Name: Chicken Parmesan Meatballs
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 3
Cuisine: Italian
Ingredients: 6-8 oz low moisture block of mozzarella, divided; 1 lb ground chicken; 1/2 cup grated parmigiano reggiano, divided; 1 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs, divided; 2 cloves garlic, minced; 3 eggs, divided; 1/2 tsp salt, plus more for seasoning; 1/4 tsp black pepper, plus more for seasoning; 1/2 tbsp Italian seasoning; 1 cup flour; 1/2 quart vegetable or canola oil; 2 cups your favorite sauce (like my pomodoro sauce)

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If you are as obsessed with chicken parmesan as I am, then you will LOVE these Chicken Parm Meatballs! Ground chicken meatballs are stuffed with mozzarella, tossed in a parmesan and panko breading, and deep fried until perfectly golden brown on the outside with a melty, gooey center. These meatballs are to DIE for (but, plz don’t actually die).

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I’m not really sure where my obsession with chicken parmesan started, but I’m not complaining… I LOVE eating it. I LOVE making it. It’s crispy, juicy, tender, cheesy, and saucy. It’s everything I want in a dish.

Now, if you’ve followed me on social media for any amount of time, you also know my obsession with meatballs. I grew up eating spaghetti and meatballs on an almost daily basis. I come from a big Italian family, and every Sunday we made homemade sauce and we often made homemade pasta for holidays. My blood is ACTUALLY made of tomato sauce. And that’s a fact 💅. Ask my doctor.

So when I thought to combine my two Italian loves, it was the greatest moment in my culinary career. I mean, I’m sure someone else has come up with a similar recipe before, because cheese-stuffed meat is not necessarily revolutionary. But, hey, it was probably a sativa-fueled decision and I felt proud of myself in the moment.

Cheese-Stuffed Chicken Parmesan Meatballs

Of all of the meatballs that are in my growing “Meatballs” section on my blog, this recipe is probably my favorite. So I hope you enjoy them as much as I love making (and eating) these!

Ingredients for Chicken Parm Meatballs

Ground chicken. You can also use ground turkey or pork if you can’t find ground chicken.
Low-moisture mozzarella. You’ll cube some of this mozzarella, and shred the rest.
Grated Parmesan. Adding parmesan to the panko breading is 👩‍🍳💋 *chef’s kiss*
Panko breadcrumbs. You can use regular Italian seasoned breadcrumbs for the meatball mixture if you’d like, but for the outside of the meatball, I 100% prefer panko breadcrumbs! It leads to a thicker, crunchier coating and gives the meatballs more structure.
Egg. You’ll use one egg as a binding ingredient in the meatball mixture, and the other eggs as part of your dredging station.
Flour. This helps the egg stick to the meatball when you set up your dredging station.
Frying oil. Canola, vegetable, grapeseed, or whatever you prefer for deep frying! I used vegetable oil.

What is the difference between panko breadcrumbs and regular breadcrumbs?

Panko breadcrumbs are a Japanese-style breadcrumb that is lighter, crispier, and airier than regular breadcrumbs. Regular breadcrumbs are made from whole loaves of bread while panko is made from white bread without the crust. I prefer to use regular breadcrumbs as a meatball binder because they’re softer and finer than the larger, crispier panko crumbs. I prefer panko breadcrumbs when frying foods, because it yields a thicker, crispier crust.

How to Make Chicken Parmesan Meatballs

Keep on scrolling to find the recipe card with detailed measurements and instructions. This section includes some detailed instructions (with photos) to help you get an overview of the process!

Make the meatball mixture. Combine ground chicken, shredded mozzarella, parmesan, egg, garlic, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and breadcrumbs in a medium mixing bowl. Use your hands to mix the ingredients together.
Form the balls. Take about 2 oz of the meat mixture and flatten it in the palm of your hand. Add a cube of mozzarella to the center, then gently fold the meat around the mozzarella and press firmly to ensure there are no cracks. With 1 pound of meat, you’ll make about 9-10 balls about the size of a golf ball.
Set up dredging station. Set up three separate bowls–one for flour, one for beaten egg, and one for panko and parmesan. Season all three with salt and pepper. Then, roll each ball in flour, then egg, then panko, using one hand for dry ingredients and one hand for the egg to try to minimize getting ingredients stuck to your fingers.
Deep fry the meatballs. Add oil to a dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Use a deep fry thermometer to monitor the temperature of the oil. Once it reaches 350ºF, gently place 4-5 meatballs into the pot, rolling the meatballs around every few minutes to ensure even cooking. Cook the meatballs for 6-8 minutes, or until golden brown. Let the meatballs cool on a wire rack. Once you take the first batch of meatballs out of the oil, let the temperature rise to 350ºF again before cooking the next batch.
Serve and enjoy! Add a generous spoonful of tomato sauce (like my easy pomodoro sauce) to a bowl, then add three meatballs to the bowl. Top with more grated parmesan and some fresh chopped parsley or basil and enjoy!

a mixing bowl with ingredients to make meatballs, including ground chicken, egg, shredded mozzarella, parmesan, garlic, salt, pepper, and panko breadcrumbs — In a medium mixing bowl, combine ground chicken, shredded mozzarella, parmesan, egg, salt, pepper, garlic, and panko breadcrumbs. Mix with your hands until combined.

A hand with a small amount of ground chicken meatball mixture, flattened in the palm, with a cube of mozzarella in the center — With wet hands, scoop out about 2 ounces of the meat mixture and flatten it in your palm. Place a cube of mozzarella in the center, then gently fold the meat over the mozzarella, pressing gently to ensure there are no openings.

A plate with 10 rolled mozzarella stuffed meatballs — Repeat the process until all of the meat is used, making about 9-12 meatballs.

A dredging station is set up with three 1/8th baking sheets. Flour, salt, and pepper in the top, beaten egg, salt, and pepper in the middle, and panko breadcrumbs and parmesan, salt, and pepper in the bottom. — Set up your dredging station with three bowls. Add flour to one bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add beaten egg to another bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add panko, parmesan, salt, and pepper to the third.

A meatball that was rolled in flour, egg, and panko breadcrumbs to prepare for deep frying. — Roll each meatball in flour, then egg, then the panko mixture. Press the panko mixture firmly into each ball.

A dutch oven full of canola oil with four breaded meatballs deep frying. — In a large heavy-bottomed pot, add canola or vegetable oil and heat to 350ºF over medium heat. Use a frying thermometer to measure the oil temperature. Once it reaches 350ºF, gently place a few meatballs into the pot without over crowding. Flip the meatballs to ensure even brownness. Cook for about 6-7 minutes total, or until perfectly golden brown.

Perfectly golden brown deep fried mozzarella stuffed chicken meatballs resting on a wire rack. — Once the meatballs are golden brown, let them cool slightly on a wire rack.

Deep fried mozzarella stuffed chicken parm meatballs being plated in a bowl with tomato sauce. — Spoon some of your favorite tomato sauce into a bowl, then place meatballs in the bowl. Top with grated parmesan and chopped parsley.

Recipe Variations and Substitutions

Make it vegetarian. Use a plant-based ground meat like Beyond or Impossible, and follow the rest of the recipe as written!
Make it vegan. While I have never tried to make a vegan version of this meatball, my suggestion would be to replace ground chicken with plant-based ground beef, use plant-based parmesan and mozzarella in the meatball mixture, and if you need a binding ingredient for the meatball mixture, use a flax egg instead of an egg. Vegan mozzarella won’t melt as well as mozzarella, so instead of stuffing the balls, you could add sauce to the bottom of an oven-safe skillet, place all of the fried meatballs on top, then add shredded plant-based mozzarella on top of the meatballs and bake for 10-15 minutes until melted.
Make it gluten free. It’s so easy to make a gluten-free version of this recipe by using gluten-free panko! My favorite gluten free panko is from Kikkoman.
Swap the meat. Instead of ground chicken, you can really use any kind of ground meat, like turkey, pork, or beef!

Storing and Reheating

Store the meatballs in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. I do not recommend freezing these meatballs. Do not store the meatballs with sauce, as it will make the panko breading soggy.

To reheat, I prefer to reheat in the oven to try to maintain the crispiness of the panko breading. Heat the oven to 350ºF and place the meatballs on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake for about 12-15 minutes until heated through and the cheese inside is gooey again.

Equipment

Mixing bowl
Cutting board
Chef’s knife
Microplane
Box grater
Deep dishes or 1/8th baking sheets for dredging station
Heavy-bottomed pot or dutch oven
Deep fry thermometer
Metal skimmer