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This recipe was created when I was going through a round of Whole30 and all I was craving was Indian food! I find Indian food to be so flavorful, filling, and comforting, and these Saucy Chicken Tikka Meatballs check all of those boxes!
These Saucy Chicken Tikka Meatballs are a fun, quick and easy rendition of my Crockpot Chicken Tikka Masala. The meatballs bake in the oven while you whip up a quick sauce, and just like that, dinner is served! I really wanted that for dinner one night and didn’t have all the ingredients I needed. I did, however, have ingredients to make meatballs.
These Saucy Chicken Tikka Meatballs are just the thing when you want a warm, comforting meal at the end of a long day. This recipe is a great way to get your kiddos to try spice-heavy (but not spicy!) food. My kids love tikka masala in all forms and they love meatballs, so this recipe plus some steamed rice is a major hit.
Ingredients:
- Ground Chicken
- Egg
- Almond Flour
- Kosher Salt
- Ground Pepper
- Cilantro
- Garlic Powder
- Ground Cumin
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Yellow Onion
- Garlic Cloves
- Ginger
- Curry Powder
- Garam Masala
- Ground Turmeric
- Cayenne Pepper
- Tomato Paste
- Unsweetened Coconut Milk
- Chicken Broth
- Lemon
- Rice
Step-by-step:
step one: prep the oven
Preheat the oven to 375°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
step two: make the meatballs
In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, egg, almond flour, salt, pepper, cilantro, garlic powder, and cumin. Using your hands, mix until well combined. Roll the meatballs into 1-inch rounds and place on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil, and transfer to the oven and let bake until just about cooked through and lightly browned, about 15 minutes.
step three: make the tikka sauce
In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger. Cook, stirring, until tender, about 4 minutes.
Add the curry powder, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, and cayenne pepper and toss, toasting the spices until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
Stir in the tomato paste until well combined with the spices. While whisking, slowly stir in the coconut milk until it is well combined and there are no lumps. Add the broth and salt and bring to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reduced slightly. Taste and add more salt and/or cayenne, if desired.
step four: add the meatballs to the sauce
When the meatballs are cooked through, transfer them to the sauce and carefully toss to coat fully. Reduce to medium-low heat, cover, and let the flavors meld for about 5 minutes.
step five: finish and serve!
To finish, stir in the lemon juice and top with fresh cilantro. Serve over rice or cauliflower rice, and enjoy!
You can absolutely sub panko breadcrumbs instead of almond flour, and use any rice you prefer over cauliflower rice!
I love a spicy sauce, too! I add more cayenne to taste.
Ground turkey, ground beef, or even ground lamb would work well for this recipe!
I hope these Saucy Chicken Tikka Meatballs serves your family as well as they’ve served mine! Comment below once you’ve tried it.
Looking for more tikka masala-inpsired recipes? Try these!
Tikka Masala Meatballs
Ingredients
For the Meatballs:
- 2 pounds ground chicken preferably dark meat
- 1 egg
- ½ cup almond flour sub panko breadcrumbs
- 1 ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- ¼ cup minced cilantro leaves and tender stems
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
For the Tikka Sauce:
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup finely diced yellow onion ½ onion
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 1 teaspoon grated ginger
- 2 tablespoons curry powder
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon ground turmeric
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice or 1 lemon
- ¼ cup freshly chopped cilantro
- Prepared Rice or Cauliflower Rice for serving
Instructions
Make the Meatballs:
- Preheat the oven to 375°Fand line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, combine the ground chicken, egg, almond flour, salt, pepper, cilantro, garlic powder, and cumin. Using your hands, mix until well combined.
- Roll the meatballs into 1-inch rounds and place on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil, and transfer to the oven and let bake until just about cooked through and lightly browned, about 15 minutes.
Make the Tikka Sauce:
- In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, and ginger. Cook, stirring, until tender, about 4 minutes.
- Add the curry powder, garam masala, turmeric, cumin, and cayenne pepper and toss, toasting the spices until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes.
- Stir in the tomato paste until well combined with the spices. While whisking, slowly stir in the coconut milk until it is well combined and there are no lumps. Add the broth and salt and bring to a simmer. Simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the sauce has reduced slightly. Taste and add more salt and/or cayenne, if desired.
- When the meatballs are cooked through, transfer them to the sauce and carefully toss to coat fully. Reduce to medium-low heat, cover, and let the flavors meld for about 5 minutes.
- To finish, stir in the lemon juice and top with fresh cilantro. Serve over rice or cauliflower rice, and enjoy!
Notes
- To freeze, let the meatballs cool completely, then transfer it to airtight containers or freezer bags, leaving some space for expansion. Label and date the containers before placing them in the freezer.
- To thaw, place the container in the refrigerator overnight. Reheat in the oven by placing the meatballs and sauce in an oven-safe dish, covering with foil, and baking at 350°F for about 20-25 minutes, or until heated through. Tossing occasionally to ensure even heating.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Food Photography and Styling by Eat Love Eats.
Hi
Just starting the Whole30 and this looks delicious. Do you stir the coconut milk or take the fat off the top? One ingredient that has stumped us. TIA
I stir it all in. And, if you are cooking another recipe that calls for only a portion of the can, I like to put all contents into a food processor, blender, or use an immersion blender and blend it until it is combined evenly for best results in cooking with coconut milk 🙂
Hi Alex,
Can I crockpot these meatballs in the sauce on low for 6-8 hours? Thanks!
Hi Miranda,
I wouldn’t do these in the crockpot mainly because I find the coconut milk doesn’t hold up well when cooking low and slow. And since that’s the main liquid in this recipe it just won’t work. Be sure to check out my Crockpot Chicken Tikka Masala, it’s method works perfect slow cooked. https://thedefineddish.com/crockpot-chicken-tikka-masala/
Makes sense! Thanks, Alex!
I love your pan! What brand and size is it? (sorry not related to the meatballs but they do look fabulous!)
It is a Ballarini (the parma line), and it’s a 10 inch! I have it linked on my shop page under kitchen appliances 🙂
I just made this and it is FANTASTIC! It made 4 very generous portions (I doubt I’ll be able to finish one serving in one sitting). The only thing I did different is I blended the sauce before adding the lemon juice and I think it intensified the flavors, in a good way! I served it over coconut caulirice with a side of broccoli.
love the idea of blending it to make it extra silky and creamy!!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Im allergic to almonds. Is there a good sub?
Yes. You can do coconut flour here, or even 1 tbsp arrowroot starch.
Your recipe calls for 1 can of unsweetened full fat coconut milk. What size? I assume you mean about 15 oz and not the small 5 oz? More milk means more sauce 🙂 but I don’t want to dilute the seasonings too much and lose the flavah!
Thanks for pointing that out, I will edit the post now! The can I use and recommend (Thai Kitchen) is a 13.5 oz can!
What do you mean when you say curry….yellow, red? I need more help!?
hi Hazel, I mean just regular curry powder (for indian dishes).
Is this really just 2 servings?
It’s really more like 3.. I usually divide it up so each person has at least 1/2 lb. of meat to be safe. Meatballs make great leftovers and I’d rather people have extra than be hungry from my recipes and they way I divide up serving sizes.. if that makes sense. Just playing it safe 😉
Could I use my arrowroot starch in sub of almond flour? Been craving Indian!
No, not in this recipe. Since arrowroot is a thickener, the only subs I would use is Coconut flour in this recipe. If you do decide to try arrowroot, I’d only use 1 tbsp. of it.
I don’t have veal handy….. Besides reducing the amount of meat I have, will it vastly effect flavor? Or should I be good with ground beef? Can’t wait to make! Thank you 🙂
Yes, you will be fine! I just find that veal helps make the meatballs more tender/less dry! With all that yummy sauce though, the meatballs will be fab regardless!! Enjoy!