Italian Chicken Meatball Bake
Indulge in the ultimate Italian chicken meatball bake featuring spicy meatballs baked to perfection in velvety vodka sauce and crowned with a layer of heavenly burrata cheese. This recipe combines simple ingredients, hands-off cooking, and bold flavors for an unforgettable meal that’s as easy to make as it is a eat!
Equipment
- 1 Large Mixing Bowl - for making the chicken meatballs
- 1 Oven Safe Wire Rack - for roasting the chicken meatballs
- 1 9x13-inch Baking Dish - for cooking the chicken meatball bake
Ingredients
- 1/4 whole Yellow Onion
- 1 pound Ground Chicken or Chicken Mince (SEE NOTES)
- 2 cloves Garlic – minced
- 1 large Egg - lightly beaten
- 1/2 Cup Panko Breadcrumbs
- 1/4 Cup Freshly Grated Parmesan - plus more for serving
- 2 tsp Italian Seasoning
- 1 1/2 tsp Chili Powder
- 1 1/4 tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes - plus more for garnish
- ½ tsp EACH: Sweet Paprika & Smoked Paprika (SEE NOTES)
- to taste Kosher Salt and Ground Black Pepper
- 5 - 6 Cups Vodka Sauce – homemade or store-bought
- 8 ounces Burrata
- Optional Garnishes: Fresh Basil, Fresh Parsley, Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Arrange the oven rack to the lower-middle position. Then preheat your oven to high broil.
- Prepare Chicken Meatball Mixture: Grate the onion into a large mixing bowl. To the same mixing bowl, add the chicken, garlic, egg, breadcrumbs, parmesan, Italian seasoning, chili powder, red pepper flakes and both types of paprika. Season with ¼ teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Use your hands to mix all the ingredients until just combined. (Tip: Avoid over-mixing the meatballs are they will turn out tough.)
- Form and Roll Chicken Meatballs: Spray your hands lightly with olive oil to prevent sticking. Use your hands or a cookie scoop to portion and form the meat into firm, golf-ball sized meatballs, roughly 2 tablespoons of mixture each. (Note: You should end up with about 15 meatballs).
- Add Vodka Sauce to Baking Dish: Pour the vodka sauce into a 9x13-inch baking dish. Spray a large oven-safe wire rack with non-stick cooking spray. Place the rack securely on top of the baking dish.
- Place Meatballs on Rack Over Sauce: Arrange the chicken meatballs on top of the oiled wire rack, making sure you place the meatballs so that they are over the pan and the juices will drip down into the sauce. Lightly spray the top of the meatballs with non-stick cooking oil.
- Oven Broil Chicken Meatballs: Broil the meatballs (over the sauce) for 8-9 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown. Remove from oven and flip the meatballs over. Return to the oven and continue to broil for an additional 2-3 minutes. Then, remove the chicken meatballs from oven. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Add Meatballs to Vodka Sauce: Carefully remove the rack of meatballs from the top of the sauce. Stir the sauce, taste the sauce, and adjust it for seasoning with salt and pepper. Transfer the roasted meatballs from the rack and place them into the vodka sauce.
- Bake Chicken Meatballs In Sauce: Cover the pan and bake the meatballs in sauce for 20 minutes, or until meatballs are cooked through to an internal temperature of 165 degrees F.
- Uncover, Add Cheese, Bake Again: Uncover the pan and break the burrata over top of the meatballs and sauce, evenly distributing the cheese all over the meatball bake. Return the pan to the oven and bake (uncovered) for an additional 8-10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
- Serve Chicken Meatball Bake: Garnish the top of the italian chicken meatballs with fresh basil and parsley. Sprinkle with more parmesan and enjoy plain or with your favorite pasta. Enjoy!
Notes
- Chicken: I recommend regular ground chicken for this recipe, not lean ground chicken. While you can use lean, all white meat ground chicken, your meatballs won’t be as flavorful and moist.
- Paprika: If you don’t have both sweet and smoked paprika, you can use a full teaspoon of just one type of paprika. I personally like the different flavors both provide.
- Vodka Sauce: You can use 2 (24 ounce) jars of your favorite store-bought vodka sauce – just make sure it is a brand you are familiar with and enjoy! The vodka sauce is a large part of this recipe! I recommend making your own – easy homemade vodka sauce recipe can be found HERE.
- Burrata Cheese: If you aren’t crazy about burrata, or can’t find it, you can substitute whole milk ricotta, fresh mozzarella, or a mixture of both!
- Taste Testing Meatballs: To test meatball mixture for seasoning, fry a teaspoon of the meatball mixture in a hot pan. Taste and adjust mixture for seasonings.
- Roasting Meatballs: If you don't want the chicken meatball drippings to flavor your sauce, you can place the meatballs on a greased wire rack on top of a rimmed baking sheet and broil them that way instead.
- Tip for forming meatballs: spray your hands lightly with oil to prevent the meatball mixture from sticking to your hands.
- To prepare meatballs in advance: The meatballs can be formed up to 2 days in advance. Place the meatballs on a plastic-wrapped lined sheet pan. Cover the pan with more plastic-wrap and store in the refrigerator.
- To reheat meatballs in sauce: Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil. Reheat at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 30-40 minutes, or until heated throughout.
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Need to Scale the Recipe? Hover your mouse over the number of servings in the recipe card. You'll see a sliding scale pop up, you can use that to scale the recipe up or down as needed.
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Got questions? I've got answers! If you ever run into an issue, have a question, or need any clarification - please feel free to drop them in the comments section. I'm happy to help when I can!
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Recipe Serves: 4 to 6
Nutrition
Calories: 548kcal Carbohydrates: 44g Protein: 42g Fat: 29g Saturated Fat: 12g Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g Monounsaturated Fat: 5g Trans Fat: 0.1g Cholesterol: 190mg Sodium: 3467mg Potassium: 2682mg Fiber: 11g Sugar: 25g Vitamin A: 3861IU Vitamin C: 48mg Calcium: 501mg Iron: 9mg