How many times do you think: I’ll make this recipe and then never do it? For me, with the fried chicken meatballs, it’s different: I make them a ton of times, both baked and, indeed, fried, but never once do I remember to take photos and record the video recipe! So, in the end, I decided: I took advantage of inviting Marzia and Gianluca to dinner, who still had to see the bathroom after the renovation, and I made them for them.
The meatballs with ground chicken breast are simple and quick to prepare, especially if you use a chopper like I did: you’ll save yourself the hassle of chopping the meat and kneading the ingredients by hand. I then chose the most classic and simple version of the fried chicken meatballs just to give you the base of the recipe, which you can then vary according to your tastes from time to time.
Below, under the first photo, you’ll find the step-by-step video recipe to prepare them with me! For any doubts, I invite you to write a message in the chat choosing one of your favorite social networks. I remind you, indeed, that I am waiting for you every morning in the Facebook group and fan page of “Le Ricette di Bea” with the Recipe of the Day, an unmissable appointment to start the day all together with a sweet or savory treat!
I’ll leave you clickable links that you can follow to read other recipes that you can prepare with chicken, from the Chicken Recipe Collection, easy ideas to cook: from chicken breast to drumsticks, up to grandma Sandra’s roast chicken, to chicken breast and pistachio rolls to cook in a pan, to chicken burgers and vegetables or the delicious chicken bites with rustic fries that my nephews love! Each link will take you to the recipe you’ve chosen to read here on my recipe blog!
Let’s move on to the recipe of the fried chicken meatballs to prepare as an appetizer, to serve as a buffet aperitif or as a second course with a side of vegetables, as I did last night!
- Difficulty: Very Easy
- Cost: Very Cheap
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 20 Pieces
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All Seasons
- Energy 279.91 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 4.75 (g) of which sugars 0.33 (g)
- Proteins 6.48 (g)
- Fat 26.52 (g) of which saturated 4.02 (g)of which unsaturated 21.64 (g)
- Fibers 0.44 (g)
- Sodium 71.06 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 1 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for 20 Fried Chicken Meatballs
- 0.88 lbs chicken breast
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 egg yolk
- 1 pinch salt
- 1 pinch pepper
- to taste parsley
- 1 egg
- to taste breadcrumbs
- 2 cups cups seed oil (for crispy frying)
Tools for Preparing Fried Chicken Meatballs
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Chopper
- 1 Plate
- 1 Small Bowl
- 1 Pot
- 1 Slotted Spoon
- 1 Tray
- 1 Paper Towel
- 1 Fork
Steps for the Fried Chicken Meatballs Recipe
Let’s start by arranging on the work surface all the necessary ingredients for preparing the meatballs with chicken breast. Take the chopper and place the chicken breast in the bowl after removing, with the tip of a knife, the white parts of the tendons. Add the indicated amount of flour and breadcrumbs from the ingredients list. Break the egg and use only the yolk.
If you don’t want to waste the egg white, you can save it to use later in addition to the whole egg for the chicken meatball breading. Turn on the chopper and let it work until the mixture is well combined.
Take the mixture and move it to a bowl. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and parsley. Quickly mix with your hands to assess if the mixture is too hard or mushy. In the first case, you’ll need to add a touch of milk or a bit of the egg white you set aside. In the second case, however, you’ll need to add a little more breadcrumbs.
Lightly oil your hands with seed oil and start forming the meatballs, taking about 0.7 to 0.88 ounces of mixture: you’ll get approximately 20 chicken meatballs. Place the meatballs on a plate as you go and finish the ground chicken meat mixture. Break the egg into a small bowl, add a pinch of salt, and beat well with a fork. At this point, you can add the egg white you set aside and mix it with the whole egg. In another small bowl, place some breadcrumbs for the breading.
We can then proceed with the breading of the meatballs. Pass one meatball at a time in the beaten egg and then in the breadcrumbs, placing them back on the plate. Meanwhile, we can turn on the stovetop with medium-low flame and heat the frying seed oil. I chose a high oleic sunflower seed oil which I highly recommend: it reduces the smell by almost 50% leaving the frying crispy and golden, perfect!
We then move on to the frying. I took one meatball and dipped it in the oil to test the temperature before proceeding. If you see that the oil doesn’t react immediately by beginning to bubble around the meatball, it means the oil isn’t hot enough yet. So proceed with the frying of all the chicken meatballs only when the oil is at the correct temperature.
With a slotted spoon, remove the meatballs from the seed oil and place them on a tray where we’ve laid some absorbent paper or frying paper, so they can lose the excess oil. We are ready to serve the fried chicken meatballs, perhaps accompanied by some mayonnaise and ketchup.
All that’s left is to wish you bon appétit and remind you that I’m waiting for you every day here on my cooking blog with lots of easy, quick, and delicious recipes like this one!
Tips and Recipe Variations:
You can vary the flavor of the chicken meatball mixture by adding nutmeg, if you like, removing the parsley and choosing chives instead. You can also choose to use grated cheese to give more flavor and taste to the fried chicken meatballs.
Main tips: as already mentioned in the recipe text, try to keep the oil temperature under control to avoid the meatballs from browning externally and remaining undercooked inside if the oil is too hot. Try to get a sticky and not hard mixture even before forming the 20 chicken meatballs.
If you prepare the meatballs a few hours before and then fry them immediately, you can then reheat them in the oven as I did: if they are well cooked, they will remain nice and crispy and golden without undergoing changes compared to the previous cooking.
