Chicken Piccata Meatballs
Our Chicken Piccata Meatballs will be your family’s new favorite weeknight dinner recipe. These have been asked for on repeat in our house thanks to their bright and comforting lemon and caper flavors. In less than an hour, we have this gourmet yet simple recipe on the table for everyone to enjoy.
Meatballs are one of our favorite make ahead meals for a busy week. These chicken piccata meatballs were born because I wanted to change the up the flavors from a classic beef meatball. Now, I often make a big batch to keep in the freezer when I need dinner in a pinch.
Serve them with pasta, polenta, even roasted vegetables for a delicious lunch or dinner any time of the year.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
- Easy weeknight dinner recipe everyone loves. Chicken piccata is a classic, and this is our simple twist on the recipe by making chicken meatballs rather than chicken cutlets. It’s become a regular recipe during the week at our house.
- Quick to make in under an hour. The beauty of meatballs is they are so fast and also so delicious. With a simple ingredient list, this comforting recipe is on the table in no time.
- Perfect to meal prep in advance. If you want to get ahead during a busy week, assemble the meatballs in the morning and keep them covered in the fridge. When it’s time for dinner, just cook them off on the stovetop and make the sauce.
What is Piccata?
Classically in Italian cooking, piccata means “to pound flat” and is often a chicken or veal cutlet that’s lightly breaded and pan-fried. Then it’s served with a rich lemon caper sauce.
With our recipe we put a spin on the classic by making ground chicken meatballs instead of chicken cutlets and it’s so delicious.
Jenn’s Tip: If possible, purchase your ground chicken from a local butcher. It’s often a mix of breast and thigh and freshly ground, making the meatballs juicier and more flavorful than grocery store ground chicken.
Ingredients
Meatballs:
- Ground chicken: The base of the meatballs, I like to use a mix of ground breast and thigh meat to ensure they are moist and tender.
- Italian seasoned breadcrumbs: Help to bind the meatballs together. The herbs and cheese also season the chicken meatball mixture nicely too.
- Freshly grated Parmesan cheese: Adds cheesiness in every bite.
- Large egg: Helps to bind the meatballs together and also adds moisture.
- Chopped fresh parsley: Gives a punch of fresh flavor and color.
- Very finely chopped shallot: Adds nice sweet onion flavor.
- Capers: Adds a briny punch of tangy flavor to every bite.
- Olive oil: This is both mixed into the meatball mixture for moisture and also used for pan-searing the meatballs.
Sauce:
- Unsalted butter: The base of any piccata sauce, it pairs perfectly with chicken meatballs and pasta.
- White wine: Used for deglazing the sauce to add richness that is a signature flavor in piccata.
- Chicken broth: It adds depth and a nice, comforting flavor.
- Fresh lemon juice: This is key to a good piccata sauce. Be sure you squeeze the lemon juice fresh.
- Capers: Adds tangy and briny flavor to the sauce. We like to use them in both the ground chicken mixture as well as the sauce.
- Fresh parsley: We like to add more as a way to add a fresh garnish before serving.
How to Make Chicken Piccata Meatballs
- In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, egg, parsley, shallot, capers, salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Mix gently until just combined — do not overmix.
- With a small scooper, portion the mixture and roll into 18–20 meatballs, about 1 ½ inches each.
- Heat 3–4 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add half the meatballs in batches, searing until golden brown, about 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a plate. (They don’t need to be fully cooked yet.) Add more olive oil if needed and repeat with the second batch.
- After frying, carefully drain off excess oil from the skillet, leaving about 1 tablespoon along with the browned bits.
- In the same skillet, melt the butter. Stir in the white wine and simmer for 2–3 minutes, scraping up browned bits, until reduced slightly.
- Add chicken broth and lemon juice. Bring to a gentle simmer and let the sauce reduce for 3–4 minutes so it begins to thicken.
- Stir in the capers, then return the meatballs to the skillet. Cover and simmer gently 5–7 minutes, until the sauce thickens and the meatballs reach 165°F internal temperature.
- Sprinkle with fresh parsley before serving.
Expert Tips
- Don’t over-mix the meatball mixture. Mix just until combined so the meatballs stay tender. If you do over-mix, the meatballs will become tough.
- Pan-fry the meatballs rather than bake. Browning in olive oil creates a golden crust on the outside while keeping the inside moist. If you want to bake the meatballs for ease, then that’s fine you just won’t have as much of a golden brown exterior.
- Be sure to squeeze the lemon juice fresh. This is not the time to use bottled lemon juice, to have the best piccata sauce and flavor, fresh is best.
- Shape the meatballs evenly so that they cook at the same rate. This is super important so that you don’t overcook any of the chicken piccata meatballs, which can also cause them to become dry. We like to use a cookie scoop (about 1 1/2 inches) or measuring cup to help with this.
- When it comes to serving the chicken piccata meatballs, we love to pair them with pasta, sautéed greens like spinach, polenta, or even mashed potatoes.
Storage
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat, adding a splash of chicken broth or water to loosen the sauce if needed.
These meatballs do not freeze well, the chicken often becomes dry one they are thawed.
If you want to make the meatballs in advance, that’s great. You can shape them and hold them in the fridge until you are ready to sear them on the stovetop and then make the sauce.
FAQs
It’s a pan-fried chicken cutlet that is served with a fresh lemon caper butter sauce.
Be sure to add egg, parmesan cheese, and breadcrumbs to the mixture. This helps to keep them moist and tender. Don’t overwork the chicken mixture or they could become tough as well.
Yes, you can shape the ground chicken mixture and then sear them off right before you are ready to serve. Or you can even cook them in advance and rewarm them in the oven on a busy weeknight.
More Easy Dinner Recipes
Chicken Piccata Meatballs
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- large skillet
- Small scooper for shaping 1 ½-inch meatballs
Ingredients
For the meatballs
- 1 pound ground chicken
- ⅓ cup Italian seasoned breadcrumbs
- ⅓ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 large egg beaten
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons very finely chopped shallot
- 1 tablespoon chopped capers
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon olive oil mixed into the meatball mixture
- Olive oil for pan-frying
For the sauce
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ cup dry white wine
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice about 1 lemon
- 2 tablespoons capers drained
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, breadcrumbs, Parmesan, egg, parsley, shallot, capers, salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Mix gently until just combined — do not overmix.
- With a small scooper, portion the mixture and roll into 18–20 meatballs, about 1 ½ inches each.
- Heat 3–4 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add half the meatballs in batches, searing until golden brown, about 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a plate. (They don't need to be fully cooked yet.) Add more olive oil if needed and repeat with the second batch.
- After frying, carefully drain off excess oil from the skillet, leaving about 1 tablespoon along with the browned bits.
- In the same skillet, melt the butter. Stir in the white wine and simmer for 2–3 minutes, scraping up browned bits, until reduced slightly.
- Add chicken broth and lemon juice. Bring to a gentle simmer and let the sauce reduce for 3–4 minutes so it begins to thicken.
- Stir in the capers, then return the meatballs to the skillet. Cover and simmer gently 5–7 minutes, until the sauce thickens and the meatballs reach 165°F internal temperature.
- Sprinkle with fresh parsley before serving.
Notes
- Don’t over-mix the meatball mixture. Mix just until combined so the meatballs stay tender. If you do over-mix, the meatballs will become tough.
- Pan-fry the meatballs rather than bake. Browning in olive oil creates a golden crust on the outside while keeping the inside moist. If you want to bake the meatballs for ease, then that’s fine you just won’t have as much of a golden brown exterior.
- Be sure to squeeze the lemon juice fresh. This is not the time to use bottled lemon juice, to have the best piccata sauce and flavor, fresh is best.
- Shape the meatballs evenly so that they cook at the same rate. This is super important so that you don’t overcook any of the chicken piccata meatballs which can also cause them to become dry. We like to use a cookie scoop or measuring cup to help with this.
- When it comes to serving the chicken piccata meatballs, we love to pair them with pasta, sautéed greens like spinach, polenta, or even mashed potatoes.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop over medium-low heat, adding a splash of chicken broth or water to loosen the sauce if needed. These meatballs do not freeze well, as chicken can become dry once thawed.
I had been wanting to make this recipe for weeks – finally did and it is one I know I will make again and again. I served with mashed potatoes; pasta would be great too! Very flavorful it would be a winner with guests for dinner too. Thank you for these great recipes!
This makes me so happy to read — thank you for taking the time to come back and leave a review. I’m so glad you loved the chicken piccata meatballs and that they’re going on your “make again” list. Mashed potatoes sound perfect with it (pasta is always a good idea too 😊). I hope it’s a hit with your guests as well. Thank you again for cooking from Italy in Your Kitchen — it means so much to me.