Easy Broccoli Chicken Meatballs. Healthy, nutritious, and packed with hidden veggies.
Summer, please don’t go.
Here we are at the end of summer once again. A new school year. A more regular schedule. Back to making school lunches. Regular early dinners. And cooler weather. And I don’t feel ready yet.
But here we go. Time to get myself organized a bit more in the kitchen – which means more meal planning and prepping for me. I like to have some quick and easy recipes on hand to make meal times simple and stress-free.
That’s where meatballs come in. They are one of my go-to protein staples that I keep in the freezer for when life gets busy and everyone is hungry.
I’ve shared a few meatball recipes in the past. Some of our family favs are my Spinach and Cilantro Meatballs, my Pesto Meatballs, and my Asian-Style Meatballs. Today I’m sharing a lighter chicken meatball recipe that’s loaded with chopped broccoli.
They’re moist and tender. Flavor neutral, so they go with just about any meal. And they are super easy to throw together. We usually make beef meatballs so these chicken meatballs are a nice change of pace.
A few things about chicken meatballs:
….dry meatballs suck. I like to add an egg and a bit of extra fat (butter or ghee) to keep them juicy and moist.
…do not over cook. Because dry meatballs suck.
…slow your roll. Gently roll out your meatballs because tightly packed meatballs can wind up tough and chewy.
…use an ice cream scooper. Keeping all of your meatballs uniform means that they cook evenly and you won’t overcook some while you wait for others to finish cooking.
Need some recipe ideas for these little Broccoli Chicken Meatballs? Here’s some of ideas:
- simmer in bone broth with your favorite veggies for an easy soup
- pop in your lunch box (still frozen) for an easy lunch/snack
- add to a frittata
- add as protein to your favorite salad
- simmer in some tomato sauce and serve over zucchini noodles, spaghetti squash noodles or butternut squash noodles
This is definitely a keeper recipe in our family. I usually make a double batch and stash them in the freezer for later. Little One says that they are “perfect for people who don’t love broccoli because you still have to eat your veggies.” I guess I’m winning at meatballs today.
Happy end of summer, beautiful people!
xo,
Katja
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Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400′ F. Line baking sheet with parchment paper OR place a cooling rack on top of baking sheet.
- Combine all meatball ingredients in a large bowl until well incorporated.
- Roll into about 28 small meatballs ( I use a small cookie scoop to get uniform balls) and place onto prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes, until baked through and slightly golden.
Notes
- I prefer to steam the broccoli before adding it to the recipe. I’ve tried grated raw broccoli and don’t love the texture. Simply steam broccoli in a steamer basket for 3-4 minutes until slightly soft and still bright green. Be sure to finely chop for best texture.
- Most people bake meatballs right on the baking sheet (lined with parchment paper), which works fine. I find that my meatballs cook a bit more evenly if I place them on a cooling rack on top of the baking sheet.
- I use cassava flour as a binder. You can sub blanched almond flour if that’s what you have.
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These look like finger food perfection!! Maybe I can even get my green averse child to dig em!!
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Thanks, Tessa! 🙂
I am pretty sure that when I put anything into meatball form my kids think I am just the best thing in the world! Cant’ wait to try this one! Thanks!
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HA! Mom life!!
What a great way to hide veggies in your meal! Looks so tasty and I love how easy the are!
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Hidden veggies for the win!
I love the idea of adding broccoli to them. They don’t look dry at all and I know I would love them!
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Yeah, dry meatballs are no good. That’s why I add a bit of extra fat. 🙂
Really great! And just as easy as you say. I think this will be a keeper through the Fall! (did I just say Fall?!?) Yikes!
Yay! Thanks for the feedback, Stacey.
Those meatballs look scrumptious! I need to make my meatballs with chicken more often….
Thanks, Tina! 🙂
That is seriously genius to put the broccoli in the meatballs. I am always trying to find ways to get more veggies in my diet and this is the perfect trick.
I’m all about getting MORE VEGGIES in wherever I can. 🙂
I have got to get one of those tiny scoopers! That is the best idea ever. I have one, but it’s the ice cream or biscuit scoop size and that would be too big for these perfect meatballs. LOVE how yummy they are with all that broccoli jam-packed into them.
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I love my little scooper. Makes making meatballs so easy. I bought a 3 pack of scooper- small, medium, and large. They are so fun to use. I made scones with the biggest one yesterday.
YUM! That looks so gorgeous and I can taste the flavor from here!
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My five year old gobbles these up! Win!
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These were so good! Even my son liked them, Your daughter could not be any cuter!
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Thanks, Stacey! I’m happy to hear that your son likes them.
What can I use in place of that flour please as I don’t have it?
You can use almond flour in place of the cassava. If you don’t have either of those, you can use whatever flour that you have (except for coconut flour.) Whatever flour you use will alter the taste and texture slightly so you may want to experiment with what you like the best. Hope that helps. 🙂
sounds good but cassava flour can is an antinutrient isn’t it. YES.
If you prefer not to use cassava flour, you can use almond flour instead. Or pretty much any flour that you like, except for coconut flour.
Do you think these would pan fry as I don’t have an oven but they look delicious?
Yes, you can totally pan fry these. You may need a bit more fat to fry in as chicken meatballs are a bit drier. 🙂
These are delicious. The broccoli keeps the meatballs moist. I used a food processor to “chop” and mix everything because I couldn’t see myself chopping broccoli into teenie enough pieces in order to incorporate into the meatballs.
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We have an egg allergy – what do you suggest as a substitute? Spoonful of Greek yogurt?
I sometimes make meatballs without the egg. I haven’t tried it in this recipe though. Let me know i=f you try it. 🙂
I’ve made these several times and have even made it into burgers, so easy and tasty. I used almond flour and they turned out great.
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That’s such a great idea. I would LOVE a broccoli chicken burger wrapped in lettuce with tons of mayo. Mmmmmmm!
If I want to double or triple this recipe, do i still use 1 egg or do a multiply that ingredient as well?
Double or triple all ingredients. 🙂