These chicken meatballs have all the cheesy Tex-Mex flavors of my favorite enchiladas! I baked up these enchilada meatballs with perfectly seasoned ground chicken and breadcrumbs, then covered them with red enchilada sauce and lots of cheese. With 7 ingredients and 30 minutes, I might have just made the best meatballs for Mexican night!
Cheesy Enchiladas Meatball Bake
I think my favorite Mexican dish has to be chicken enchiladas, so it only made sense that I throw together some tasty meatballs inspired by those delicious flavors. Baking chicken meatballs in my favorite enchilada sauce and cheese is so quick and easy to do, and they come out of the oven just perfect. I like serving them with rice and beans for a unique Mexican dinner, but they work just as well for game day appetizers.
All you need to make this zesty recipe for Mexican enchilada meatballs is an egg, some ground chicken, breadcrumbs, a little onion and garlic, enchilada sauce, and shredded Monterey jack cheese.
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Prevent Meatballs from Falling Apart!
One of the issues I sometimes run into when making these enchilada chicken meatballs is getting the meatball mixture to stick together. The egg and breadcrumbs are the major binding ingredients in this recipe. But if it’s not working, I add about 2 tablespoons of milk to help things stick. If the mixture gets too warm, that can also cause problems, so keep your ground chicken in the fridge right until you’re ready to make the meatballs!
Chicken Enchilada Meatballs Recipe
Equipment
- 9×13 Baking Pan
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- ⅓ cup breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup diced onion
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 large egg
- 10 ounces red enchilada sauce (1 can*)
- 4 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- chopped fresh cilantro (optional, for garnish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray a 9×13-inch baking pan with nonstick spray.
- Combine the chicken, breadcrumbs, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, and egg in a large bowl. Mix thoroughly.1 pound ground chicken, ⅓ cup breadcrumbs, ¼ cup diced onion, 2 cloves garlic, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper, 1 large egg
- Portion the ground chicken mixture into 24 meatballs with a cookie scoop or your hands. Roll into balls using your hands.
- Bake the meatballs for 20 minutes.
- Remove the meatballs from the oven, top with sauce and cheese, then return to the oven for 5 minutes.10 ounces red enchilada sauce, 4 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- Garnish with chopped cilantro if desired.chopped fresh cilantro
Notes
- Use cold ingredients straight from the refrigerator. This will make the meatballs easier to roll.
- To make these meatballs low carb, swap the breadcrumbs for ⅓ cup of freshly grated cheese.
- To make these meatballs gluten-free, follow the low-carb instructions or swap the breadcrumbs for gluten-free breadcrumbs.
- If you find that your meatballs are not sticking together after adding the breadcrumbs and eggs, you may need to add some liquid (I like to use about 2 tablespoons of milk) to help them stick together.
- Make sure to fold the meatball mixture together gently so as not to overwork the meat.
- I like to divide the ground chicken mixture into 24 equal-sized meatballs. Each meatball is just about ⅔ of an ounce of meat. I like to use a 1-ounce cookie scoop to do this, but you can use your hands! The meatballs should be about the size of a US quarter.
- Gently roll the meatballs into balls. Don’t over-compact them, or they could turn out tough.
- Chicken meatballs are fully cooked when they reach 165°F internally.
Note: Water, salt, pepper, oil, and broth are not counted as ingredients on this site.
Low Carb Enchilada Meatballs
If you want to turn these chicken enchilada meatballs into a low-carb and keto chicken recipe, swap the breadcrumbs for ⅓ cup of freshly grated cheese. This will reduce the total carb count to about 5 grams! This ingredient swap will also make these meatballs a gluten-free recipe.
How to Store, Freeze, and Reheat
Store leftover Mexican chicken meatballs with enchilada sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 2 months. Let thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating in the microwave in 30-second increments until hot, or in a 350°F oven for about 10 minutes.
You can also freeze the uncooked meatballs in an airtight container for up to 3 months. I recommend thawing them overnight in the refrigerator before baking according to the recipe.
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