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    Home » Entrees » Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

    Jul 22, 2009 · Modified: Feb 9, 2023 by Sues · This post may contain affiliate links, uses cookies, and generates income via ads · View privacy policy + disclosure statement linked in footer · 14 Comments

    Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    These Buffalo Chicken Meatballs are a little bit healthier than the typical buffalo wings, but with all the same flavor. They're perfect for football watching parties or any weekday dinner!

    Overhead view of buffalo chicken meatballs topped with blue cheese and served with celery sticks with glass of white wine in the background and recipe title at top.

    (This recipe for Buffalo Chicken Meatballs was originally posted in July 2009, but was updated with new photos in 2019).

    I'm pretty sure that I could eat a buffalo-style food for every meal for the rest of my life and never get sick of it. And basically, by buffalo-style, I mean food doused in Frank's Red Hot.

    Because to me, Frank's Red Hot IS buffalo sauce and nothing else will do. I'm also pretty sure they put something highly addictive into it so that you'll be hooked and will crave it at all hours of the day.

    But I'm totally OK with that. Is that bad?? All I know is that I need my buffalo fix as often as possible.

    In any event, you can only eat so many buffalo wings before you realize they're really not the healthiest food in the world and you should probably stop.

    So, you decide to make buffalo chicken meatballs instead. Best decision of my life.

    Why You'll Love This Recipe

    Not only are these meatballs baked instead of fried, but they're made with all-white meat ground chicken, making them so much healthier than the typical buffalo wing recipe.

    Plus? You eat them with a fork, so they're way less messy. They're also really easy to make and can be served as a full meal with a couple sides or as part of a party appetizer spread.

    Wins all around!

    Ingredients

    You don't need too much to make these buffalo chicken meatballs... Mainly chicken, hot sauce, and seasonings. Here are all the ingredients in the recipe:

    • Ground chicken (I recommend using all-white ground chicken breast, but you don't have to)
    • Onion
    • Garlic
    • Parsley
    • Paprika
    • Cayenne
    • Salt
    • Pepper
    • Hot sauce (I recommend Frank's Red Hot)
    • Crumbled blue cheese

    How to Make Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

    As if you needed another reason to make these buffalo chicken meatballs, I have to add to the list of plusses that they're so incredibly easy to make.

    You basically put almost all the ingredients (everything aside from the hot sauce and blue cheese) in a big bowl and mix them together... With your hands!

    Ground chicken, onion, garlic, and spices in a large mixing bowl.

    Then you form them into golf ball sized meatballs and place them on a baking sheet.

    Buffalo chicken meatballs formed on baking sheet.

    And then bake them for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees.

    Baked buffalo chicken meatballs just out of the oven on baking sheet.

    Heat your hot sauce in a large skillet. Like I said, I highly recommend Frank's Red Hot here... Any level of spiciness you want. And when the meatballs are done baking in the oven, pop them into the skillet.

    Chicken meatballs sitting in Frank's red hot sauce in skillet.

    And toss to coat the meatballs with the hot sauce. Oh yes, so good. Don't you want to dive right in?

    Chicken meatballs tossed in Frank's red hot sauce in skillet.

    And you're ready to serve them! With crumbled blue cheese on top, of course. 

    Yess!! These meatballs are so tender and flavorful are the perfect amount of spiciness.

    Overhead closeup view of buffalo chicken meatballs on plate with blue cheese and celery sticks.

    What to Serve With

    I've made these buffalo chicken meatballs quite a few times and always vary what I serve them with. The first time I made them, I was super confused as to what would be a good side for them, which is exactly how these Blue Cheese Mashed Potatoes were born. I still stand by this decision wholeheartedly and think they really do make the perfect side for meatballs.

    Veggies also make a great side. Specifically, carrots and celery sticks, of course! But the meatballs would also be a great topper for a salad and are also yummy served over rice or pasta.

    Landscape view of buffalo chicken meatballs on plate with blue cheese and celery sticks with glass of white wine in background.

    Much like the hot sauce on them, these buffalo chicken meatballs are seriously addictive. They're incredibly tender and flavorful and I'm pretty sure I'd love them even without tossing them in the sauce. But come on, you need that deliciously spicy kick. And the perfectly cool bite from the blue cheese.

    More Buffalo-Style Recipes

    If you're as obsessed with all things buffalo sauce as I am, you need to check out some of my other favorite buffalo-style recipes! Some of the best are:

    • Mini Buffalo Chicken Tacos
    • Buffalo Chicken Chili
    • Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheese
    • Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese
    • Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Pasta
    • Buffalo Chicken Pizza
    • Buffalo Chicken Dip (from Whitney Bond)

    I am so excited to have this healthier alternative to buffalo wings and these buffalo chicken meatballs will likely remain in our regular meal rotation for many, many years.

    I absolutely love that they can be served as an entree or an appetizer. And really, they make the perfect food for a football party (just serve with little toothpicks!) and will be fabulous for all those upcoming Super Bowl parties.

    Overhead view of buffalo chicken meatballs topped with blue cheese and served with celery sticks with glass of white wine in the background.

    Or just your next weeknight dinner. I mean, these really are so easy that they're great for making when you get home after a busy day at work. Which really, is more than you can say about typical buffalo wings. See? These meatballs really are a dream come true!

    If you love buffalo-style foods as much as I do, be sure to check out my recipes for Buffalo Chicken Chili and Buffalo Chicken Grilled Cheese.

    Overhead closeup view of buffalo chicken meatballs topped with blue cheese and served with celery sticks in the background.

    Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

    These Buffalo Chicken Meatballs are a little bit healthier than the typical buffalo wings, but with all the same flavor. They're perfect for football watching parties or any weekday dinner!
    No ratings yet
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Appetizer, Entree
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: buffalo, Buffalo Chicken Recipes, Chicken Appetizers, Meatballs
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Cook Time: 20 minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes
    Makes: 4 servings
    Author: Sues

    Ingredients

    • 1 lb. ground chicken (I recommend using all-white ground chicken breast)
    • ⅓ cup chopped onion
    • 3 cloves garlic, minced
    • ¼ cup chopped parsley
    • 1 ½ tsp paprika
    • ½ tsp cayenne
    • ¼ tsp salt
    • ¼ tsp pepper
    • ¾ cup hot sauce (I recommend Frank's Red Hot)
    • ¼ cup crumbled blue cheese

    Instructions

    • Preheat oven to 400 degrees and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
    • Combine ground chicken, onion, garlic, parsley, paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper in a large bowl and using your hands, mix together.
    • Using about 2 tsp of chicken mixture at a time, roll in the palm of your hand to form a meatballs the size of golfballs. Place on prepared baking sheet and bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees, until meatballs register at 165 degrees when a thermometer is inserted.
    • Heat hot sauce in a large saucepan. When meatballs come out of the oven toss them in the sauce until fully coated.
    • Serve meatballs with blue cheese crumbled over the top.

    Notes

    • Recipe adapted from Clean and Delicious
    Share a Photo of Your Finished Recipe!Mention @wearenotmartha and share a photo if you've made the recipe!

    View Web Story for this recipe.

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Karena says

      July 23, 2009 at 10:12 pm

      MMM! Love Frank's and these meatballs look deeeelish! I love the new website too! Super cute 🙂

    2. Chris says

      July 24, 2009 at 12:00 pm

      These were amazing.. one of new favorite meals!

    3. Kat says

      July 27, 2009 at 10:04 pm

      These look great and I am looking forward to the blue cheese mashed potatoes. Love the new site!

    4. Kristina says

      February 08, 2011 at 7:52 pm

      These were amazing! I did add a handful of celery to the meatball mixture. They were a little hot for us and that was with halving the cayenne. We might leave that out next time.

    5. J. K. says

      February 04, 2012 at 8:14 pm

      I'm very excited to find this post. They're on the menu for tomorrow. After taking them out of the oven, I'm going to reserve a few before putting them into the sauce, let them cool in the refrig and then slice them up to put on homemade pizza. I'm thinking a light coating of the hot sauce, 2% cheddar, and the sliced meatballs Of course the perfect end will be ranch to dip in.

    6. Aimee Shugarman says

      January 22, 2019 at 10:04 am

      5 stars
      The perfect game day snack!

    Trackbacks

    1. Blue Cheese Rosemary Mashed Potatoes « We are not Martha says:
      July 29, 2009 at 3:18 pm

      [...] that is something that excites me. So, when I was looking for something to make last week with my Buffalo Chicken Meatballs, I thought Blue Cheese Rosemary Mashed Potatoes would be perfect. You eat blue cheese with buffalo [...]

    2. Without A Name « Am I The Only One? says:
      July 31, 2009 at 1:32 pm

      [...] house.  It was a spontaneous, unplanned thing, and it turned out wonderful.  I decided to cook this recipe I found on We Are Not Martha that sounded delicious and it was as easy as it looked.  I bought all [...]

    3. Lazy Buffalo Chicken « Yumventures says:
      January 31, 2010 at 9:50 pm

      [...] I wanted an almost equally-effortless dinner, so I decided to make Buffalo Chicken Meatballs, as seen on We Are Not Martha. Due to my obsession with chicken wings this recipe immediately [...]

    4. Mangoes, Sweets, and Heats « For the Love of Food says:
      February 9, 2010 at 12:47 am

      [...] in and out and when I was motivated to move again, it was time for dinner so I geared up to make Buffalo Chicken Meatballs! The recipe comes from We are not Martha. I followed the recipe pretty closely, but made a few [...]

    5. The Other Woman « Blog is the New Black says:
      September 9, 2010 at 8:28 pm

      [...] Based on this recipe [...]

    6. Weekly Gratitude | Writing with Wine says:
      January 20, 2012 at 10:44 pm

      [...] Chicken Meatballs, recipe from my favorite foodies, Sues and Chels over at We Are Not Martha. Clearly, these were spicy, but [...]

    7. Roundup of Healthy Super Bowl Recipes - Jeanette's Healthy Living says:
      February 2, 2012 at 12:00 pm

      [...] Chicken Lavash Pizza, Eliza Domestica Buffalo Chicken Meatballs, We Are Not Martha Chipotle Chicken Tenders with Blue Cheese Sauce, Sara’s Kitchen Crispy [...]

    8. Roundup of Healthy Super Bowl Recipes - Jeanette's Healthy Living says:
      July 11, 2016 at 1:31 pm

      […] Chicken Lavash Pizza, Eliza Domestica Buffalo Chicken Meatballs, We Are Not Martha Chipotle Chicken Tenders with Blue Cheese Sauce, Sara’s Kitchen Crispy […]

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