Easy Air Fryer Chicken Meatballs

The amazing air fryer produces food with crisp surfaces and tender centers. That said, air frying chicken meatballs is a no-brainer. They are indeed the perfect meatball! Imagine a lightly golden crust encompassing a moist, mouth-watering gluten-free chicken meatball. Hungry yet?

Once you make homemade meatballs in an air fryer, you’ll never go back to your old method. In under 15 minutes, you can make insanely delicious chicken meatballs with a handful of simple, wholesome ingredients.

The best part? 

Air fryer chicken meatballs freeze and reheat beautifully, which is great for batch cooking. Are you ready to make chicken meatballs in your air fryer? Let’s do it.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• It’s delicious and nutritious. With just 8 ingredients, make yummy fiber and protein-packed meatballs.
• These meatballs are the perfect texture and consistency -crisp on the outside and juicy inside.
• It’s gluten-free and adaptable for keto and Whole30 protocols.
• You can serve meatballs as a quick weeknight dinner or an easy appetizer.
• They go with almost everything!

• Ground Chicken: I use organic ground chicken but use whatever works for you. You can follow this same recipe using ground turkey, beef, and pork.
• Egg Whites: Egg whites help the meatballs hold their shape while adding moisture and keeping them from drying out.
• Oat Bran: Oat bran is the outer layer of oat groats, while oatmeal is the inner part. Nutritionally, oat bran has more protein and fiber than oatmeal, but they taste very similar. While you can sub bran for oatmeal, you’ll need to adjust the amount to achieve the same texture and consistency.
• Flax Seed: acts as the binding ingredient to absorb the juices and keep the meatballs from drying out. They add a ton of nutrients and fiber.
• Parmesan: If possible, use a block of parmesan. Freshly shredded parmesan cheese has a deeper, nuttier flavor and melts into a smoother, creamier consistency than pre-shredded. However, I do like the freshly shredded Parmesan cheese that you can find in the deli section of the grocery store. You may need to chop it up a bit more so that it incorporates well into the meatball mixture.
• Italian Seasoning: I use McCormick Italian seasoning to add a ton of flavor without pulling out a bunch of different spicers.
• Garlic: for another layer of flavor! Feel free to throw in an extra clove or two.
• Pepper: adds depth and subtle spice. Freshly cracked black pepper is the best!
• Salt: for added flavor (not pictured)

How To Make Air Fryer Chicken Meatballs

Step 1: Mix ingredients. First, preheat your air fryer. While the air fryer heats, add all ingredients to a large bowl and mix well with your hands.

Step 2: Roll into balls. Then, roll the mixture into 1″ balls and spray them with avocado or olive oil spray. I use a cookie scoop for this so that there is minimal shaping required.

Step 3: Air fry meatballs. Carefully place the balls in the air fryer basket in a single layer leaving room in between each. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, turning halfway through. Enjoy!

Recipe Tips

• The meatball mixture will be sticky, so I usually glove up. Setting the mixture in the freezer for 10 minutes or so and working with wet hands will make it easier to work with. Using a cookie scoop also makes this easier. You can just shape them instead of rolling them.
• Don’t overcrowd the basket. This recipe yields about 36 meatballs, so you’ll most likely need to work in batches.
• Use a meat thermometer to make sure the chicken is cooked through (165 degrees F). I recommend cooking them to 160 and resting them in the air fryer basket until they reach 165.
• I always give meatball mixtures a taste and adjust the seasonings if necessary. You can roll a 1/2″ size meatball and air fry it for 4 to 5 minutes (or until cooked through) to taste before rolling the rest of the mixture.

Variations

Flavors – Using the recipe as a guide, feel free to change the flavor by replacing the Italian seasoning with a different dry spice blend like garam masala, taco seasoning, garlic & herb seasoning, or dry buffalo seasoning.

Low Carb & Keto Chicken Meatballs – To cut out the majority of the carbohydrates, replace the oat bran with almond flour or ground pork rinds. Serve over zucchini noodles with sugar-free tomato sauce and freshly grated parmesan.

Paleo & Whole30 Chicken Meatballs – You can also make these without any grains or dairy by using almond flour instead of oat bran and nutritional yeast in place of parmesan cheese. Serve over spaghetti squash with compliant marinara and a sprinkle of nutritional yeast.

Serving

• Serve over a side of veggies with your favorite tomato sauce—spaghetti squash, roasted broccoli, roasted butternut squash, zucchini noodles, etc.
• You aren’t limited to just tomato sauce with these meatballs. You can also serve them in a creamy Swedish meatball sauce, drizzled with warm buffalo sauce, or simmered in bbq sauce and grape jelly.
• If you want to showcase these yummy meatballs, use them in this spaghetti squash meatball casserole!

Storing & Freezing

Storing: After cooling, store in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 to 3 days.

Reheating: To reheat leftover meatballs in the air fryer, reheat them at 375 degrees for 4 to 5 minutes.

Freezing: I love making a couple of batches of these meatballs to freeze for later. Let cool completely, and then freeze solid on a baking sheet. Remove from the baking sheet, transfer to a freezer-safe container or bag, and freeze for 1 to 2 months.

Reheating from frozen: There’s no need to thaw them. You can reheat frozen meatballs in your air fryer for 10 to 12 minutes, shaking the basket every few minutes. They also reheat well from frozen on in a skillet with a sauce.

More Air Fryer Recipes

Easy Parmesan Crusted Chicken

Air Fryer Kofta Wraps

Juicy Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets

Lemon Pepper Chicken Wings

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