This ground chicken meatloaf recipe is baked in the oven, and is leaner than traditional family favorite meatloaf made with ground beef.
This easy dinner recipe is bound to become a new family weeknight comfort food staple that makes for the perfect leftover meatloaf for the next day that the whole family will love.
Homemade meatloaf with chicken is just one of many versions of classic dinners that our parents used to make. Using ground chicken in dishes instead of ground beef can be easily done. This chicken bolognese and these chicken lettuce wraps are a perfect example of that.
If you love a good, hearty home-cooked meal, check out this old-fashioned tuna casserole recipe as well as this super easy chili recipe.
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Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It uses easy-to-find, simple ingredients: You probably already have most of the ingredients on hand.
- It is budget-friendly: You won’t find anything on the ingredients list that can’t be found at an affordable price at the grocery store.
- Makes for perfect leftovers: Who doesn’t love leftover meatloaf? Easily double this recipe for another chicken meatloaf night this week to make life easier for you!
Ingredients Needed
*Be sure to see the recipe card below for the full ingredients list & instructions!*
We’ve highlighted a couple of ingredients below with some relevant notes. Aside from this, the ingredients needed are pretty basic.
- Ground Chicken – Freshly ground chicken is optimal for this recipe.
- Breadcrumbs – Unseasoned Panko breadcrumbs are what we used for this recipe but you can use Stove Top Stuffing if you have that on hand, like we did in this Stove Top Stuffing Meatloaf recipe. Panko crumbs are also used to make this crispy panko chicken if you have leftovers!
- Milk – We used 2% cow’s milk for this recipe.
Substitutions
Sometimes substitutions are necessary because of ingredients that are unavailable or needed for dietary restrictions. Here are some suggestions that can help:
- Milk – If you do not drink cow’s milk, you can easily swap in one of your favorite brands of non-dairy milk such as almond milk.
- Meat – While this recipe is specifically for ground chicken in the meatloaf, you can swap it out for any ground meat of your choosing. Ground turkey or ground pork would make good options too!
Variations
- Smoky Flavor – If you want a smokey flavor you can substitute the ketchup for BBQ sauce. For an even bigger smokey flavor add in a ¼ teaspoon of liquid smoke.
- Breadcrumbs – I used plain breadcrumbs but any flavored breadcrumbs will work. I haven't tested using panko, that might affect the texture.
How to Make Healthy Ground Chicken Meatloaf
This Ground Chicken Meatloaf Recipe is broken into 3 components:
- combining ingredients
- shaping meat mixture in a prepared baking dish
- baking
To begin, you are going to preheat the oven to 350 and line a loaf pan or baking sheet with parchment paper.
STEP 1. Start the Chicken Loaf. In a large mixing bowl add the ground chicken, onion, garlic, and egg. Using a spatula or a wooden spoon fold everything together so it's well combined. (Images 1).
Tip: You could also put on some gloves and mix the meat mixture with your hands.
STEP 2. Continue the Ground Chicken Mixture. Next add in the breadcrumbs, milk, and parmesan cheese fold the ingredients in so they're fully distributed. (Image 2).
STEP 3. Finish by Combining the Chicken Meatloaf Ingredients. Next add the Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, ketchup, mustard, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Fold the mixture together trying not to over-work all of the ingredients. (Image 3).
STEP 4. Add to Loaf Pan or Baking Sheet. Once all of the ingredients are incorporated, place the chicken into the prepared loaf pan. You can also shape the meatloaf mixture into a loaf shape on a lined baking sheet with your hands. Use gloves and plastic wrap if you don’t want to touch the meat! (Image 4).
STEP 5. Make the Glaze. In a small bowl add the ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and brown sugar. Using a whisk or a fork, stir to combine the ingredients. (Image 5).
STEPS 6-7. OPTIONAL: You can bake the meatloaf in the bread pan, or you can pull the shaped loaf out of the pan and place it directly on the prepared baking sheet. This is a more exact way to get the loaf shape over attempting to shape the loaf yourself. (Images 6 & 7).
STEP 8. Glaze. Brush the glaze over the top of the chicken mixture. Reserve 2 tablespoon of the glaze mixture and set aside for later use. (Image 8).
STEP 9. Bake. Place it in the oven and bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees on a meat thermometer. Once the chicken meatloaf has reached 165 degrees F remove it from the oven and brush on the reserved glaze.
STEP 10. Serve. Serve with your favorite sides like mashed potatoes and steamed or roasted vegetables. You could even make a tasty meatloaf sandwich!
Recipe Pro Tips
- Serve with tasty sides. Meatloaf is best accompanied by delicious side dishes like mashed potatoes, scalloped potatoes, mac and cheese, or baked veggies.
- Serve right away. Chicken meatloaf is best served warm out of the oven but you can let the meatloaf rest for a few minutes to let the juices do their thing outside of the oven.
Recipe FAQs
The secret to making a moist chicken meatloaf is adding moisture to the chicken before baking. The addition of egg and milk is the key to keep the chicken from drying out while baking.
Yes! We baked the meatloaf on a baking sheet because it does cut the cook time down and it evenly bakes the chicken and gives it a nice 'crust' on the outside.
No, you don’t have to use ground chicken for meatloaf. You can use other ground meats like beef, pork, or turkey depending on your preference. Meatloaf can be made with a variety of ground meats and it all comes back to your own personal preference.
Eggs are typically the ingredient that helps meatloaf hold together by acting as a binding agent. They help to keep the meatloaf from crumbling when it’s cooked and then cut into.
Yes, you can make your own ground chicken by grinding boneless, skinless chicken breast or thigh meat in a food processor or using a meat grinder. Using your own freshly ground chicken breast allows you to control the texture and freshness of the ground chicken for your recipes.
A meatloaf glaze typically consists of a mixture of ingredients like ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and sometimes mustard. This glaze is applied to the top of the meatloaf before or during baking to add flavor and a sweet, tangy finish to the dish. You can also add varieties of mustard and honey to kick up the flavor profile.
What to Serve with Ground Chicken Meatloaf
As mentioned earlier, classic meatloaf is nothing without its sides! Some tasty side dishes to try out with this easy ground chicken meatloaf recipe would be Garlic Roasted Broccoli, Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes, or Instant Pot Sweet Potatoes.
Storage
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can reheat the meatloaf leftovers in the microwave making sure to use a microwave-safe container when reheating the chicken meatloaf.
More Chicken Recipes You’ll Love
For more yummy chicken-inspired recipes, check out the ones below!
Did you make this? I’d be so grateful if you left a “star” rating below to let me know what you thought! Then, the next time you need a quick and easy recipe, come back to Fantabulosity to browse all of my easy recipes!
Recipe
Chicken Meatloaf Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground chicken
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 1 egg
- 1 ½ cup breadcrumbs
- 1 cup milk
- ¾ cup parmesan cheese grated
- 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 tablespoons mustard
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Glaze
- ⅓ cup ketchup
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 tablespoon brown sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Line a bread pan with parchment paper and set aside (optional).
- Line a baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper and set aside.
- In a bowl add the ground chicken, onion, garlic, and egg. Using a spatula or a wooden spoon fold everything together so it's well combined.
- Next add in the breadcrumbs, milk, and parmesan cheese fold the ingredients in so they're fully distributed.
- Next add the worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, ketchup, mustard, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes. Fold the mixture together trying not to over-work all of the ingredients.
- Once all of the ingredients are incorporated, place the chicken into the prepared loaf pan. **This step is optional, you can create a loaf shape without placing the chicken in the loaf pan. I taking this step made the process easier.
- Turn the chicken out onto the prepared lined baking sheet and set aside.
- Time to make the glaze. In a small bowl add the ketchup, worcestershire sauce, and brown sugar. Using a whisk or a fork, stir to combine the ingredients.
- Reserve 2 tablespoon of the glaze mixture and set aside for later use.
- Brush the remaining glaze over the top of the chicken mixture.
- Place it in the oven and bake for 1 hour 10 minutes or until the interal reaches 165 degrees on a meat thermometer.
- Once the chicken meatloaf has reach 165 degrees F remove it from the oven and brush on the reserved glaze. Serve with you favorite sides like mashed potatoes and steamed or roasted vegetables.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.
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