Buffalo chicken meatballs

Spicy and juicy, these keto buffalo chicken meatballs made with almond flour are a healthy and delicious gluten-free dish that you can have as a main dish or as game-day finger food. 

Ingredients for chicken meatballs

Ground chicken – To make low carb buffalo meatballs, we need ground chicken. I prefer to buy a mixture of dark and white meat for juicy meatballs. 

Almond flour – Instead of breadcrumbs, I use fine almond flour to make this easy recipe gluten-free and low carb. 

Eggs – Use one large egg to bind all ingredients together.

Cilantro – I use freshly chopped cilantro both in the meatball mixture as well as for garnishing. I think that cilantro fits well with spicy buffalo sauce.

Onions and garlic – I like to add cooked onions and garlic to any meatballs I make. They add some texture and flavor.

Spices – I use salt, black pepper, onion powder, and garlic powder for my buffalo meatballs. 

Buffalo sauce – No hot sauce, no spicy chicken meatballs! I use Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce or Tabasco Buffalo Style Sauce.

Butter – Same as with wing sauce, we need to add some butter to cut down the heat, create a silky, smooth texture, and thicken the sauce.

Sweetener – Use any granulated sweetener of your choice to make this recipe keto-friendly.

Directions: chicken meatballs

1. Cook the onions and garlic on a non-stick skillet with some olive oil, salt, and pepper until golden.

2. Combine ground chicken, almond flour, egg, cooked onions with garlic, chopped cilantro, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste in a large bowl.

3. Form 22 even meatballs, 40-45g each. If the mixture is sticking too much, spread some olive oil onto the palms of your hands, then roll the meatballs. Alternatively, you can use a cookie scoop.

4.  Cook the meatballs using the same skillet with some extra olive oil over medium-high heat for 10-12 minutes, rotating every 3 minutes until golden on each side and cooked through.

5. Heat the hot sauce with butter, sweetener, and salt until the butter has melted.

6. Pour over the meatballs and cook for an additional 2 minutes, stirring occasionally, to cover the meatballs with the sauce. 

7. Serve with freshly chopped cilantro.

Carbs in keto chicken meatballs recipe

This recipe is great for those who follow a keto low carb diet because it uses no breadcrumbs. If you follow this recipe, you’ll make 22 meatballs with around 3g net carbs per serving (4-5 meatballs).

Freezing directions

You can freeze cooked as well as raw meatballs. 

To freeze raw meatballs, roll the meatballs and place them onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper so they don’t touch each other. Place them in the freezer for a couple of hours or until fully frozen. Then, place frozen meatballs into a Ziplock bag (try to remove as much air as possible when closing) and store them in the freezer for up to two months. Before cooking, place into the fridge overnight to thaw. Then, cook and enjoy!

To freeze cooked meatballs, bake them first. To do that, place them onto a prepared baking sheet lined with parchment paper so they don’t touch each other. Bake in an oven preheated to 400F (200C) for around 25 minutes or until just cooked through.

Then, remove from the oven and let cool down completely. After that, you can place the baking sheet into the freezer for a couple of hours or until the meatballs have frozen. Remove from the freezer and transfer the meatballs into a Ziplock bag, remove as much air as possible, and store in the freezer for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight, bake until hot, and serve. Alternatively, you can fry them in a skillet or bake them in a dish with a sauce of your choice.

Lastly CHECK OUT MY MOST POPULAR LUNCH RECIPE – Honey Garlic Shrimp, Sausage & Broccoli

Buffalo chicken meatballs

Spicy and juicy, these keto buffalo chicken meatballs made with almond flour are a healthy and delicious gluten-free dish that you can have as a main dish or as game-day finger food.

Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 mins Cook Time 15 mins Total Time 25 mins

Ingredients

Servings

• 1 small 50g onion finely chopped

• 1 clove garlic minced
• ⅓ cup almond flour
• 1 lb. 1.7 800g ground chicken
• ⅓ cup fresh cilantro + some for garnishing finely chopped
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• Salt to taste
• Black ground paper to taste
• Olive oil for frying

Buffalo sauce

• 130 cup ½ ml Frank’s Original Red Hot Sauce
• 4 tbsp 4 60g unsalted butter
• 2 teaspoon granulated sweetener
• ½ teaspoon salt

Instructions

1. Heat some olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, then season with salt and pepper. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden. Remove from the heat to a large mixing bowl.
2. To the same mixing bowl, add the almond flour, ground chicken, parsley, egg, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Mix well and form 22 even meatballs (40-45g each). If the mixture is sticking too much, spread some olive oil onto the palms of your hands, then roll the meatballs.
3. Cook the meatballs using the same skillet with some extra olive oil over medium-high heat for 10-12 minutes, rotating every 3 minutes until golden on each side and cooked through.
4. Meanwhile, place the hot sauce, butter, sweetener, and salt in a small saucepan and heat until the butter has melted completely.
5. When the meatballs are cooked, lower the heat to medium-low and pour in the buffalo sauce. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally to cover the meatballs with the sauce.
6. Remove from the heat and serve garnished with freshly chopped cilantro.