Keto Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

The kind of appetizer that makes game day disappear one bite at a time! 🌶️🍗

These buffalo chicken meatballs were made for sharing. They’re bite-sized, coated in that bold buffalo flavor, and slow-cooked until tender, making them especially handy when you want to get the food going and let the slow cooker handle the rest. 🤎

They’re spicy, juicy, and perfectly low-carb with a little ranch or blue cheese dressing on the side. Set out a platter with some toothpicks and watch these keto-friendly bites disappear! 😋

Yield: 16 meatballs

Ingredients

Buffalo Sauce

• ½ cup Frank's RedHot Original hot sauce (120 ml)
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter (85 g), melted
• 1 clove garlic (3 g), crushed
• ¼ tsp salt (1.5 g), or to taste

Chicken Meatballs

• 1 lb ground chicken (454 g), preferably 93% lean / 7% fat
• 1 large egg (50 g), whisked
• ½ tsp salt (3 g)
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper (0.5 g), optional
• ½ cup gluten-free panko breadcrumbs (about 30 g)
• Ranch or blue cheese dressing, optional, for serving
• Green onions (about 10 g), finely chopped, optional, for garnish

Directions

1. Make the buffalo sauce: In a medium bowl, whisk together the hot sauce, melted butter, crushed garlic, and ¼ tsp salt until smooth.
2. Prepare the meatballs: Add the ground chicken, egg, salt, cayenne pepper, and panko breadcrumbs to a large bowl. Mix gently with your hands until evenly combined.
3. Divide the mixture into 16 portions and roll each portion into a meatball.
4. Pour half of the buffalo sauce into a 6-quart slow cooker. Arrange the meatballs in a single layer over the sauce, then pour the remaining sauce over the top.
5. Cover and cook on High for 3–4 hours or Low for 4–6 hours. During the final 30–60 minutes, gently stir the meatballs and sauce to help prevent the sauce from sticking or burning.
6. Turn off the slow cooker and let the meatballs rest in the sauce for at least 20 minutes before serving.
7. Serve warm with chopped green onions and optional ranch or blue cheese dressing.

Notes

• The nutrition information below does not include optional dressing and assumes that approximately 2–3 tablespoons of the buffalo sauce remain unconsumed.
• For a lower-carb version, you can replace the gluten-free panko with pork rind crumbs.
• The butter-based sauce may separate while very hot. If it has not come back together after resting, remove the meatballs, whisk the sauce until smooth, then return the meatballs to the slow cooker.

Macros

Per meatball.

• Calories: 79 kcal
• Fat: 6 g
• Protein: 6 g
• Total Carbs: 2 g
• Fiber: 1 g
• Net Carbs: 1 g