Chicken Piccata Meatballs
If you love the bright, lemony flavors of traditional chicken piccata, I can’t wait for you to try these Chicken Piccata Meatballs! The meatballs have great seasoning and texture and sauce has perfect lemon flavor without being overly tart. The capers add their signature salty, briny taste and the whole dish tastes fresh, savory and comforting. I particularly love eating these Chicken Piccata Meatballs with mashed potatoes, but you could also serve them with pasta, rice, roasted potatoes, or roasted vegetables if you prefer. Not only is this dish super tasty, but each satisfying serving for four meatballs with sauce is just 298 calories or 4 WW Points on the current Weight Watchers program. To view your current WW Points for this recipe and track it in the WW app or site, click here!
I went to a restaurant a few weeks ago determined to get the Chicken Piccata I saw on their online menu, but when I got there I discovered it was the first day of their fall menu and it was no longer being offered. I ordered something else, but when I left I was still craving those flavors! About a week later I made this instead, and it was exactly what I was looking for to satisfy my cravings. In my opinion, these flavors are delicious in every season. If you love chicken piccata and meatballs as much as I do, this recipe was made for you!
Recipe Notes:
- Ground Chicken: I use very lean ground chicken breast for the meatballs in this recipe, and I’m happy to say that it works perfectly! My husband can be skeptical of super lean poultry and concerned it will be dry, but he was pleasantly surprised by how good these were. The other ingredients in the meatballs keep them moist and flavorful. If you have trouble finding ground chicken breast, you can substitute ground turkey breast without issue.
- Lemon: You’ll definitely want to use a fresh lemon for this recipe! There is lemon zest in the meatballs and lemon juice in the sauce. One largish lemon should give you about the right amount of juice and zest you’ll need. If you have a little extra zest or lemon juice, feel free to toss it in there. Lemon gives this dish its bright, fresh flavor!
- Capers: Capers are standard in traditional chicken piccata, so you’ll definitely want to use them here to get the same flavors. You can usually find them by the jarred olives in stores. Capers are salty and briny and add unique flavor to this dish! If you don’t have capers on hand, the closest substitute I can think of would be chopping up some green olives to use instead.
- Serving Size: This recipe makes 16 meatballs and about a cup of sauce, so I chose to make into four servings of 4 meatballs and ¼ cup sauce each. I found this to be very filling/satisfying alongside a side dish!
- Servings Suggestions: I love pairing these savory meatballs in a bright, fresh sauce with rich and creamy mashed potatoes. The combination is so good. I do think these meatballs and the sauce would also be delicious over pasta, rice, roasted potatoes, or roasted vegetables. Pair these however you like!
More tasty lightened up meatball recipes:
Looking for more delicious, lightened up comfort food recipes featuring meatballs? Check out my Swedish Turkey Meatballs, One-Pot Meatballs and Macaroni, Beef and Turkey Meatball Subs, Italian Wedding Pasta Skillet, Pineapple Teriyaki Meatballs, Meatball Slider Bombs, Bubble Up Swedish Meatball Casserole, Spaghetti and Meatball Soup, Meatball Pizza, Italian Wedding Soup, Spaghetti and Meatball Cups, and Slow Cooker Meatballs and Marinara! Also, check out more tasty recipes in the Comfort Food section of my recipe index!
Chicken Piccata Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup panko breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley, divided
- 2 teaspoons lemon zest
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 lb 98% lean ground chicken breast
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons light butter, (I use Land O’Lakes light butter)
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ cups reduced sodium chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup drained capers
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, add the egg, panko, parmesan, one tablespoon of the parsley, lemon zest, Italian seasoning, salt, garlic powder, and pepper and stir together with a fork until well combined. Add the ground chicken and stir the chicken into the other ingredients with a fork until mixed. With clean hands on a clean surface, divide the meat mixture into 16 evenly sized piles and then roll each one into a ball.
- Drizzle the olive oil into a large sauté pan and bring over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the meatballs in a single layer with a bit of space in between them. Cook, flipping them every 1-2 minutes to brown all sides, for 8 minutes. Remove the meatballs to a side plate and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm.
- Add the butter to the pan and bring over medium-low heat until melted. Add the garlic and cook for 30-60 seconds. Add the flour and whisk the flour into the butter until combined. Cook for another minute. Whisk in the broth until the flour is absorbed and then add the lemon juice, and capers.
- Increase the heat to medium and bring the mixture to a simmer, stirring regularly, and then reduce the heat to low. Simmer uncovered for a 2-3 minutes. Add the meatballs back to the pan and coat them in the sauce. Cover the pan and continue to simmer on low for 5 minutes covered to finish heating the meatballs. Uncover the pan, stir and sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of parsley and simmer uncovered for an additional minute before serving.
Notes
298 calories, 8 g carbs, 1 g sugars, 12 g fat, 3 g saturated fat, 40 g protein, 1 g fiber, 680 mg sodium (from myfitnesspal.com) Weight Watchers Points Plus:
8 per (4 meatballs + ¼ cup sauce) serving (PP calculated using a Weight Watchers PointsPlus calculator and the nutrition info) Inspired by Simply Delicious and Lena’s Kitchen
These sound great! Do you think these can be cooked in an air fryer?
These were excellent. Served over couscous. Will make again.
These are hot fire flames! These meatballs SLAP. Run don’t walk to make these bad boys
These were excellent. Full of flavor. Served them over rice. Very filling.
Ahhh mazing. One of your best! I say that often of your recipes, but this one is next-level!
These were delicious- tender, with a bright lemony flavor, and the leftovers were just as good! I sautéed half of a finely diced onion and a few diced mushrooms, added that to the meatball mixture, and formed 24 slightly smaller meatballs. We ate them over Bob Evans mashed potatoes that had been mixed with puréed cauliflower to lighten it up. I will definitely make them again! Thanks for your hard work!