This easy Butter Chicken Meatballs recipe is a fun twist on a classic Indian dish! It’s so delicious and comes together in about 30 minutes!
I did a thing! I did a thing and it turned out delicious! The other day, I was craving butter chicken and so I set out to make it. The problem was, I didn’t have any chicken on hand except for ground chicken. A bit disappointed, I debated going out for a grocery store run, but the weather outside wasn’t great and I didn’t have a desire to go out in it at all.
I thought about putting it off for another day and began to think up ideas to use up the ground chicken. Meatballs popped into mind, cause that is easily one of my favourite things to do with ground chicken. And that’s when it struck me. In a stubborn instance, determined to get my butter chicken, I decided to turn my chicken meatball idea into a butter chicken meatball idea! The best idea ever!
I’m in love with this recipe! It’s flavourful and definitely cost- effective. One lb of ground chicken easily feeds a whole family and doesn’t cost much at all! A nice bonus, for sure! Add some rice and naan and this hearty dish is sure to be a favourite with the whole family!
How to make Butter Chicken Meatballs
To make this dish, you will need to start with the chicken meatballs. You will need:
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup bread crumbs
- 1/4 onion, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoon each soy sauce and olive oil
- 1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped
- a teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Preheat oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, add of the chicken meatball ingredients and mix together. Scoop out a golf ball size amount of the mixture and roll it into a ball using the palms of your hands.
Arrange meatballs on baking sheet and bake for 20-23 minutes or until cooked through.
Once the meatballs are cooking away in the oven, turn your attention to the sauce. I start by mixing the spices together first so they are ready to go. The spice mix requires:
- 1 1/2 tablespoons garam masala
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon each chili powder, cumin powder, and coriander powder
- 3/4 teaspoon ginger powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
Once the spice mix is mixed up and ready, gather the other ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons ghee or butter (I often just use butter)
- 2 cups tomato passata
- 1/2 cup cream (or milk for a lighter, healthier sauce)
- coriander to garnish
In a saucepan or skillet, add the tomato passata and spice mix and bring to a simmer. Add the butter and continue to stir until the butter is melted. Simmer the sauce for a few minutes and then add the cream or milk. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning as needed.
Add the cooked meatballs to the sauce and coat evenly. Serve over basmati rice.
I hope you enjoy this delicious twist on butter chicken!
-Cathy
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Ingredients
For the chicken meatballs:
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 2 large eggs
- 3/4 cup bread crumbs
- 1/4 onion finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon parsley finely chopped
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
Spice mix:
- 1 1/2 tablespoons garam masala
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin powder
- 1 teaspoon coriander powder
- 3/4 teaspoon ginger powder
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
Other sauce ingredients:
- 4 tablespoons ghee or butter
- 2 cups tomato passata
- 1/2 cup cream (or milk for a lighter, healthier sauce)
- coriander to garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, add of the chicken meatball ingredients and mix together. Scoop out a golf ball size amount of the mixture and roll it into a ball using the palms of your hands.
- Arrange meatballs on baking sheet and bake for 20-23 minutes or until cooked through.
- Meanwhile, mix of the spice ingredients in a bowl and set aside.
- In a saucepan or skillet, add the tomato passata and spice mix and bring to a simmer. Add the butter and continue to stir until the butter is melted. Simmer the sauce for a few minutes and then add the cream or milk. Taste the sauce and adjust the seasoning as needed.*
- Add the cooked meatballs to the sauce and coat evenly. Serve over basmati rice.
Notes
Note: Metric ingredient measurements are provided as a courtesy using a third-party calculator and are rounded to the nearest unit. The recipes provided on this site have not been tested with metric measurements and their accuracy cannot be verified.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is based on third-party calculations and is an estimate only. Accurate nutritional facts will vary based on the particular brands used, portion sizes, measurement accuracy and more.
