Ground Chicken Meatballs with a Creamy Marsala Sauce
Course: entree
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6
Prep Time: 15 minutesminutes
Cook Time: 15 minutesminutes
Total Time: 30 minutesminutes
Ingredients
MEATBALLS
1lbground chicken
2tablespoonsolive oil
2tablespoonsbutter
1onion(minced)
1teaspoonsalt
1teaspoonpepper
½cuppanko breadcrumbs
1egg
SAUCE
¼cupMarsala wine
3tablespoonsbutter
3tablespoonsflour
1 ¼cupschicken broth
¼cupcream
salt and pepper
egg noodles
Instructions
Meatballs:
Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and 1 tablespoon butter and once melted, add onion with a sprinkle of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Let cool slightly.
Add ground chicken to a bowl with panko, egg, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Add slightly cooled onions to the mixture and combine. Using a 2 tablespoon ice-cream scoop, scoop out the meatballs forming them with your hands if needed into round balls and place on a plate.
Add a tablespoon of olive oil and a tablespoon of butter to the pan over medium heat, and when hot, add the meatballs. Let them cook without moving them for a couple of minutes. Once they have started to cook, they will hold together and you can turn them so that all sides are brown. You can use a meat thermometer to check when they are done, it should take about 5 minutes. (They will cook a little bit more at the end but if you’re going to nibble on them, cook to 160º) Remove to a clean plate.
Sauce:
Add the Marsala wine to the pan and scrape up all the brown bits. Cook until it has cooked off. Add butter to the pan, and when melted whisk in the flour, stirring for about a minute, then slowly add the broth whisking the whole time. It should be slightly thick. Add cream and salt and pepper to taste and then add the meatballs back to the pan and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cover and cook for about 10 minutes until your meatballs are heated through.
Cook egg noodles according to package instructions and serve meatballs over cooked noodles.
Barbara's Notes + Tips
When browning chicken meatballs, let them cook without touching them for a few minutes, so that they are browned completely on one side before turning.
You can substitute Madeira or red wine for Marsala but it will not have the unique Marsala flavor. Marsala can be stored for a long time after opening in the pantry.
This recipe can easily be doubled, you will just need a very large skillet or two 10 inch skillet.
Chicken meatballs freeze very well. When re-heating, add a little milk, chicken broth or even water to them to thin down the sauce which will have thickened while frozen.