High-Protein Chicken Meatballs Recipe With High-Fiber Beans & Greens by Terri Kendrick

My husband isn’t much on greens, unless they’re in a salad with a bunch of other stuff and ranch dressing to distract him. Therefore, I was a little leery about this chicken meatballs with greens recipe inspired by New York Times Cooking. I decided to give it a try thanks to all the healthy ingredients and abundance of protein (read about the importance of protein in our diets), which we both really need. The worst thing that could happen is I had to eat it all myself!

The healthy ground chicken meatball recipe was easy and fairly quick to make. It helped that I could break it up into two stages, allowing me to get other things done while the meatballs chilled. But the best news was that my husband loved it and asked me to add these chicken meatballs to our meal rotation. Yay! Winner, winner, chicken meatball dinner!

Photo credit (all photos): Terri Kendrick

To make the moist high-protein meatballs you will need ground chicken, an egg, panko breadcrumbs, yogurt, garlic, dried oregano, crushed red pepper flakes, salt, black pepper, olive oil, Swiss chard (read about the health benefits of Swiss chard), lemons, ground cumin, a can of cannellini beans (read about the health benefits of beans), garlic salt and chicken broth. Next time, I will double the meatballs and freeze half for later!

Tip: If you want to freeze the meatballs, lay them out on a pan so they freeze individually and don’t clump together and then portion them for your meals in freezer bags.

The meatballs are a complete high-protein and high-fiber meal for dinner (protein and vegetable). But you could serve them with your favorite side dishes.

Cuisine: American / Mediterranean
Prep Time: 15 minutes plus 1 hour to chill meatballs
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour and 40 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground chicken
• 1 small egg, beaten
• 1/2 cup panko breadcrumbs
• 1/3 cup full-fat thick yogurt (preferably Greek or Icelandic)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more if desired
• 4 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for coating your hands
• 1 pound rainbow or Swiss chard (1 large or 2 small bunches), chopped or torn
• 1 lemon, thinly sliced 
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin (divided)
• 15.5 ounces (1 can) cannellini beans, rinsed
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/2 cup chicken broth

Here’s how to make it:

1. In a large bowl, combine the egg, breadcrumbs, yogurt, garlic, oregano, crushed red pepper flakes and 1 teaspoon salt. Add the chicken and gently mix until fully combined. (The original recipe, which I tweaked, called for two scallions, but I forgot to buy them. The recipe was great without them, but they probably would add a little extra flavor. For a gluten-free dinner, use gluten-free panko breadcrumbs.)
   
2. Coat your palms in olive oil and shape the meat into 12 to 14 meatballs. Set the meatballs on a pan and refrigerate for about an hour.
   
3. Pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a 12-inch dutch oven or other heavy pot with a tight-fitting lid, tilting the pot to fully coat the surface with oil. Heat the oil over medium heat for about 2 minutes. Add the meatballs and allow them to cook until they are golden on one side.
   
4. Flip the meatballs to brown on the opposite side, about 7 minutes. Add more oil, if needed.
   
5. Meanwhile, mix the greens, lemon slices and cumin in a bowl. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil and teaspoon of salt. Toss to coat the leaves and incorporate the seasoning. (You can substitute spinach or kale (or a mix of both) for the Swiss chard.)
   
6. Add the beans, garlic salt, a teaspoon of lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon of cumin to the meatballs. Add the chicken broth to deglaze the pan, loosening any crispy bits of meatball, as well as to add some liquid for cooking your greens. (White wine can also be used to deglaze the pan.)
   
7. Cover the meatballs with the greens mixture and place the lid on the pan. Reduce the heat slightly and cook until the meatballs are cooked through and the greens tender, about 12 to 13 minutes.
   
8. When serving, make sure you ladle up those lemony juices, too! Store any leftovers in an airtight container and reheat in the microwave.
   

Recipe cooking times, nutritional information and servings are approximate and provided for your convenience. However, 30Seconds is not responsible for the outcome of any recipe, nor may you have the same results because of variations in ingredients, temperatures, altitude, errors, omissions or cooking/baking abilities. Any nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and it is up to the individual to ascertain accuracy. To ensure image quality, we may occasionally use stock photography.

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