Mozzarella Stuffed Italian Chicken Meatballs

Do you have a recipe, that for the life of you, you just can’t conquer? We all do, right?! For me, it’s meatballs. I know, you’re in total disbelief, the meatball, a staple on so many tables, and yet it intimidates the heck out of me. I can never get the breadcrumb to meat ratio right. So, that’s when I decided to just omit the breadcrumbs all together and did I hit the jackpot! Mozzarella Stuffed Italian Chicken Meatballs are the first recipe (of many future meatball variations) that not only, did I tackle successfully, but I knocked them out of the park and you will too!

It’s funny, of all the things to be scared of, how is my giant kitchen fear, a little ball of meat. It’s the one recipe that always seems so easy for everyone else, but it’s always an epic fail, in my kitchen. The only meatball recipe we really ate while growing up was porcupine balls, a meatball mixed with rice and served with a mushroom sauce (I’ll share these soon).

For whatever reason, we never had spaghetti and meatballs. We always had The Best Almost Homemade Spaghetti Sauce with spaghetti noodles. I never felt deprived in any way because this spaghetti sauce is truly amazing. But now that I have kids of my own, I find it nice to mix things up from time to time.

I can’t take all the credit for this recipe. A few years back I came across this recipe for Coconut Curry Chicken Meatballs from the Bewitchin’ Kitchen. It’s an amazing recipe that uses no breadcrumbs. So, with that in mind, I took her recipe and flipped it into an Italian version. And it’s so very good. Removing the breadcrumbs also makes these low carb which just adds to their appeal.

Putting this recipe together was fairly simple. I knew I had to include grated onion, because I learned years ago, watching Clinton Kelly on the Chew, that adding the onion not only adds extra flavour, but it helps keep meat dishes like burgers, meatloaf and meatballs, moist. Then, I added spices that are familiar in Italian dishes, parsley, basil and oregano. Mixed in a healthy dose of fresh parmesan and a squeeze of lemon juice to brighten everything up.

Now you could stop here and these meatballs are still amazing. But, if you want to up the ante one more notch, pop a little cube of mozzarella into each one. Now that is a meatball! Cheese makes everything better. And these are no exception. The addition of cheese is such a nice surprise.

How to make Mozzarella Stuffed Italian Chicken Meatballs

Ok, let’s take a second and run down how to make these meatballs, so you can get started. I like to keep things simple, so just go ahead and toss all the ingredients but the mozzarella cubes into a bowl. Mix everything together well. Get right in there, with your hands and really massage all the ingredients together.

The meat mixture is fairly wet. I assure you, though, the meatballs do hold together. Roll about one and a half tablespoons of the chicken mixture into a ball. Stuff a piece of the mozzarella into the middle and cover the cheese completely. If the cheese cubes are not completely encased, the cheese may leak out of the meatballs.

I like to bake these on a stoneware baking dish, but if you don’t have one, no worries. Just line a baking dish with parchment and then spread the meatballs about two inches apart. Bake for 15 minutes and then flip them over and bake for another 15 minutes or until fully cooked. To finish these up, simmer them in your favourite spaghetti sauce and serve over spaghetti noodles, with a good sprinkling of parmesan.

Everyone in our house loves these Mozzarella Stuffed Italian Chicken Meatballs. My son who would typically eat the spaghetti first devours the meatballs and passes up the noodles. My picky husband, who hates that label, loves these. I suggested changing a few things and he quickly told me not to change a thing. With the high praise and the ease of this recipe, I have gotten over my intimidation of meatballs. And now, I want to make meatballs in every form I can think of. Any suggestions?

Loved Mozzarella Stuffed Italian Chicken Meatballs? Check out these other delicious recipes, I’m sure they’ll hit the spot:

• Homemade Garlic Herb Bread
• How to Make Classic Whistle Dogs
• Homemade Taco Meat

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If you get a chance to make this or any other recipe on the blog and want to share. Please feel free to tag @candyjarchronicles or use #candyjarchronicles on Instagram, so I can see your post. I’d love to see what you’re cooking in your kitchen!

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