This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy.
Enjoy the taste of buffalo chicken without the mess with these Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Meatballs . Oven-baking option included if you don’t own an Instant Pot!
It’s been 6 months since I purchased my very first Instant Pot, and it’s seriously been the best game changer in my kitchen. I didn’t think I would rely on it almost every day of the week, but it’s abilities are endless and amazing. If you’ve never heard of the Instant Pot before, it’s an electrical pressure cooker that also has a rice cooker, slow cooker, steamer, warmer, and sauté and browning function all in one. The new version, which I don’t have, also has a yogurt maker. It’s just wonderful.
As I got familiar and more comfortable with mine over the past several months, I’ve been thrilled at how I can cook rice in 10 minutes, bone broth that gels in under 2 hours, whole chicken in 20 minutes, and just transforming tough meat into fall-off-the-bone deliciousness in 30 minutes, which would’ve taken hours in the slow cooker.
As more and more people purchase this beautiful appliance, I have been receiving a ton of interest in how to cook with them every time I mention it. Because of this, I decided to start posting more Instant Pot recipes and uses. First up: buffalo chicken meatballs!
I think everyone loves buffalo sauce-flavored anything, right? At least that’s how C feels about it. He gets excited anytime he smells buffalo sauce scent drifting from the kitchen, or when he sees me making oven baked wings. It’s so popular at gatherings and sporting events, and it’s because of the spicy kick that’s so addicting and yummy for many people. I love these meatballs, because you get the same delicious flavors as wings but it’s less messy and you don’t have to deal with the bones.
Working with ground chicken can be sticky and difficult, so your raw meatballs may not look as round as you like. Don’t worry about it! Grease your hands well before shaping the meat, and even if they don’t look perfect, they’ll firm up and look delicious once they are cooked.
Don’t have an Instant Pot? These can easily be baked! Check out the recipe below to find out how to cook them in the oven.
What’s your favorite way to use your Instant Pot?
Instant Pot Buffalo Chicken Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb ground chicken
- 3/4 cup almond meal
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 green onions, thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp ghee
- 6 tbsp hot sauce
- 4 tbsp ghee, or butter
- Chopped green onions, for garnish
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine chicken, almond meal, salt, minced garlic cloves, and green onions.
- Use your hands to combine everything together, but be careful not to overwork the meat.
- Grease your hands with ghee or coconut oil, then shape the meat into balls 1-2 inches wide.
- Set your Instant Pot to sauté setting and add 2 tbsp of ghee.
- ***Working in batches, gently place the chicken meatballs in the Instant Pot to brown them. Turn them every minute until all sides are brown.
- While the meatballs are browning, combine hot sauce and 4 tbsp of butter or ghee and heat them in the microwave or the stove top until the butter is completely melted. Use a spoon to stir. This is your buffalo sauce.
- Place all the browned meatballs in the Instant Pot, then pour the buffalo sauce evenly over the meatballs.
- Screw on the lid to the Instant Pot, make sure that the pressure valve is set to “sealing,” then set it to “Poultry.”
- Once the meatballs are finished cooking (about 15-20 minutes), the Instant Pot will beep. If you are eating right away, hit “Cancel” then release the pressure valve, making sure your hand is away from the opening where the steam escapes. If not, the Instant Pot will automatically switch to the “Warm” setting for the next 10 hours and the pressure will slowly lower on its own.
- Serve over rice, cauliflower rice, zoodles. or just eat on its own!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
We have a dairy allergy here and can’t even use ghee. What would you recommend in place of butter/ghee to make the sauce?
You can use avocado oil.
Do you put the sauce on the meatballs before baking them in the oven, or after? Looks great. Thanks!
Yes, pour the sauce on the meatballs before baking!
My husband has a dairy allergy so I will use EVOO in place of the ghee. Since we don’t need to worry about wheat, what can I use instead of going out to buy almond flour? Regular flour? Panko? Cornmeal?
Hi there. EVOO has a specific flavor so that might over power the taste of the sauce. I would recommend using butter instead. I am actually gluten intolerant, so I haven’t tried it with any kind of wheat flour before. I think panko might work but I can’t guarantee that it’ll turn out the same way.
anything a suitable substitute for ghee or coconut oil? Regular butter or EVOO? These look good, hope to try them soon.
Yup, either butter or EVOO works! Hope you enjoy.
I did them with the flax seed meal and they were amazing!
This was amazing! Thank you so much for such an easy recipe. My husband asked for seconds!
This was soooo delicious. My boyfriend and I both loved it. Thanks for the recipe!!
I was hoping these would be good! My husband and son love buffalo chicken, so I was hoping they’d love these too! The meatballs do not really have any flavor-disappointed. 🙁
Sorry it didn’t work out for you! I’ve been hearing great things from people who tried it, so I’m surprised. Let me know if you try anything different with it to make it better! I would love to learn and improve. 🙂
I used a good quality ground chicken thigh and they were delicious!
So glad you enjoyed it!!
Help! My meatballs stuck to the pan. I sprayes it too with canola
Hi Lisa – Make sure that the oil is hot enough before you add the meatballs. I would wait about 10 minutes for the pot to heat up. This should help!
How many tablespoons of ghee are mixed with the hot sauce? 2 or 4?
Oops, sorry. 4. I’ll clarify it in the recipe. 🙂
What’s a good substitute for almond meal?
Hi Shauna, you can try flax meal, although it might taste the flavor a bit. You can also try coconut flour, but I would reduce the amount so it doesn’t dry out.