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
- 1 teaspoon fresh oregano, finely chopped
- salt, to taste
- Optional, for serving:
- crushed red pepper flakes, to taste
- zucchini noodles, to taste, cooked and hot
- lemon slices, to taste
Directions
Step 1 -Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Step 2 -Line an 18x26-inch baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step 3 -In a large bowl, add the ground chicken, the egg, the olive oil, the Worcestershire sauce, the breadcrumbs, the parmesan cheese, 3 cloves of the minced garlic, 1 teaspoon of the salt, the black pepper, the onion powder, the dried oregano, and 2 tablespoons of the parsley and mix well to combine.
Step 4 -By hand, scoop 2-tablespoon portions of the ground chicken mixture and form them into small balls, about 35 meatballs in total.
Step 5 -Place the meatballs on the prepared baking sheet about 1-2 inches apart.
Step 6 -Bake until the meatballs are cooked through and reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees F, about 20 minutes.
Step 7 -In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the butter and the lemon juice and cook, while stirring frequently, until the butter is fully melted.
Step 8 -Add the remaining garlic to the butter-lemon mixture and cook, while stirring occasionally, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Be careful not to let the garlic brown.
Step 9 -Transfer the garlic mixture from the stovetop to a wire rack.
Step 10 -Add the remaining chopped parsley, the chopped thyme, the chopped oregano, and the extra salt to the garlic mixture and stir to combine.
Step 11 -With a pastry brush, add most of the herb-butter sauce on top of the cooked meatballs immediately after the meatballs are removed from the oven, reserving the remaining herb-butter sauce for serving.
Step 12 -Add the crushed red pepper flakes over top of the meatballs.
Step 13 -Serve the meatballs over the zucchini noodles and top with the remaining herb-butter sauce and the lemon slices.
