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Chicken Spinach Meatballs

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Tired of the same old meatballs? These oven-baked meatballs are made with ground chicken and spinach and easy to make. These chicken spinach meatballs are a spin on the traditional and perfect with all your favorite pasta dishes.
 
chicken and spinach meatballs in a serving bowl
 
There are some meals you can always count on to make everyone happy. At our house spaghetti night, taco night, and pizza night rotate frequently through our menu plan. For spaghetti night I usually make the same ground beef meatballs, so this week I decided to switch things up and try something new substituting ground beef for ground chicken and adding spinach.
 
chicken and spinach meatballs on a baking sheet

How to Make Chicken Spinach Meatballs

The new meatball features some of the usual suspects like basil, Parmesan cheese, and garlic, so the switch-up came in the form of ground chicken and spinach. Using a pound of ground chicken and a 10-ounce box of frozen spinach I was able to make 18 decent sized meatballs– we had some for dinner and I froze the rest to have on hand for those busy days when dinner needs to be ready in a hurry. Since it was spaghetti night we had ours with, well, spaghetti. However, I think these would make great sandwiches, as well. Overall, the chicken spinach meatballs were a nice change from our old stand-by meatballs.

Ingredients

  • Ground chicken
  • Frozen Spinach
  • Basil
  • Garlic and onion
  • Eggs
  • Breadcrumbs
  • Parmesan cheese
  • Salt and Pepper

All you do is combine all of the ingredients in a large bowl. I like to make meatballs about golf-ball sized.

Line them up on a baking sheet and bake them for 25 to 30 minutes at 350°F.

Recipe Tips and FAQs

Can I cook the meatballs on the stove?

Yes, you can cook them on the stove instead of baking them. Brown the meatballs in a pan with olive over medium heat until they are cooked through, about ten minutes. Or, you can brown them first and then add your sauce and simmer them in the sauce until they are cooked through.

Can I use fresh spinach instead of frozen spinach?

Readers have tried using fresh spinach with success! One reader finely chopped the fresh spinach and just mixed it up with the ground chicken mixture.

If you want to cook the spinach first, you will need approximately 1 pound of fresh spinach so you end up with about 10 ounces cooked, which is the same amount that is in a box of frozen spinach. Just cook the fresh spinach in a large pot with some olive oil (a few teaspoons should be enough). As the spinach cooks it will release its moisture. Once it’s cooked down, let it cool and then add it to your chicken meatball mixture.

Can I make these chicken spinach meatballs ahead?

Yes, you can make a batch of these meatballs ahead and keep them in the refrigerator or freezer.

  • Refridgerator: store the meatballs in an airtight container. They should keep well in the refrigerator for up to three or four days.
  • Freezer: cool the meatballs completely and place them in an airtight container or freezer bag. They should keep well for three to four months in the freezer.

Happy meatball-making!

 
chicken and spinach meatballs in a skillet with tomato sauce

More Dinner Recipes

 
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Chicken & Spinach Meatballs

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★★★★★

4.9 from 11 reviews

These chicken meatballs are easy to make and full of flavor!

  • Author: April @ Girl Gone Gourmet
  • Prep Time: 10 minutes
  • Cook Time: 30 minutes
  • Total Time: 40 minutes
  • Yield: 6 servings 1x
  • Category: Dinner
  • Method: Bake
  • Cuisine: American

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 pound ground chicken
  • 10-ounce box frozen spinach, thawed, drained and chopped*
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
  • 2 large garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 1/4 cup plain breadcrumbs
  • 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. In a large bowl mix all the ingredients together until just combined. Form the mixture into golf ball sized balls (I made 18 meatballs) and place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray or lined with parchment paper. Bake at 350°F for 25-30 minutes.

Notes

For the spinach: Be sure to thaw completely and then wrap it in a clean dish towel to wring out all the excess moisture before chopping.

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 3 meatballs
  • Calories: 206
  • Sugar: 1.3g
  • Sodium: 461.2mg
  • Fat: 10.6g
  • Saturated Fat: 3.9g
  • Unsaturated Fat: 4.1g
  • Trans Fat: 0.1g
  • Carbohydrates: 7.3g
  • Fiber: 1.9g
  • Protein: 21.1g
  • Cholesterol: 132.7mg

Keywords: chicken meatballs, chicken spinach meatballs, baked meatballs

About April Anderson

I’m a passionate home cook, cookbook author, recipe developer, freelance writer, food photographer, and dog mom ❤ I garnish (almost) everything with parsley and believe you can make deliciously amazing dishes with everyday ingredients.

Comments

  1. Jacqueline DiNuoscio says

    I love this twist on a classic dish! So much healthier and packed full of flavor!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  2. Marjory says

    These little meatballs really switch things up! Love the recipe. BTW spaghetti, pizza and Taco Tuesday are the favorite nights at our house too!

    ★★★★★

    Reply

    • April says

      Hi Julia, I haven’t tried this with fresh spinach, but I think it will work. You will need approximately 1 pound of fresh spinach to get the same amount as frozen. I think for it to work best you would need to cook it down first in a pan with a little oil and then let it cool before making the meatballs. Not sure how it will work if you just add the spinach to the meatballs raw.

      Reply

      • Valerie says

        I love this recipe! Made it many times. I make a big batch of mixture & freeze portion sizes. I Make the meatballs on day I want them. I also have also only used fresh spinach. Chop it up a little bit to your liking.

        Reply

  4. Deana says

    I notice one picture shows these in a tomato sauce. Is this a recipe or just a picture showing how they can be used? It looks delicious!!

    Reply

    • April says

      Hi Deana, the recipe is just for the meatballs, but they are delicious with tomato sauce (I just used my favorite jarred sauce for that photo).

      Reply

  5. Jameen says

    I made it and they came out awesome! Add Worcestershire sauce!
    Definitely a keeper!

    Thank you ☺️

    ★★★★★

    Reply

  6. Deborah says

    I want to adapt this to a meatloaf (as a whole loaf or individual meatloaf ‘cupcakes’ how long would you suggest I cook this in an oven?

    Reply

    • April says

      Hi Deborah, for a whole meatloaf I recommend baking at 350 for 45 min to 1 hour or until the internal temperature is 160ish degrees. Let it rest at least 10 minutes – the internal temperature will raise to 165 degrees while it rests. For smaller “cupcakes” you should only need to bake an additional 10-15 minutes, depending on how big you make them. I haven’t tried this, so just giving you my best recommendations 🙂

      Reply

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