Gluten-Free Chicken Meatballs With Buffalo BBQ Sauce

Gluten-Free Chicken Meatballs are delicious and wholesome bite-sized delights made from only a few ingredients, including Buffalo BBQ sauce sauce from The Nobel Made. These savory meatballs are seasoned to perfection and are Whole30-friendly. Enjoy them as a versatile and protein-packed addition to your meals, served as appetizers, or incorporated into your favorite dishes for a tasty and health-conscious option.

If you are looking for more bite-sized appetizers be sure to check out these Asian-inspired meatballs, grain-free taquitos, or gluten-free crostinis.

Why You'll Love This Recipe

Simple and easy: These Whole30 compatible meatballs only need 5 ingredients outside of salt and pepper, making them perfect for dinner, a party, or meal prepping.

Allergen friendly: gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, sugar- free. You can confidentally serve these to most family or guests that have dietary restrictions or preferences. They are also Paleo and Whole30 friendly.

Ingredients You Will Need

Ground Chicken: A lean protein that is low in saturdated fat, cholesterol, and calories. At the same time it is high in protein, B vitamins, phosphorus and other nutrients that are essential to the body. I always look for organic ground chicken when I am shopping.

Egg: providing high-quality protein, essential vitamins like B12 and riboflavin, as well as crucial minerals like selenium and phosphorus, promoting muscle strength, brain health, and aiding in energy production.

Yellow Onion: are full of antioxidants which help fight inflammation. They also have folate, manganese, and some vitamin C. They are antibacterial, help digestion (for some), and can help reduce your risk of cancer.

Buffalo BBQ Sauce: This is a combination of Nobel Made's BBQ and Buffalo sauce, two of my favorite sauces! It is sweet, tangy, and spicy all in one bite.

Garlic Powder: is known for its anti inflammatory and antibacterial properties. It helps fight many diseases like the common cold, heart disease, and others.

Salt and Pepper

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Make Meatball Mixture: Mix ground chicken, egg, diced onion, garlic powder, salt and pepper into a mixing bowl with your hands until combined. Do not over mix the meat or it will result in very dry meatballs.

Form Meatballs: Use a scoop or your hands to form 1 inch meatballs. It should make 30+ meatballs. Place the meatballs on a sheet pan that is covered in parchment paper.

Bake Meatballs: Place the sheet pan in the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes or until meatballs are cooked all the way through. They should be 165°F internally when finished.

Add Sauce: Remove the meatballs from the sheet pan when finished and place them into a large bowl. Pour the bottle of Buffalo BBQ Sauce into the meatballs and gently mix the meatballs until they are all coated.

Recipe Tips and Tricks

Troubleshooting: Be sure your sheet pan is sprayed well with non-stick spray. Don't over-mix the meat or it can dry it out. You can also use parchment paper to prevent sticking.

Scaling tips: This recipe is really easy to double so you can freeze some for later, which I highly recommend doing. These paleo chicken meatballs can be transformed into multiple other recipes if you leave the sauce off, which makes thiz a great meal planning recipe.

Baking vs Air Frying: You can either bake or air fry these gluten-free chicken meatballs. Baking directions are below. For air frying, cook for 12-15 minutes on 375°F. I like to put the sauce on last so it doesn't burn or caramelize while the meatballs cook.

Recipe Variations

Meat: You can use ground pork or ground turkey for these chicken meatballs and it will turn out great!

Breadcrumbs: Many people like to use breadcrumbs in their meatballs. Since these are gluten-free chicken meatballs, I don't use breadcrumbs. I also don't use flour, however, some almond flour can always be used if that is what you prefer.

Buffalo BBQ Sauce: If you don't have this on hand, you can combine your favorite BBQ and buffalo sauce together to get the same flavor! Use equal parts of each.

Storage Tips

Refrigerator: These Gluten-free Meatballs can be stored in the fridge for up to 5 days, in an air tight container.

Freezer: You can also freeze the fully cooked meatballs. They are perfect for a night when you don't feel like cooking. I store them in a large freezer safe bag in the freezer. Bonus tip: save them without the sauce so that you can add whatever sauce you want later on.

FAQs About Gluten-free Chicken Meatballs

How do you keep chicken meatballs from falling apart?

An egg will help to keep the meatballs from falling apart, however, you want to be careful not to add too much egg. I typically do 1 egg per pound of meat.

What is the best binder for meatballs?

Eggs are great for tenderness and can help bind them if you are not adding breadcrumbs. I don't like adding breadcrumbs because I have found that just an egg works better than any other gluten-free alternative to breadcrumbs.