Buffalo Turkey Meatballs (Crockpot or Oven-Baked)
Tender, juicy, and super delicious, these Buffalo ground turkey meatballs are simple to prepare, and come together simply and easily in the slow cooker or baked in the oven; no pre-cooking required! Doused in a spicy homemade Buffalo sauce, let me show you how easy it is to make.
5 star review
“These were delicious, and super easy to make! I love that they could cook in the crockpot without needing to be pan fried or seared first. Amazing flavor, too! My husband was obsessed.”
– Melissa
Ground Turkey Meatballs with a Spicy Buffalo Sauce Twist
We absolutely love meatballs around here, whether it’s for a hearty Sunday night dinner, a celebratory game day, or just a busy weeknight, and these easy, juicy Buffalo meatballs made with ground turkey are the latest to join the meatball party. Because ground turkey can often be dry, I use one of my go-to tricks to keep these meatballs juicy by adding grated onion. Just use a box grater to grate up half an onion, add to the meatball mix, and you’ll be amazed how much this little trick improve the texture and flavor of the meatballs.
To keep prep to a minimum for this recipe, I also wanted to skip the browning step. While browning can add a bit more flavor, to me it’s just not always worth the time and dirty dishes. That’s why the method I use for these Buffalo meatballs skips the browning process, and lets you add the meatballs directly to the crockpot or oven for a super easy dinner!
Can’t Get Enough Buffalo Flavor?
Try my 5-ingredient slow cooker buffalo chicken and award winning Buffalo chicken chili!
A Few Tips for Juicy Turkey Meatballs, Every Time
The short ingredient list keeps this recipe super simple & straightforward, and it’s hard to go wrong with a crockpot recipe. All you have to do is make your meat mixture, roll your meatballs, add them to the pot and let the slow cooker do the work for you. A few more tips that’ll set you up for juicy and flavorful turkey meatballs:
- Try not to over-mix the meat mixture, or you’ll end up with tough meatballs, and no one wants that!
- Don’t skip grating the onion! Grating it on a box grater (just as you would cheese) allows the onion to release much-needed moisture and allows it to dissolve into the meat as it cooks.
- Rolling your meatballs into the same size helps them cook evenly. Keep in mind that turkey can be sticky and will not roll the way ground beef does. Use a cookie scoop if the mixture is too sticky.
- Just be sure to follow the instructions for best results, and don’t stir the meatballs once they are in the slow cooker!
- Use ground chicken in place of ground turkey in this recipe to make buffalo chicken meatballs, just swap in dark meat ground chicken and you’re good to go.
Crockpot For the Win!
Since the slow cooker allows you to make a big batch all at one time, these make the perfect party food. You can serve them as a snackable appetizer on game day, or as a main dish for your next get-together. Any leftovers will keep well, so these are great to make ahead of time. Cooking these meatballs in the crockpot keeps the turkey, which has a tendency to dry out, very tender and juicy.
Ingredient Notes & Substitution Suggestions
- Cayenne Pepper Sauce: Frank’s Red Hot Sauce has an authentic Buffalo sauce flavor, and so is recommended for this recipe. You can also look for other brands of cayenne sauce. Do not use Frank’s Buffalo sauce, as it has additional ingredients you’ll want to avoid for this recipe. Tabasco is also not a good substitute, as it’s hotter and spicier.
- Nutritional yeast: This adds a cheesy flavor without containing any dairy. Find it on the bulk aisle of your natural foods store, or in the baking section. It adds an essential “cheesy” flavor to the recipe without added dairy. You can substitute grated parmesan cheese in its place
- Grated onion: In these buffalo turkey meatballs, the grated onion is the secret to keeping them moist & juicy. Without it, they may be dry.
- Kosher salt: look for kosher salt with the regular iodized salt at the grocery store. It has a subtler flavor. Use less iodized salt if that’s what you have on hand.
- Almond flour: These meatballs are naturally paleo, whole30 and low carb if made with almond flour. For a nut-free option, you can use oat flour in place of almond flour. Or regular seasoned breadcrumbs also work well.
- Ground turkey: I used 93% lean ground turkey, you can use an even leaner ground turkey if you like but it will be drier, less tender and less flavorful. Ground chicken also works great in this recipe.
- Melted butter: You can use traditional or dairy-free butter, both work well in this recipe.
For the Love of Leftovers
This recipe can be made ahead. Perfect for meal prep on busy weeks (or anytime you need to feed a crowd quickly & easily). Turkey meatballs will keep well in the fridge for up to 3-4 days, in a sealed container. This recipe also freezes well, store in a sealed freezer friendly container or zip-top bag for up to 2-3 months
This Recipe Is…
Dairy FreeGluten FreeNut FreePaleoWhole30
Buffalo Turkey Meatballs (Crockpot or Oven-Baked)
Ingredients
For the Meatballs
- 1/4 cup grated onion , from about ½ medium yellow onion
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic powder
- 2 teaspoons almond flour , see notes
- 1 pound 93% lean dark meat ground turkey
For the Buffalo Sauce
- 1/3 cup cayenne pepper sauce, such as Frank’s Red Hot original
- 1 tbsp melted butter
Equipment
- Cookie Scoop optional
Instructions
Slow Cooker Instructions
- To make the meatballs, mix together the grated onion, nutritional yeast, salt, garlic powder, and almond flour in a large bowl until well combined. Add the meat, stirring until all the ingredients are well incorporated, clean hands work best, being careful not to over-mix.
- Roll the mixture into 2-inch balls, or use a 2-inch cookie scoop. Keep in mind that turkey can be sticky and will not roll the way ground beef does. Use a cookie scoop if the mixture is too sticky. Set aside.
- Make the Buffalo sauce by mixing together the cayenne pepper sauce with the melted butter, stirring until well incorporated. Set aside 2 tablespoons of the Buffalo sauce.
- Place the meatballs on the bottom of a 6-quart slow cooker. Pour over the remaining sauce. Carefully turn each meatball in the sauce until each is coated.
- Cover and cook on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-5 hours.
- Uncover and remove the meatballs to a serving platter. Strain the remaining sauce. Serve the meatballs with the remaining sauce and the remaining 2 tablespoons of fresh sauce on the side for dipping. Alternatively, leave the meatballs in the slow cooker on “warm” setting and serve directly with sauce on the side.
Baking Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350F.
- Make the Buffalo sauce by mixing together the cayenne pepper sauce with the melted butter, stirring until well incorporated.
- Make the meatballs by mixing together the grated onion, nutritional yeast, salt, garlic powder, almond flour, and 2 tablespoons Buffalo sauce in a large bowl. Add the meat, stirring until all the ingredients are well incorporated, clean hands work best, being careful not to over-mix.
- Roll the mixture into 2-inch balls, or use a 2-inch cookie scoop. Keep in mind that turkey can be sticky and will not roll the way ground beef does. Use a cookie scoop if the mixture is too sticky. Place the meatballs on a greased, rimmed baking sheet.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until browned and cooked through, being careful not to overbake or the meatballs will be dry.
- Toss the meatballs in the remaining sauce and serve, or serve with the sauce on the side.
Notes
- Optional serving suggestions: blue cheese dressing, carrot sticks, celery sticks.
- This recipe makes about 22, 2-inch meatballs. Which serves from 5-6 if you use a serving size of 4 meatballs.
- Nutrition information is for 1 meatball, using almond flour and traditional butter.
- Frank’s Red Hot Sauce has an authentic Buffalo sauce flavor, and so is recommended for this recipe. You can also look for other brands of cayenne sauce. Do not use Frank’s Buffalo sauce, as it has additional ingredients you’ll want to avoid for this recipe. Tabasco is also not a good substitute, as it’s hotter and spicier.
- Nutritional yeast adds a cheesy flavor without containing any dairy. Find it on the bulk aisle of your natural foods store, or in the baking section. It adds an essential “cheesy” flavor to the recipe without added dairy. You can substitute parmesan cheese in its place.
- Use almond flour for a lower carb and gluten-free option, or substitute seasoned breadcrumbs.
- For more recipe notes & ingredient modifications, see the blog post above.
Make these right now! These are so delicious and satisfying. The whole family approved, even my 1 year old (without the extra sauce).
Yay, so glad you’re enjoying this one, thanks so much for leaving a review!
Love these buffalo turkey meatballs and so did my family. I baked these via the directions provided and they were so easy to make. Adding to my recipe rotation.
Yeah, Erin, so happy to hear you and your crew enjoyed this meatballs! Thanks so much for leaving a review!
These were delicious, and super easy to make! I love that they could cook in the crockpot without needing to be pan fried or seared first. Amazing flavor, too! My husband was obsessed.
Melissa, yay, so glad you enjoyed these — I’m a big fan of doing meatballs in the crockpot without pre-cooking first. Thanks so much for taking the time to share your thoughts!