Healthy Buffalo Turkey Meatballs are a delicious, easy weeknight dinner. Easily made paleo, keto and whole30, they’re perfect over a salad or on rice!
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Who doesn’t love buffalo sauce? It’s literally delicious on eeeeeverything. Pizza? Yup. Chicken? Sure. Meatballs? Amazing.
I can honestly say that I have never put it on something + not enjoyed it. I’m guessing you’re probably thinking the same thing.
I’m not sure what they put in Frank’s Red Hot but man is it delicious! We kinda live by the ‘Put that **** on everything’ tagline that they have.
I’m really not a spicy- food loving person, but for some reason, I can’t get enough of buffalo sauce. This is why we love these buffalo turkey meatballs, and I think you will too.
Why you’ll LOVE these healthy buffalo turkey meatballs:
- DELICIOUS- They just taste really, really good, ok?
- Easy to make– 10 ingredients and only 30 minutes to make
- Easily Customizable – I included a whole list of substitutions for you on how to make these meatballs!
- Keto/Gluten free and easily made paleo/whole30
- Protein / veggie packed – These healthy meatballs are loaded with protein, and have hidden veggies in them! Almost 1/2 cup of veggies per serving!
See… lots of veggies! (Promise you can’t even taste them!)
P.S… if you love meatballs, you have to try these Greek Turkey Meatballs or Healthy Turkey Meatballs.
Ingredients for buffalo turkey meatballs:
To make these buffalo turkey meatballs you’ll need:
- turkey
- carrots, celery, onion, spinach
- olive oil
- buffalo sauce
- pepper
- coconut flour
- blue cheese
There are quite a few substitutions for this recipe included in the green box below. If you don’t have all of the ingredients, don’t worry!
How to make buffalo turkey meatballs:
Buffalo turkey meatballs are SUPER simple to make.
- Simply chop your veggies (I actually just give mine a quick whirl in this food processor -less than $14!).
- Stir all ingredients together
- Roll into balls, bake and enjoy!
A little tip – we love using a cookie scoop for these meatballs. That way your hands don’t get dirty and you can ensure that they’re all the same size!
Cooking in the slow cooker: You can bake these meatballs and toss them in a slow cooker to keep them warm if necessary, but we wouldn’t recommend it. It can dry out the meatballs.
I love recipes like this because they really are SO simple – anyone can do this regardless of their cooking skills!
Substitutions for this buffalo turkey meatballs recipe:
These meatballs are super versatile – you can change up a lot about them + they will still be delicious!
Turkey – You can sub ground turkey for ground chicken and ground beef. You can also check out our Buffalo Chicken Meatballs.
Veggies – If you don’t like celery, carrots, or spinach – simply omit them. If you’re out of one veggie.. add a little more of another!
Whole30/Paleo – To make paleo/whole30 simply omit blue cheese and the yogurt sauce.
Keto – If you’re strict keto, we recommend omitting the carrots as they are higher in carbs.
Coconut Flour – If you aren’t gluten free/strict paleo Whole30 you can use whole wheat breadcrumbs instead of coconut flour
Blue Cheese – You can omit the cheese or sub in any cheese you like for blue cheese! Goat cheese or feta are great!
Oil– Any oil will work in this recipe. Avocado, coconut, olive oil, or vegetable oil will all work
Sauce – You could use BBQ sauce instead of buffalo sauce in this recipe and they would be delicious!
How to serve buffalo turkey meatballs:
These buffalo turkey meatballs are pretty versatile and go well with anything! I like mine over a salad with the greek yogurt sauce included in the recipe – but here are some other ideas.
- Over rice – I like to make rice in my instant pot using this recipe
- Over greens – Add these to a salad with the yogurt sauce + you have the perfect meal!
- With roasted veggies- They’re good with these garlic rosemary brussels sprouts and Sheet Pan Crispy Roasted Potatoes!
- As an appetizer – I’ve brought these to parties with a big bowl of dipping sauce and they’re always a hit!
- Sliders- If you want to serve these over sliders I bet they would be yummy!
No matter how you enjoy them, these buffalo turkey meatballs are a yummy meal anyone will like! They’re great for meal prepping, serving at a party, or just having in the fridge for a quick snack!
Storing Buffalo Turkey Meatballs:
You can keep these buffalo meatballs in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Freezing– These meatballs freeze perfectly. We freeze ours in a ziploc bag after baking them. Do not freeze the batter raw. They last up to 3 months in the freezer. When you’re ready to eat/reheat them I just pop them in the microwave for a few minutes and they’re good to go!
Other healthy buffalo recipes:
We love all things buffalo! Here are some of our other favorite buffalo recipes!
Love ground turkey? Check out this list of the Best Ground Turkey Recipes!
Healthy Buffalo Turkey Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1/2 cup carrots minced
- 1/4 cup celery minced
- 1/4 cup onion minced
- 1 cup spinach minced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 cup buffalo sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon pepper
- 3 tablespoons coconut flour
- 1/3 cup crumbled blue cheese *OMIT if whole30/paleo
Optional: rice, cauliflower rice or spinach for serving
Optional sauce:
- 1/2 cup greek yogurt
- 1 teaspoon buffalo sauce
Instructions
Oven Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 and prepare a parchment lined baking sheet.
- Chop all vegetables. In a large bowl combine all ingredients. (You can mix by hand or in a stand mixer on low.
- Roll into 1.5 inch balls and place on a lined baking sheet.
- Bake at 450 for 20 minutes, allow to cool + enjoy!
- For the optional greek yogurt sauce just stir together.
Air Fryer Instructions
- Chop all vegetables. In a large bowl combine all ingredients. (You can mix by hand or in a stand mixer on low.)
- Roll into 1.5 inch balls and place in greased air fryer basket (I spray with cooking spray)
- Air Fry at 400 for 12-15 minutes until golden brown, allow to cool + enjoy!
- You'll need to air fry the meatballs in 2-3 separate batches. I put 12 in the basket each time.
- For the optional greek yogurt sauce just stir together.
Video
Notes
- Turkey – You can sub ground turkey for ground chicken and ground beef
- Veggies – If you don’t like celery, carrots, or spinach – simply omit
- Whole30/Paleo – To make paleo/whole30 simply omit blue cheese and the yogurt sauce
- Coconut Flour – If you aren’t gluten free/strict paleo Whole30 you can use whole wheat breadcrumbs instead of coconut flour
Angela says
My entire family is obsessed with these. We have them for dinner almost every week because they’re THAT good.
The Clean Eating Couple says
I love hearing that, Angela!! They’re always a big hit at our house too 🙂
Valerie says
I just made these for lunch and really liked the flavor! I omitted the blue cheese for whole 30 but can’t wait to try again with it. They did fall apart a bit when cooking (I did stove top rather than oven) so I might try it with an egg to bind them more next time.
The Clean Eating Couple says
Glad you liked them, Valerie! These are not meant to be cooked on the stovetop, which is why they fell apart – because there are so many veggies in them, they really can’t be flipped, and will likely stick to a pan! Next time try them on parchment in the oven 🙂
Amy VanderMaas says
They were great! Even my husband liked them. 🙂
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you both liked them, Amy!
Marilyn Sponheimer says
How spicy is the sauce.? My husband and I like a little spice but not really HOT!!! I know that is very individual question. We all have different taste buds.
Thanks
Marilyn Sponheimer
The Clean Eating Couple says
Hi Marilyn – It’s hard to answer that.. I personally don’t think Frank’s Red Hot is very spicy, but you could always cut the amount in the batter in half and add more on top after they’re baked if you’re worried about spice!
Michaela M. says
I have made these a few times and they are becoming a freezer staple! I usually put a few in a bag and freeze them and take them out as needed. I eat these with anything! Rice, quinoa, veggies, cauli-tots, sweet potato fries etc..
love them!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you like them, Michaela! They’re perfect for putting in the freezer for a future meal1
Emily Greene says
This recipe is so good! My fiancee tried it and LOVED it (he didn’t even notice it had veggies hidden in it lol)! I didn’t use the cheese, because said fiancee eats like a toddler, but if I were making them for me I’m sure it would be amazing! Thanks for sharing this!!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you and your fiancee liked it, Emily! This is one of my favorite ways to hide veggies 🙂
Katie says
I love this recipe! These meatballs are delicious and easy to make! I have made these twice now and both times they came out great! I like to serve over cauliflower rice and bring for lunch. Thank you for sharing!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you like them Katie!! Thanks for giving them a try 🙂
Ashley says
So tasty!!! And it has extra veges it in, bonus!! I could make these meatballs with everything I had on hand. Simple easy ingredients and so delicious!! I will definitely be making this again!!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you liked them, Ashley!
Kate says
So versatile, easy and not dry or mushy!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you liked them, Kate!
Margaret Marino says
Prepped these today for meal prep. I tripled the recipe and got 3 dozen meatballs and four, 8oz burgers. I’m going to use the traeger to grill them for dinner tomorrow. The meatballs are so delicious!!! Love your recipes!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thanks, Margaret! Great idea to turn them into burgers – I need to try that!!
Sondra Pedigo says
I made this tonight and they turned out so yummy with a little kick! I have also made her other turkey meatball recipe as well and love both of them! Highly recommend for a healthy delicious dinner.
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thank you so much, Sondra! Glad you liked them!
Ashley Orfitelli says
In the weekly rotation at my house per my husbands request and I am not complaining about it! I love how good these taste and they have hidden veggies too! I love to double the recipe to take some for lunches and freeze some so we can zap them quickly on weeknights!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thanks, Ashley! We always do a double batch and freeze them – they make for the perfect quick weeknight meal!
Caroline says
I made these tonight and they were delicious! Will definitely be making these again.
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thanks, Caroline!! So glad you liked them!
Kaitlin says
My substitutions:
Ground chicken, shredded the carrots, shredded zucchini in place of the spinach, omitted the cheese.
SO YUMMY!! I love the taste that the celery adds to these and the Buffalo sauce amount it just perfect. Love how adaptable and versatile this recipe is!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thank you so much, Kaitlin! Love to hear this!
Jaime says
I made these recently as burgers (instead of meatballs) and they were a huge hit! I put 2 in the freezer (raw) for later use, they froze, defrosted and cooked up really well. I plan to make these as part of my regular meal prep since they are easy to batch produce and freeze! Oh and don’t skip the yogurt sauce 😻
The Clean Eating Couple says
Love this idea!! Totally going to try it!
Jaime says
I made these as burgers instead of meatballs and they were a huge hit! I froze 2 of them (raw) and they cooked up beautifully a few weeks later. These are so easy to meal prep and keep on hand. Oh, and don’t skip the yogurt sauce!
Katrina says
I LOVE this recipe! The flavor is awesome! It is very easy to make and my family loves the meatballs! I always make a double batch so we can have them for snacks.
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thank you so much!
Stacy says
I LOVE these meatballs. They are so easy, healthy, and sooooo tasty!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thank you so much, Stacy!
Casie Eichenberger says
We had these for supper tonight and they were so good! We substituted with ground chicken as that is what we had on hand. They were very flavorful and we didn’t even use the Greek yogurt sauce. We will definitely be making these again!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So happy you liked them! Thanks Casie!