These baked buffalo turkey meatballs combine the delicious flavours of buffalo wings in meatball form! They’re super easy to prepare and disappear fast. Next time you want to mix up wing night, try these oven-baked turkey meatballs. They’re sure to be a favourite!
Don’t you just love buffalo-flavoured recipes? I know they’re a favourite around here!
And pair that spicy flavour with fun, bite-size meatballs? Talk about delicious!
These buffalo turkey meatballs are quick to prepare and disappear just as fast.
Once you make them once, you’re going to want to make them again and again!
How To Make Buffalo Turkey Meatballs
Full details are in the recipe card below, but here are the basics:
In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground turkey with panko bread crumbs, egg, carrot, celery, green onion and seasonings.
Mix to combine.
Now it’s time to form the ground turkey mixture into meatballs.
For each meatball, I like to use a small cookie scoop (basically, about 1.5 tablespoons worth of the ground turkey mixture per meatball).
Scoop, form into balls and place onto a greased sheet pan.
Bake the turkey meatballs until they’re fully cooked through.
Now it’s just a matter of placing the cooked turkey meatballs in a clean bowl, coating them generously with your favourite buffalo sauce and devouring!
I like to top the meatballs with some crumbled blue cheese. I realize that not everyone is a blue cheese fan, so that’s totally optional.
You could totally enjoy the buffalo turkey meatballs as they are (and they are delicious) or serve with a dipping sauce, like blue cheese dressing or ranch dressing.
How To Keep the Meatballs From Falling Apart
Panko bread crumbs and egg are used as a binder for these oven-baked turkey meatballs.
I also find that fresh ground turkey (versus ground turkey that has been frozen, then thawed) works better.
How To Add Flavour to the Meatballs
Ground turkey can be pretty neutral in flavour, which can kinda be a good thing because it gives an opportunity to add all sorts of seasoning.
These ground turkey meatballs are flavoured with garlic powder, dried dill, salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper. For added oomph, they have shredded carrot and finely minced celery (you know, classic with buffalo-flavoured foods).
If you really enjoy spice, you can add some more ground cayenne pepper to the turkey meatball mixture.
How To Know When the Meatballs Are Cooked
The turkey meatballs should reach a minimum internal cooking temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
Obviously, you want the meatballs to be fully cooked, but you don’t want to overcook them so they turn out dry.
Generally, I find it takes about 20 to 22 minutes for the meatballs to cook through. An instant-read meat thermometer is your best friend here to be sure! They’re handy to have around and pretty inexpensive.
Note: If you make your turkey meatballs larger (or smaller), then the cook time can vary. Just make sure they reach the minimum internal temperature when cooking them.
Can I Use Ground Chicken Instead?
Absolutely! These buffalo meatballs work great with ground chicken or ground turkey.
I mean, buffalo chicken meatballs or buffalo turkey meatballs, can you really go wrong?
Ways To Enjoy Them
- Enjoy as they are as a fun spin on wing night.
- Serve on a sub sandwich (recipe coming soon).
- Stuff a pita with the meatballs.
- Serve alongside rice or a Caesar salad.
More Buffalo Flavoured Recipes
If you try these buffalo turkey meatballs, be sure to leave a comment below!
Buffalo Turkey Meatballs (Or Use Chicken)
Ingredients
- Cooking spray, to grease sheet pan
- 1 pound lean ground turkey
- ½ cup unseasoned panko bread crumbs
- 1 large egg
- ⅓ cup shredded carrot, about 1 small carrot
- ⅓ cup finely chopped celery, about 1 small celery rib
- ¼ cup chopped green onion, about 1 large green onion stalk
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon dried dill (dill weed), optional
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne pepper, optional
- 4 to 5 tablespoons buffalo sauce, ¼ to ⅓ cup (depending on how much sauce you want)
Garnish and Serving Ideas (optional)
- Crumbled blue cheese, garnish to taste (optional)
- Chopped green onion, garnish to taste (optional)
- Chopped parsley, garnish to taste (optional)
- Ranch or blue cheese dressing, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray a sheet pan with cooking spray and set aside (alternatively, you can line the sheet pan with some parchment paper).
- In a large mixing bowl, combine ground turkey with panko bread crumbs, egg, carrot, celery, green onion, garlic powder, dill (if using), black pepper, salt and cayenne pepper (if using). Mix until thoroughly combined.
- Form turkey mixture into meatballs, about 1.5 tablespoons per meatball, yielding about 22 meatballs. Place the meatballs onto the prepared sheet pan as you roll them, leaving a little space between them.
- Bake for 20 to 22 minutes or until the meatballs are fully cooked through (the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit in the centre of the meatballs when checked with an instant-read meat thermometer).
- Once done, place the turkey meatballs in a clean bowl and pour over the buffalo sauce. Stir until the meatballs are coated in the sauce.
- Transfer the meatballs to a serving dish, garnish to taste with crumbled blue cheese, green onion and/or parsley (if desired). Serve as is or with ranch or blue cheese dressing for dipping. Enjoy!
A note on times provided: appliances vary, any prep and/or cook times provided are estimates only.
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Tried this recipe?
If you do make this recipe, thank you!! It would mean so much if you could leave a comment below. Love to know how you enjoyed it, and it helps other readers too!
Kathy @ Beyond the Chicken Coop says
These are fun! I love how you were able to get some veggies in the meatballs too….a little carrot and celery adds flavor and extra nutrients. The sauce looks amazing too!
David @ Spiced says
This is my kind of comfort food! I love buffalo anything, and the idea of making buffalo meatballs is calling to me right now. Put a few of those on a roll and drizzle it with blue cheese dressing, and I’d be a happy camper!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers says
Yes, I love anything Buffalo-flavoured, so I’m loving these tasty looking meatballs. Would be great for a meal, or just for a delicious football-watching snack. Perfect!
Laura says
Dawn! You always have such great ideas for simple meals! I love this idea – you actually had me at “buffalo” but I’ve never made a buffalo meatball! Yum!
Michelle says
Love buffalo flavour! These meatballs look so delicious, Dawn! Love how they’re baked too! Yum!