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/
This is on the menu tonight! Excited to try it out.
They are delicious! however, I added a bit of egg to bind them together otherwise they fell apart…. also a tad of cream cheese takes it to another level.
Thanks!
These look amazing! I’m going to whip up a batch or two for snacking during March Madness and for easy lunches for work (if they last that long). I could also see adding Italian seasonings (basil, oregano) and serving with a nice marinara sauce.
I made a version of these for my kids for lunch….I was trying to use up some leftover chicken. I shredded the cooked chicken finely in a blender, and added an egg to bind. Otherwise, I followed the recipe, cooking in a pan with some fat skimmed off a pot of chicken broth…we are mostly GAPS, so we don’t mind the fat 😉 I served them with homemade sour cream thinned with sauerkraut juice (mayo/sk juice for my df kid). I didn’t find the texture amazing (due to the chicken being precooked, but I was kind of expecting that….), but my kids really liked them, particularly my 18 month old…he had FIVE of them (there were 13 in the pan, so they weren’t super tiny). I am keeping this recipe to use again, maybe one time here I will have some ground chicken to use, even! Thanks!
I just started the Whole 30 and I’m super excited to try these tonight! Also, if I were to make a vegetarian alternative, would mashed potatoes mixed with zucchini be a good idea? Thanks for sharing this recipe 🙂
Nikki – Congrats on your Whole30! I do not think mashed potatoes would work well in this recipe. Your texture would assuredly be different, and I think the flavor combination would be off. I’m sorry I don’t have a better vegetarian suggestion!
I just bought a Tupperware food grinder kast month, by mistake. Teaches me to order things when I’m seriously ill with the flu and pneumonia. Anyway, I was going to return it until I saw this recipe. ( I’ve lived here in the Netherlands for 14 years and have never seen ground chicken.) I’m so glad I kept because it us going to get used tons just for this recipe! These were so easy to make abd absolutely delicious!
I’m so glad you liked them! What lovely feedback, and I think you win the prize for the furthest reader to have tried them!
I made these last night and I absolutely love them!!! I drizzled Greek yogurt and added a little bit of Trader Joes jalapeño pepper hot sauce! Huge hit with the fiancé. Thanks for sharing such awesome recipes.
Liz – I’m so glad you liked them! Hooray!
Emily, I’m sorry if someone has asked this already – But, did you press the grated zucchini before mixing it with the chicken? I usually have problems using zuchs in recipes because it will make them too wet. Love this recipe & can’t wait to try it. Thanks for sharing it!
I didn’t the first dozen times I made the recipe. Someone mentioned their poppers were too wet with the zucchini, so I started patting mine dry a bit with paper towels before mixing them in. It does seem to work a bit better. In my experience, there’s no need to completely wring them out with a dishtowel before proceeding with the recipe. I hope that helps!
OH MY GOODNESS!! I’ve been wanting to try these for ages. I finally did yesterday. I loved them (and ate way too many while I was cooking them) but wasn’t sure how my kids would like them. One of the kids has declared she doesn’t like any green foods. Well… all three kids (and hubby) gobbled them up! Yay!!! What a wonderful, delicious way to get some veggies in! Thank you for yet another fabulous, healthy recipe, Emily! I could hug you. 🙂
We tried these for our first night of Whole 30 and they were AMAZING!! I love your blog and your recipes! 🙂
I’m so glad you liked them! Happy eating and best of luck on your Whole30