I’ve been daydreaming up this recipe for a while now. I used to get jalapeno pineapple chicken fried rice from this Thai place and it was amazing – chunks of chicken, fresh pineapple, and jalapeno…DELISH. So I was meandering around my kitchen and was like, “What are some healthier recipes I can start the new year with?” And my mind immediately thought MEATBALLS. But not any meatballs…no. Jalapeno Pineapple Chicken Meatballs.
Suddenly I needed these in my life. So I brainstormed the flavors and structure I wanted these meatballs to be. I knew I wanted them to be grain free, so I nixed the breadcrumbs (you can always use them if you want in place of almond flour) and went to it. Not only are these grain free, but they’re totally gluten free, which lately has been making my tummy happy.
Truth be told, I almost procrastinated making these. Maybe because I was scared they wouldn’t turn out how I imagined them to be…but oh, oh I followed the fear. And they turned out even more amazing than I could’ve imagined. So here they are! Enjoy.
Jalapeno Pineapple Chicken Meatballs
Ingredients:
- 1 pound of ground chicken
- 1 diced onion or 3-4 sliced green onions
- 1/2 cup of minced pineapple
- 1/2 cup of minced jalapeno
- 2 minced cloves of garlic
- 1/4 cup of almond flour
- 2-4 tbsps of egg whites
- olive oil spray
- 1/2 bottle of Garlic Sauce from Coconut Aminos
- 1-2 tsp of arrowroot flour
- 1-2 tsp of water
- Sesame seeds (optional)
Directions:
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
- Combine your chicken, pineapple, onions, jalapeno, garlic almond flour, and egg whites into a bowl. Mix with your hands until thoroughly combined.
- Grab a baking sheet and spray with olive oil spray.
- Form your chicken meatball mixture into a small meatballs and place in rows on your baking sheet.
- Bake in the oven at 400 degrees for about 15-18 minutes or until the temperature of the meatballs is at 165 degrees.
- While your meatballs are cooking, you can add your garlic sauce to a pan on medium heat. Add your slurry of arrowroot flour and water in slowly. Once it’s thickened, take off of the heat and add your sesame seeds.
- Add your meatballs to the sauce and coat generously!
- Serve your meatballs with cauliflower fried rice or basmati rice and enjoy.