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Skillet Chicken Parmesan Meatballs have a crispy coating on the outside, but are tender and juicy on the inside. Smothered in marinara and gooey cheese, these meatballs are sure to become a new family favorite dinner staple! This easy dinner comes together in under 40 minutes.
Who doesn’t love a Chicken Parmesan dinner?! Chicken parmesan is one of those dinners we make on repeat around here, but I wanted a meatball version for easy leftovers and meal prep! Because my kids take leftovers for school lunches, these worked out exactly how I wanted.
Reasons you will love Chicken Parmesan Meatballs!
- The juiciest meatballs that are absolutely packed with flavor. You will want to make sure you follow one easy tip that creates tender meatballs that aren’t dry: soak the breadcrumbs! More on that soon…
- They have a panko crusted exterior, just like a traditional chicken parmesan recipe. This crust really makes these meatballs! I tried making these a few different ways, and it’s worth the extra step.
- These meatballs are loaded with protein with ground chicken and shredded parmesan. As a nutritionist, I always look for more ways to pack in the protein!
For another quick skillet chicken dinner with big flavor, my 15-Minute Skillet Cilantro Lime Chicken Tenderloins is a go-to…tender, zesty, and ready in minutes for busy weeknights. If you love enchilada flavors, you’ll also want to try my Creamy Chicken Enchilada Skillet. It’s creamy, cheesy, and brings all that enchilada goodness to your table in one simple pan.
For another quick and flavorful skillet dinner, try my 15-Minute Skillet Cilantro Lime Chicken Tenderloins — zesty, tender, and ready in minutes. Love enchiladas? You’ll also enjoy my Creamy Chicken Enchilada Skillet, packed with cheesy, creamy goodness in one pan.
How to make these Skillet Chicken Parmesan Meatballs
A few important steps and tips to follow:
- Gather up your ingredients: ground chicken, eggs, parmesan cheese, panko breadcrumbs, milk, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, crushed red pepper (optional), olive oil or avocado oil, marinara sauce and mozzarella.
- Divide up your panko breadcrumbs. One bowl will be plain panko, the other bowl will have panko soaked in milk. This helps to ensure the meatballs are juicy and not dry! Breadcrumbs on their own tend to dry out meatballs, especially with chicken.
- Mix together your meatball mixture. It will be very sticky and wet. You may need to have a little oil on your hands as you work with the mixture, or use gloves.
- Coat the meatballs in the dry panko! You want that crispy outside for an extra layer of texture.
- Heat a large skillet to medium high heat and let the meatballs brown on each side. This will take 6 -8 minutes.
- Pour in the marinara and bake. After 10 minutes, add mozzarella to get them nice and gooey!
Serving + Storing
Skillet Chicken Parmesan Meatballs can be served with any pasta of your choice, vegetables or veggies noodles, crusty bread, or my favorite house salad.
Store in an air tight container. You can also divide up into several bowls for meal prep and enjoy throughout the week! The meatballs can also be frozen for up to 3 months.
Skillet Chicken Parmesan Meatballs
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Ground chicken , (or use lean ground turkey)
- 2 large Eggs
- 3/4 cup Fresh parmesan cheese
- 2 cups Panko breadcrumbs, (divided)
- 1/4 cup Milk
- 3 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp Garlic powder
- 1 tsp Onion powder
- 1 tsp Crushed red pepper, (optional)
- 2 tbsp Olive oil
- 28 oz Marinara sauce*
- 1 cup Shredded Mozzarella
- Fresh basil for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Soak 1 cup of the panko breadcrumbs in milk. Set aside another 1 cup of panko breadcrumbs in a shallow bowl.
- Make the meatballs. Mix together chicken, parmesan cheese, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, and crushed red pepper. Whisk together the eggs with the soaked panko breadcrumbs, and mix into the meatballs.
- Heat a cast iron skillet to medium high heat. While skillet is heating up, make the meatballs. Form into 2 inch balls. Gently coat each meatball in the dry panko. Once the skillet is hot, add half the oil. Brown the meatballs on each side, about 6 – 8 minutes total (they may not be cooked all the way). You may need to do this in 2 batches.
- Once the final batch is complete, wipe the pan skillet clean and pour in the marinara sauce. Pile in the meatballs.
- Place the skillet in the preheated oven and cook for about 12 minutes, then add mozzarella cheese. Bake for another 5- 7 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly, golden, and melted. Serve with pasta or crusty bread. Top with fresh basil.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
