Mediterranean Chicken Meatballs in Tomato Cream Sauce
Tender ground chicken meatballs with garlic, jalapeño, and Italian herbs, seared then simmered in a creamy tomato sauce with vegetable broth. Cooked in a Dutch oven on the grill. Serve with bread, pasta, or rice for an easy one-pot meal.
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ lb chicken breast, ground
- 2 eggs, whole
- 1 EL mustard
- 3 ½ oz breadcrumbs
- 2 onions, diced finely
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 jalapeño, diced finely
- 1 prise salt
- 1 prise pepper
- Italian herbs
- clarified butter, for cooking
- 1 ¾ lb passaged tomatoes
- 1 onion, diced finely
- 1 ¾ cups heavy cream
- 1 ¼ cups vegetable broth
- salt, to taste
- pepper, to taste
Instructions
- 1
Process chicken breast through a meat grinder into ground meat.
- 2
Dice onions, garlic cloves, and jalapeño finely.
- 3
Combine ground chicken, diced onions, garlic, and jalapeño in a bowl.
- 4
Add mustard, eggs, and breadcrumbs, mixing to form a kneadable mass.
- 5
Season with Italian herbs, salt, and pepper to taste.
- 6
Preheat grill and place Dutch oven on it, then heat clarified butter.
- 7
Form mixture into evenly sized meatballs.
- 8
Sear meatballs on all sides in the Dutch oven until browned, then remove.
- 9
Dice onion finely and sweat in clarified butter in the same Dutch oven.
- 10
Add flour and stir to create a roux.
- 11
While stirring constantly, pour in broth and bring to a boil.
- 12
Add passaged tomatoes and cream.
- 13
Season with salt, pepper, and herbs.
- 14
Return meatballs to sauce and simmer for approximately 30 minutes.
Tips
Form meatballs of even size to ensure uniform cooking.
Do not skip the searing step to develop flavor through browning.
Stir constantly when adding broth to prevent lumps in the roux.
Simmer gently to keep meatballs tender and prevent them from breaking apart.
Good to Know
Refrigerate in airtight container for up to 3 days. Freeze meatballs and sauce separately for up to 3 months.
Form meatballs and refrigerate for up to 4 hours before cooking. Prepare sauce base up to 1 day ahead and reheat gently.
Serve hot with crusty baguette, pasta, or rice. Garnish with fresh basil or parsley if desired.
Common Mistakes
Do not overwork the meatball mixture to avoid dense, tough meatballs.
Do not skip browning meatballs to avoid bland flavor.
Do not boil the sauce rapidly to avoid cream from separating.