Chicken Meatballs for Babies
These Chicken Meatballs for babies, toddlers and kids are soft, delicious and nutritious. They are a great source of protein and are made with added veggies and fruit.
Servings: 28 balls
Calories: 47kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion , finely chopped
- 1 carrot , peeled and finely grated
- 40g (¾ cup) breadcrumbs (optional see notes)
- 2 tablespoon milk (optional see notes)
- 1 small pear , peeled and grated
- 1 small apple , peeled and grated
- 2 teaspoon freshly chopped parsley
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 500g (1.1lb) chicken mince (ground chicken)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200c / 400f and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion and carrot, over a low heat, until soft. (For around 5 mins)
- In a small bowl, pour the milk over the breadcrumbs and allow to sit for 5 mins.
- Place the apple and pear onto a clean cloth and squeeze as much juice as you can out of them. (save the juice for smoothies etc)
- Add all the ingredients, apart from the ground chicken, to a mixing bowl and mix with your hands until all the ingredients are mixed together. Add the chicken mince and then gently mix, with your hands, until just combined.
- Shape tablespoons of the mixture into balls and place on the lined baking tray. (I made 28 balls.)
- Place in the oven and bake for approx. 20 mins, until golden and cooked through. Alternatively shallow fry, in batches, for around 6 minutes, until golden on both sides and cooked through.
Video
Notes
- Breadcrumb and Milk mixture - Added to produce a lighter, more tender ball. If you have a dairy/gluten allergy then you can miss this out.
- Finely grate the carrots and fruit - If you have a box grater then use the smaller shredding holes designed to finely grate. A larger grate will still work but the meatball will just be a lot more textured.
- Don't overwork the mixture - The amount the ground chicken is handled will have a direct impact on the final texture of the meatballs. For lighter, tender meatballs try not to overwork the mixture. I find combining all the ingredients before adding the ground chicken can really help with this.
- Use damp hands when forming balls - this just helps to prevent the mixture from sticking to your hands and making the balls hard to form.
Nutrition
Calories: 47kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 15mg | Sodium: 20mg | Potassium: 132mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 410IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 0.2mg