Mini Chicken Meatballs

I've made this recipe twice, and both times I was surprised at the abundance of flavor and moistness in these little packets of poultry! This has easily become one of my favorites... a recipe that I would like to keep handy. The version below makes quite a few meatballs, so it's perfect for entertaining! I'd like to try serving them with toothpicks, as hors d'oeuvres.

However, it's also perfect to make for family meals. You can freeze half of the meatballs for later, and just cook the ones you are planning to serve!

Ingredients

1 1/2 pound ground chicken
1/4 cup plain breadcrumbs (I used panko)
1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
2 eggs, beaten
3/4 cup finely grated Romano cheese
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp. whole milk
1 Tbsp. ketchup
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
olive oil
4 - 6 cups of your favorite marinara or spaghetti sauce
fresh, chopped basil for garnish
freshly grated Parmesan cheese for topping

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, combine bread crumbs, parsley, cheese, garlic, onion, and seasonings. Stir to combine.  Then mix in wet ingredients: eggs, milk, ketchup.

2. Gently mix in ground chicken with your hands until all ingredients are incorporated. Do not overmix, or you will get tough meatballs!

3. Use a mellon baller or a tablespoon measure to scoop and form meatballs onto a baking sheet. The mixture will be very soft and moist. Make sure your hands are moist as you shape the meatballs to avoid sticking.

4. Heat oil in a large skillet. Working in batches, brown meatballs on one side for about 2 minutes. Gently turn meatballs over and brown on the other side, another two minutes. Remove meatballs and repeat with remaining batches.

5. In the same pan, create your own sauce, or add your favorite jarred sauce. Bring to a simmer, making sure to scrape up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan (from the meatballs). Gently drop meatballs into sauce, cover and reduce heat to low. Allow sauce to simmer until meatballs are cooked through, about 5-6 minutes.

6. Garnish with fresh, chopped basil and serve over your favorite pasta or as is. Enjoy!

Original recipe by
Giada de Laurentiis
(You can find it here.)