Sweet Chilli Chicken Meatballs in Air Fryer -Flavor Quotient

Chewy outside & melt-in-mouth inside, these delectable glossy sweet chilli chicken meatballs made in air fryer may just become your best weight loss meal for good! I’m serious!

Chicken meatball is one of those fancy ways that makes everyday homemade meals extra-special!

And when you make these crazy delicious sweet chilli chicken meatballs, it’s a different ballgame altogether! These are a must-try and that too at the earliest!

I have good news too if you are in a similar weight loss journey as me! You can relish these air fryer meatballs even when you are on a calorie deficit diet!

(But of course in a controlled portion!)

How? Because my sweet chilli chicken meatballs are almost oil-free – they do not contain any oil or fat in the mixture; only a couple sprays of oil while air-frying.

Being oil-free makes these chicken meatballs significantly low in unnecessary calories and that makes it a winner for all us fitness enthusiasts!

What are Sweet Chilli Chicken meatballs?

Meatballs are nothing new and I have shared many chicken meatballs dishes here on my blog. So what’s so special about these sweet chilli chicken meatballs?

These sweet chilli chicken meatballs are your no-fuss high-protein low-oil dinner that you can enjoy guilt-free even during your weight loss journey!

If you have been following my blog for quite some time now, you know that I am crazy about high protein yet low calorie recipes to include into my intentionally balanced meal routines.

So I only recommend those which align with my fitness journey and this sweet chilli chicken meatballs recipe is definitely one of them!

The meatballs mixture is completely oil free! You only need a few spritz of oil while air frying them to prevent sticking and excessive drying of the meatballs.

But to keep myself honest, I must set your expectations right here!

Since these sweet chilli chicken meatballs are not pan-fried in oil, the outer exterior will be a little bit tough and chewy!

However once you cut them open, they have a soft, melt-in-mouth texture inside!

So it’s just a small price to pay to cut down loads of unnecessary calories while enjoying a delicious restaurant quality dish at your home even when you are trying to shed some kilos!

Also do not go overboard with the sweet chilli sauce as any readymade sweet sauce contains a significant amount of sugar which can again weigh up the calorie content of your sweet chilli chicken meatballs.

Ingredients for Sweet Chilli Chicken meatballs

Chicken mince: We need to talk about chicken mince in detail so that you can make the best ever sweet chilli chicken meatballs in the comfort of your home!

Just pay a little attention here!

I know that you can easily buy pre-minced chicken from your regular meat shop; but my problem with that is they are not sticky enough!

And stickiness is a critical property to have when you want to make good meatballs which do not fall apart!

So my recommendation is to get fresh chicken breasts, cut them up into small cubes and process in your food processor using the chopping blade.

This home-minced chicken is very sticky which makes rolling the meatballs an easy breezy task! Also they will never fall apart!

Panko breadcrumbs: This Japanese style breadcrumbs will add crunch to your sweet chilli chicken meatballs complementing beautifully with the succulent texture of minced chicken.

Plus, breadcrumbs also hold the meatballs together acting as a binder along with the next item in the list.

Egg: This versatile ingredient works as the key binder for your chicken meatballs making sure they don’t fall apart after you roll them.

Also the egg retains the softness of the chicken breast keeping the meatballs juicy & tender!

Aromatics: I am sure you already know that chicken breasts are not full of a lot of flavors; in fact they are quite bland to be very honest.

To make sure that our sweet chilli chicken meatballs do not turn out bland & flavorless, we need to amp up our aromatics game here!

Garlic powder & onion powder are of course the obvious ones, but to pack a punch, you will need a whole lot of spring onions! Both the whites & greens! Finely chopped!

Spices: Let’s talk about the spices! Um, but there is nothing much to talk about spices here as the only spice I have used is paprika or red chilli powder and that too for color and not for heat.

I wanted the fresh herby flavors of spring onions to shine through my chilli chicken meatballs without any overwhelming senses of spices! Hence only chilli powder!

Seasoning: Use salt and pepper to season your chilli chicken meatballs mixture, but go a little low on salt.

That’s simply because the meatballs will be tossed with sweet chilli sauce which also comes with added salt apart from being hot & sweet.

So if you add too much salt to your chicken mixture, you will end up with way too salty meatballs!

Sweet chilli sauce: This is the game changer! I mean, literally!

This popular hot & sweet sauce takes your ordinary air fryer chicken meatballs and transforms them into sticky, addictive & showstopping sweet chilli chicken meatballs that will get you hooked once you try the first one!

How to make Sweet Chilli Chicken meatballs?

Step 1: Wash the chicken breasts and pat them dry thoroughly. Then cut them into small cubes in order to fit inside your food processor.

Step 2: Now using the chopping blade of your food processor, process the chicken cubes until you get finely minced chicken which also sticks together as a dough.

Step 3: Take out the chicken minced in a mixing bowl and add all the ingredients except sweet chilli sauce – onion & garlic powder, panko, chilli powder, eggs, spring onion and salt & pepper.

Step 4: Using a spatula, start mixing everything together to evenly distribute the aromatics & seasoning within the minced chicken.

Pro tip: Take time at this stage as the homemade minced chicken is stickier than store-ground chicken mince, so it will have more resistance which is a good thing.

That’s because the stickiness will help keep your chicken meatballs intact in shape and not fall apart while handling.

When you are happy with the mixing, it’s time to roll the meatballs!

Step 5: Grease your palm lightly with oil. Then take about two tablespoons of meatball mixture and roll it between your palms to make a ball.

Step 6: Repeat the process until you have about 9-10 meatballs with this amount of chicken mince. Leave them on a greased tray while you preheat your air fryer.

Step 7: Start preheating your air fryer at 180 C / 350 F and set the timer to 20 minutes. Once preheated, spray the air fryer basket with oil to prevent any sticking.

Step 8: Now place the rolled chicken meatballs inside the air fryer basket keeping gaps around each. Spray oil over the meatballs and start air frying them.

Step 9: At the halfway mark, pull the basket out, flip over the meatballs using a tong, spray a little more oil on top to prevent drying and return the basket back to the fryer.

Step 10: Continue to air fry your sweet chilli chicken meatballs for the remaining duration. Once done, we will proceed to transform your ordinary meatballs into incredible sweet chilli chicken meatballs!

Step 11: Take out the chicken meatballs into a mixing bowl. Drizzle the sweet chilli sauce over them while they are still hot.

Step 12: Using a spatula, give them a good mix so that each meatball is coated with the sauce thoroughly. Adjust the amount of sauce as per your liking.

Step 13: Now transfer the saucy meatballs again to the air fryer basket and air fry them at the same temperature for 5 more minutes.

Step 14: Your regular meatballs have now transformed into glossy & tempting sweet chilli chicken meatballs having a sticky & chewy exterior with succulent & melt-in-mouth texture inside!

Step 15: Serve them up warm with more sweet chilli sauce on the side, loads of fresh salad and enjoy!

More air fryer recipes from Flavor Quotient

Sweet Chilli Chicken Meatballs in Air Fryer | High Protein Air Fryer Chicken Recipe for Weight Loss

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Prep time

15 mins

Cook time

20 mins

Total time

35 mins

Author: Priyanka

Recipe type: Main

Cuisine: Asian

Serves: 10 meatballs

Ingredients

Minced chicken - 250 to 300 gms
Onion powder - 1 tsp
Garlic powder - 1 tsp
Panko breadcrumbs - 5 tbsp
Paprika/chilli powder - 1 tsp
Egg - 1
Spring Onions - 2 to 3 stalks, both whites & greens finely chopped
Salt - 1 tsp or to taste
Pepper - ½ tsp
Sweet Chilli sauce - ¼ cup (adjust as per your liking)

Instructions

Wash the chicken breasts and pat them dry thoroughly. Then cut them into small cubes in order to fit inside your food processor.
Now using the chopping blade of your food processor, process the chicken cubes until you get finely minced chicken which also sticks together as a dough.
Take out the chicken minced in a mixing bowl and add all the ingredients except sweet chilli sauce - onion & garlic powder, panko, chilli powder, eggs, spring onion and salt & pepper.
Using a spatula, start mixing everything together to evenly distribute the aromatics & seasoning within the minced chicken. Take time at this stage so that everything is uniformly mixed.
When you are happy with the mixing, it’s time to roll the meatballs!
Grease your palm lightly with oil. Then take about two tablespoons of meatball mixture and roll it between your palms to make a ball.
Repeat the process until you have about 9-10 meatballs with this amount of chicken mince. Leave them on a greased tray while you preheat your air fryer.
Start preheating your air fryer at 180 C / 350 F and set the timer to 20 minutes. Once preheated, spray the air fryer basket with oil to prevent any sticking.
Now place the rolled chicken meatballs inside the air fryer basket keeping gaps around each. Spray oil over the meatballs and start air frying them.
At the halfway mark, pull the basket out, flip over the meatballs using a tong, spray a little more oil on top to prevent drying and return the basket back to the fryer.
Continue to air fry your sweet chilli chicken meatballs for the remaining duration. Once done, we will proceed to transform your ordinary meatballs into incredible sweet chilli chicken meatballs!
Take out the chicken meatballs into a mixing bowl. Drizzle the sweet chilli sauce over them while they are still hot.
Using a spatula, give them a good mix so that each meatball is coated with the sauce thoroughly. Adjust the amount of sauce as per your liking.
Now transfer the saucy meatballs again to the air fryer basket and air fry them at the same temperature for 5 more minutes.
Your regular meatballs have now transformed into glossy & tempting sweet chilli chicken meatballs having a sticky & chewy exterior with succulent & melt-in-mouth texture inside!
Serve them up warm with more sweet chilli sauce on the side, loads of fresh salad and enjoy!