Easy Smoked Buffalo Chicken Meatballs Recipe
Take the flavors of classic Buffalo-style chicken wings and add them to ground chicken in this easy meatballs recipe. Perfect as an appetizer or your favorite weekday meal.
Servings: 12 meatballs
Cost: $10
Equipment
- 1 cookie drying rack (optional) It's easier to add and remove meatballs from the smoker if they are placed directly on a cookie drying rack.
- 1 Long Tongs If you don't plan on using a cookie drying rack, these will be easier to add and remove from the smoker.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken (We use 90 to 93% lean. If using 97% lean you may need more liquid and breadcrumbs to help with binding.)
- ¼ cup finely diced celery
- ¼ cup finely diced red onion
- ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs (You can use the same portions with gluten-free panko.)
- ¼ cup Frank's RedHot hot sauce
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon coarse black pepper
- 1 teaspoon granulated garlic (If using garlic powder use ½ teaspoon.)
- ½ cup Buffalo Wing Sauce (for the topping)
Instructions
- Preheat: Preheat your smoker to 250 degrees Fahrenheit with your favorite wood source. We like apple, cherry, or hickory.
- Combine: In a large bowl combine the ground chicken, celery, onion, panko, Frank's hot sauce, salt, pepper, and garlic. Combine with your hands to incorporate. Roll out 12 meatballs the size of a golf ball. For easy removal from the smoker place the rolled meatballs onto a cookie drying rack. See chef notes if your meatballs seem too wet.
- Smoke: Place the meatballs on the smoker and close the lid. Smoke the meatballs for up to one hour or until the internal temperature of the meatballs reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit measured using a good instant-read meat thermometer.
- Sauce: After the meatballs have reached the proper internal temperature, remove them from the smoker. Place them in a large bowl with the wing sauce and toss them. Serve warm with your favorite sides like ranch, celery, and carrots.
Notes
Troubleshooting: Sometimes with really lean ground chicken the meatballs will feel very wet. If this is the case, the best way to firm them up is to place the rolled meatballs into the refrigerator covered for up to an hour. This will firm up the shape before they go on the smoker.
Scaling Up: If scaling up the recipe use the same ratio of ingredients. Plan 12 meatballs per pound.
Nutrition
Calories: 62kcal | Carbohydrates: 2g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 33mg | Sodium: 611mg | Potassium: 215mg | Fiber: 0.2g | Sugar: 0.3g | Vitamin A: 10IU | Vitamin C: 0.3mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 0.4mg