Chicken Marsala Meatballs

My biggest goal in life is to have my name and this blog be synonymous with meatballs (and sliders), but that’s only because I love them so much and because I’ve shared quite a few meatball recipes on here throughout the course of 10 years. Okay, maybe that’s not my biggest goal in life but it would still be awesome if it happened. I think that meatballs can be very versatile when done right, and are super easy to whip up with the right tips and tricks up your sleeve. One of my favorites is still this orange chicken meatball variation that I make all the time. This chicken tikka masala version is a great option too. I won’t go through them all here because there are so many to choose from, but you can just scroll through the meatball tag for yourself and pick your favorite. This time around I’m bringing you these Chicken Marsala Meatballs, which is one of my favorite Italian dishes. I’m guilty of ordering it all the time when I was younger and ate at Olive Garden. Back when it was the place to go. I still remember it and so I wanted to recreate that dish at home but with a meatball twist.

In a large bowl, mix together the ground chicken, egg, parmesan, breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley, salt, pepper, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes just until evenly combined.

**Tip: You can also do this with ground turkey or even ground beef if that’s all you have on hand. It’s a great base recipe for any and all meatball recipes you might have in mind.**

Form and roll into twelve meatballs, placing them on a baking sheet. Place the flour in a shallow dish and set aside.

**Note: You want to make sure the meatballs are all the same size so that they cook evenly. And I recommend using a fork when mixing so that you don’t overwork the mixture or else they’ll end up tough and dry.**

Set a large skillet over moderate heat with 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon butter. Roll the meatballs in the flour and shake off any excess, placing them into the hot skillet in a single layer. 

Cook until browned on all sides and until just barely cooked through (they’ll finish off in the sauce later), about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the meatballs onto a plate and set aside.

Add the remaining butter and oil to the skillet. Once melted, add in the shallot, garlic and mushrooms. Season with salt, pepper, and the thyme.

Cook, stirring often, until softened and browned, about 10 to 12 minutes.

**Note: It’ll depend on how big your pan is, but you want something big enough so as to not crowd the mushrooms which will prevent them from browning properly.**

Deglaze the pan with the marsala wine and cook until almost reduced completely. Lower the heat and stir in the stock and heavy cream.

**Tip: If you don’t have any marsala wine, or can’t find it for some reason, you can use white wine or just skip it all together. The dish will still be great to be honest.**

Add in the meatballs and cook over low heat until the sauce has thickened and reduced by half. Every so often you want to spoon the sauce over the meatballs to keep them from drying out. 

If you plan on making this dish ahead of time, I would recommend thinning out the sauce a bit with a splash or two of chicken stock when you go to reheat it because you’ll find that the sauce will congeal in the fridge.  

Serve the meatballs and the sauce over couscous or fluffy white rice and garnish with fresh parsley right before serving. I really love it with couscous but honestly, I’ll never say no to rice. I love rice.

This is a pretty standard recipe in that if you’re not wanting to go through the steps of making homemade meatballs, I wouldn’t be mad if you went the traditional route and used thin sliced chicken breasts instead. You’d just dust the cutlets with flour and brown in the skillet as you would the meatballs. 

So I wrote the recipe to feed four because I think that’s what a standard family is made up of, with the idea that it’s about three meatballs per serving, but honestly I’m a very hungry person all the time and so I could easily eat four and still be hungry. So let’s say it yields a serving for four normal people and about 2.5 very hungry individuals. Good news is that it can easily be doubled to serve more or to ensure for leftovers of that I’m sure you’ll love because the leftovers are the best part. Let me know if you have any questions or comments below. As always, stay safe out there my friends.

Chicken Marsala Meatballs

These easy-to-make Chicken Marsala Meatballs are a great dinner option especially when served over couscous or fluffy white rice.

Servings 4 servings

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Ingredients

Meatballs:

• 1 pound ground chicken
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan
• 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
• 2 garlic cloves grated
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons butter divided
• 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
• 1 medium shallot minced
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 8 ounces sliced mushrooms
• Kosher salt and coarse black pepper
• 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves chopped
• 2/3 cup dry marsala wine
• 2/3 cup chicken stock
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped

Instructions

• In a large bowl, mix together the ground chicken, egg, parmesan, breadcrumbs, garlic, parsley, salt, pepper, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes just until evenly combined. Form and roll into twelve meatballs, placing them on a baking sheet. Place the flour in a shallow dish and set aside.
• Set a large skillet over moderate heat with 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon oil. Roll the meatballs in the flour and shake off any excess, placing them into the hot skillet in a single layer. Cook until browned on all sides and until just barely cooked through (they'll finish off in the sauce later), about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer the meatballs onto a plate and set aside.
• Add the remaining butter and oil to the skillet. Once melted, add in the shallot, garlic and mushrooms. Cook, stirring often, until softened and browned, about 10 to 12 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the marsala wine and cook until almost reduced completely. Lower the heat and stir in the stock and heavy cream. Season with salt, pepper, and the thyme. Add in the meatballs and cook until the sauce has thickened and reduced by half. Serve over couscous or rice and garnish with fresh parsley. Enjoy!

Author: The Candid Appetite