Kung Pao Chicken Meatballs

4.69 from 16 votes
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Get sassy with dinner and make our Kung Pao Chicken Meatballs! This is a Fit Foodie classic and a personal favorite of mine. They’re super simple to whip up, too, because the chicken meatballs are baked and then tossed in a simple homemade kung pao sauce.

Kung Pao Chicken Meatballs
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If you don’t know what to make for dinner. Make these Kung Pao Chicken Meatballs ASAP. Remember FFF’s Healthy Kung Pao Chicken that we posted 1,000 years ago? Well, we based this sauce off of that very recipe. Why? Because it’s gotten rave reviews from so many FFF readers, we thought we’d re-invent it with an amazing baked chicken meatballs recipe!

I do want to make a quick note that this kung pao sauce is NOT authentic. It’s very much a “Minnesota-nice, I’ve got about 5 minutes to make dinner” kind-of-sauce.

What You Need for Kung Pao Chicken Meatballs

We actually tested this recipe with both ground chicken and ground turkey, and both of them work. YAY! Here’s what else you need for the ground chicken meatballs:

  • onion
  • flour (any kind)
  • rolled oats
  • sriracha
  • salt
  • pepper
  • garlic

Make them g/f: You can easily keep these flavorful kung pao meatballs gluten-free by using a gluten-free flour blend and certified gluten-free rolled oats. We love the texture rolled oats give these baked meatballs and I’m sure you will too!

Meatballs on pan

You Must Try Our Kung Pao Sauce

Once you’ve got your meatballs in the oven, it’s time to make the kung pao sauce! Now, I’m sort of biased about Fit Foodie’s kung pao sauce, but it’s pretty damn good! I love it mostly because it’s made with honey and not another refined sugar. It’s also super basic with just 5 total ingredients.

  • soy sauce (or tamari)
  • sriracha
  • red chili sauce
  • honey

Is this kung pao sauce super spicy?

I would say it’s medium or…Minnesota spicy? You can totally control the spice by adding more soy sauce and/or honey!

Healthy Baked Chicken Meatballs

How to Serve Your Meatballs

  • Appetizer: these meatballs are perfect for a high-protein app. Just pop a toothpick in each one!
  • Make it a meal: serve your meatballs over white rice and your favorite veggie such as air fryer broccoli.
Healthy Kung Pao Meatballs

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4.69 from 16 votes

Baked Kung Pao Chicken Meatballs

Our Kung Pao Chicken Meatballs are a high-protein, high-flavor kind of meal! Serve them over rice, with your favorite stir-fried veggie and you've got yourself a healthy dinner idea.
Prep: 10 minutes
Cook: 28 minutes
Total: 38 minutes
Servings: 4
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Ingredients 

For the Meatballs

For the Kung Pao Sauce

Instructions 

  • First, preheat oven to 400ºF and spray a baking sheet with coconut oil cooking spray. Set aside.
  • Next, prep chicken meatballs mixture by placing all ingredients into a large bowl mixing until combined.
  • Using a tablespoon cookie scoop (note: these are bite-sized, not giant!), scoop out a heaping scoop of mixture and mold into a ball with your hands. It works best if your hands are slightly wet with water. Place on baking sheet and repeat.
  • Bake meatballs at 400ºF for 25-28 minutes or until the top begins to turn golden brown.
  • While the meatballs are cooking, prep the kung pao sauce, by mixing all ingredients together in a small bowl.
  • Once the meatballs have slightly cooled, toss in sauce. Serve hot!

Nutrition

Calories: 213 kcal, Carbohydrates: 5 g, Protein: 24 g, Fat: 11 g, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 1 g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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About Lee Funke

Lee is the founder of Fit Foodie Finds and based in Minneapolis, MN. She started this website in 2010 as a way to share her love for real food and wellness. The internet has changed so much since then and so has Fit Foodie Finds. Today we're a female-run recipe website publishing hundreds of tried and true recipes developed and tested by our team.

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Christina Berlin
Christina Berlin
January 23, 2019 10:56 am

Do you prepare oatmeal or is it just whole oats or ground oats?

Sloane
Sloane
January 22, 2019 1:36 pm
Recipe Rating :
     

5 stars
Amazing– my picky boyfriend even liked these and he usually doesn’t like meatballs! I did not have any ground chicken on hand, so I used ground turkey. Turned out spectacular and will definitely be making again!

Aileen
Aileen
September 17, 2018 2:37 pm
Recipe Rating :
     

3 stars
I tripled the recipe and I made the chicken version for a dinner party; I thought it would be good appetizer. This recipe is designed to be eaten right away. I believe it needs more fat for moisture or maybe milk added like in a traditional meatball. They looked pretty but after they sat out for 15 mins. they tasted dry. I had people arriving 30-60 mins. after I put them out and they lost something by then. I think they would be better with a ground turkey that is higher in fat content.

Nikki
Nikki
June 21, 2018 10:49 pm

Substituted flour for almond flour and used coconut aminos… these came out AMAZING. Staple recipe for sure! Thanks!

Katie
Katie
February 17, 2018 7:36 pm
Recipe Rating :
     

5 stars
These are amaze-balls for real! Loved these and will def be on repeat. Thanks girl

Sherwood
Sherwood
December 8, 2017 9:56 pm

I doubled this for meal prep, to be served with frozen broccoli, cauliflower, sliced bell peppers, and carrots over a mix of brown and black rice. My meatballs look more like thick meat cookies than balls, but that helps them pack into my container for work better. Absolutely delicious. A great balance of flavors in the sauce, and the highlight of work currently. lol Thanks for the recipe!

Chef
Chef
September 22, 2017 8:02 pm

If there is only 10 tablespoons of sauce in your recipe, how are all the meatballs swimming in sauce in the pictures ?

Sarah Varner
August 29, 2017 6:17 pm

These are sooo delicious and so easy to make! Next time I’m volunentold to bring something for work potluck, it will be These! Yum!

Lily
Lily
May 22, 2017 11:15 am

I would like to try this recipe but oven is out at this time. Can I fry them, maybe in some coconut oil??

Leesa
Leesa
April 10, 2017 2:22 pm
Recipe Rating :
     

4 stars
I made these today, they were amazing! I added twice the amount of honey to cut spicy. Served with jasmine rice and pan sautéed sugar snap peas.