Our Chicken Zucchini Poppers are one of my My MOST POPULAR RECIPES EVER! These chicken zucchini meatballs are squeaky clean, but not short on flavor! Gluten-free, Paleo, and Whole30 friendly!
Have you heard of Whole30? I first heard about it a few years ago when the book It Starts With Food came out. In essence, Whole30 is a chance to reset your body by eating squeaky clean for 30 days, giving you a chance to see if you have any latent food sensitivities, break any unhealthy patterns you may have, clear up any food-related inflammation and start fresh.
Well, it’s making a comeback. Several great bloggers are in the middle of theirs, so I’ve seen a huge resurgence of healthy recipes floating about the web. We aren’t on a Whole30, but we eat pretty darn clean most of the time. I’ve loved the huge variety of inspiration out there lately! These Chicken Zucchini Poppers are delicious, and while they may be squeaky clean, they don’t skimp on flavor.
We LOVE them. They’d make great game-day food for something lighter or a great addition to a buffet table. We love them for dinner with some veggies and a little dish of guacamole or Citrus Avocado Sauce for dipping and some sweet potatoes or salad and fruit on the side. Not a guacamole fan? No problem. They’d be great with salsa or paleo ranch. If you’re not gluten free, they’d be awesome in a pita. (p.s. anyone have a good GF pita recipe?
Gather Your Ingredients
How To Make Chicken Zucchini Poppers, Step By Step
As always, you can find the full recipe, with ingredient amounts, detailed instructions, and tips in the recipe card below!
- Prep Zucchini. If you haven’t already, place grated zucchini in paper towels or a clean kitchen towel. Squeeze all the excess moisture out of the zucchini. (You don’t want it wet!)
- Combine. In a large bowl, mix together chicken, zucchini, green onion, cilantro, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin (if using). Mixture will be quite wet.
- Scoop & Shape Meatballs. Next, scoop meatballs with a small scoop or heaped tablespoon and gently smooth with your hands. I can usually get around 20-24 poppers. You may be able to get more or less, depending on how large you size them.
- To Cook On The Stovetop: Heat a drizzle of oil in a medium pan over medium-low heat. Cook 4-5 at a time for about 5-6 minutes on the first side. Flip and cook an additional 4-5 minutes, or until golden brown and the centers are cooked through.
- To Bake: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle a bit of olive or avocado oil onto a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake at 400 degrees 15-20 minutes, or until cooked through. If desired, place under the broiler for an additional 2-3 minutes or until browned on top.
- Serve & Store. Enjoy warm with guacamole, salsa, ranch, or your favorite dip! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge 3-4 days.
The Best Dipping Sauces For Chicken Zucchini Poppers
One of the best parts about these chicken zucchini poppers is dipping them! There are SO MANY delicious dips and sauces to serve with these chicken zucchini meatballs, but here are some of our all-time favorites:
- Citrus Avocado Sauce (Pictured in the photos!)
- Tomatillo Ranch (Paleo & Whole30-Friendly)
- Classic Guacamole
- The BEST Paleo Ranch Dressing
- Chipotle Ranch
- Pineapple Guacamole
- Smoky Chipotle Salsa
FAQ + Tips For The Best Chicken Zucchini Poppers
DON’T SKIP THIS STEP! Squeezing the liquid out of your zucchini is *really* important here. Why? Well, zucchini has a lot of moisture (which is one of the reason these poppers are so great), but if you don’t squeeze out some of that liquid, your meatballs/poppers will have a harder time sticking together and if you pan-fry them, you run the risk of them scorching and falling apart.
PAN-FRYING VS. BAKING. My favorite way to make these is to pan-fry them. I’m not using a ton of oil here–just enough to cover the bottom of the pan. I use my cast-iron skillet for a really nice browning effect and keep the heat on the low end. That will allow the poppers to brown while still allowing enough time for the centers to cook. Baking is *really* convenient and fast, so I do that plenty as well. Do whichever works for you!
TRY ONE OF THESE VARIATIONS! This recipe is an awesome base recipe. Over the years, people have made it with pork, beef, turkey…even venison! Use your favorite. I also list the cumin here as optional. It gives these a tex-mex flavor that’s great with salsa, ranch, and guacamole. BUT. You can also easily swap the flavors by switching the cilantro for basil to give these a Mediterranean vibe. They’re great with my favorite pasta sauce and noodles, or you can use parsley or dill for other flavor combinations!
CAN’T FIND GROUND CHICKEN? TRY THIS! I get ground chicken breast at Sprouts, but when it’s not in stock, I make my own by buying boneless skinless chicken breast (or thighs) and pulsing them in a food processor until it’s ground and no large pieces remain. It’s one extra step, but it works great!
Did You Make This Recipe?
Tell me all about it! Leave a star rating below when you try our Chicken Zucchini Poppers recipe. I can’t wait to hear how it goes!
Chicken Zucchini Poppers
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken breast (raw)
- 2 cups grated zucchini (leave peel on and squeeze out some of the liquid with paper towels or a clean kitchen towel)
- 2-3 green onions sliced
- 3-4 Tablespoons cilantro minced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon ground cumin optional
- Optional if pan-frying: avocado oil, for cooking (or coconut oil, or ghee)
Instructions
- Prep Zucchini. If you haven’t already, place grated zucchini in paper towels or a clean kitchen towel. Squeeze all the excess moisture out of the zucchini. (You don’t want it wet!)
- Combine. In a large bowl, mix together chicken, zucchini, green onion, cilantro, garlic, salt, pepper, and cumin (if using). Mixture will be quite wet.
- Scoop & Shape Meatballs. Next, scoop meatballs with a small scoop or heaped tablespoon and gently smooth with your hands. I can usually get around 20-24 poppers. You may be able to get more or less, depending on how large you size them.
- To Cook On The Stovetop: Heat a drizzle of oil in a medium pan over medium-low heat. Cook 4-5 at a time for about 5-6 minutes on the first side. Flip and cook an additional 4-5 minutes, or until golden brown and the centers are cooked through.
- To Bake: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle a bit of olive or avocado oil onto a baking sheet lined with foil. Bake at 400 degrees 15-20 minutes, or until cooked through. If desired, place under the broiler for an additional 2-3 minutes or until browned on top.
- Serve & Store. Enjoy warm with guacamole, salsa, ranch, or your favorite dip! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge 3-4 days.
Notes
- CHICKEN: If you can’t find ground chicken breast, you can grind your own. Simply weigh out 1 lb. chicken breast and pulse it in your food processor to “grind” until no large pieces remain. You can also easily substitute ground chicken thighs, ground turkey, ground pork, etc. Use what you like and what you can find!
- ZUCCHINI: Don’t be tempted to skip drying out your zucchini a bit with a paper/kitchen towel. Zucchini has a lot of moisture, and if you don’t squeeze it out beforehand, your meatballs may stick more to the pan if you’re pan-frying and have a bit more trouble holding together during baking.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition facts are an estimate only and will vary based on brands and amounts used.
Find it Online:
https://www.onelovelylife.com/chicken-zucchini-poppers-gf-df/
Ground Turkey as an alternative to ground chicken… Ever tried that?
Jules – I don’t care for ground turkey, so I haven’t tried it but plenty of readers have and have had great results.
Thank you for these, I found this recipe on Pinterest and I think it is an instant classic – one that we will put into frequent rotation. Thank you! We made it with the cumin and loved how fresh the flavors all were together. Yum, yum, yummy. So delicious we didn’t have time to miss any of the things we aren’t eating.
Tried making these today (with cumin) and i was blown away how good it was! Cooked a bunch for lunch at work too. Had a friend try it and loved it! Really great recipe! Thanks for sharing.
I’m so glad you liked them, Mark! They’re a favorite at our house too!
Great recipe. I took these in an Italian direction… omitted the cilantro and cumin; made 15 golf ball sized meatballs, seared them on my grill pan on top of the stove then finished them in a pot of simple tomato marinara. Served over spaghetti squash with roasted green beans on the side. I will absolutely use this recipe again. Thanks for sharing such a simple and adaptable recipe!
That sounds AMAZING! I’ll have to try them in the marinara.
I tried the suggested basil/garlic version. Very tasty. After first batch though, added an egg to mixture so they would bind better. First batch a bit crumbly.
Hi there. I recently came across a Facebook page that is publishing other bloggers’ recipes in full. Here’s one of yours: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Low-Carb-Healthy-Recipes/1418577171689929?pnref=lhc
I am hopeful that if people file enough copyright complaints with Facebook, the page will get taken down.
Making these right now and boy does my house smell good. My husband and I have already tasted a popper from the first batch and it is so tasty!
Thanks for this recipe! I didn’t have any ground chicken, but I had some leftover grilled chicken breasts in the fridge. I pulsed the chicken very finely in the food processor, and it worked just fine! I didn’t cook them as long as the recipe says since the chicken was already cooked. I’m on the autoimmune paleo diet, and sometimes it feels like there’s just nothing left I can eat; this was different and tasty!
They were amazing,thank you so much for this recipe.Im excited to try other ingredients
Oh my yum! I cannot wait to try these! Low carb and so healthy. I bet they would be good with shirataki noodles. Thank you!