Cheesy Parmesan Chicken Muffins
These Parmesan Chicken Muffins are like a quick and easy Chicken Parmesan. You just need a muffin pan, a simple ground chicken mixture, some mozzarella to stuff inside, and Parmesan for dusting.
You’re probably looking for new ways to serve chicken that you know everyone will love. You’ve found what you’re looking for.
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Ingredients
These chicken muffins are essentially mini chicken meatloaves made in a muffin tin as a meatloaf pan. And, just like most meatloaves, they use a standard meatloaf formula of 1 pound of meat, 1 egg, and a half-cup of breadcrumbs. In addition:
- Milk adds a bit of fat and flavor and helps make a more tender chicken muffin.
- Mozzarella – use either fresh or a low-moisture mozzarella in this recipe. It’s always best to shred it yourself to avoid the extra preservatives.
If you’re looking for more savory muffins, try these spinach and feta muffins.
About ground chicken
Ground chicken is a combination of ground or minced chicken breast and thighs. If you can’t find it at the grocery store, you can make your own with a food processor or sharp knife!
Want more ground poultry recipes? Check out the recipe archives for other easy meatballs made with ground poultry like BBQ meatballs, Greek chicken meatballs, turkey meatball Stroganoff, or these chicken and apple meatballs.
Please see the recipe card below for complete information on ingredients and quantities.
Variations and substitutions
- Use fresh, chopped herbs instead of dried.
- Sub in a gluten-free panko.
- Make it as a Parmesan chicken meatloaf.
To make a Parmesan chicken meatloaf, pack half of the ground chicken mixture into a meatloaf pan or shape a free-form loaf on a sheet pan. Layer the mozzarella, then top with the remaining chicken mixture, covering the cheese completely. Bake the Parmesan chicken meatloaf at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for about one hour, until the internal temperature reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. Feel free to top the meatloaf with tomato sauce for the final 10 minutes of baking!
Recipe tips and tricks
Making the ground chicken muffin mixture
Step 1: Add the breadcrumbs and milk to a large bowl and let them soak as you chop and add the other ingredients on top.
Step 2: Stir everything except for the egg and meat together with a spoon or spatula, and then add the egg and ground meat and mix the chicken muffin mixture gently with your hands.
Tip from the wise quacker: don’t knead the chicken muffin mixture (or really any ground meat dish). Over-mixing just gives you a dense meatloaf, meatball, or burger.
Putting it all together
Step 3: Once you’ve made the chicken muffin mixture, use a medium cookie scoop or spoon to add about two tablespoons into the bottom of eight muffin cups of a standard 12-cup muffin tin (Panel #1 below). You do not need to grease the tins as there is just enough fat in the chicken muffins so they don’t stick.
Step 4: Add the mozzarella cheese (Panel #2) and top with the remaining chicken muffin mixture (Panel #3).
Step 5: Pat the chicken muffins down gently and sprinkle with Parmesan (Panel #4).
Step 6: Bake until the chicken muffins reach an internal temperature of 165 degrees and the tops of the muffins are a light golden brown, about 20 minutes. If the muffins are cooked but the Parmesan crust hasn’t browned, you can broil them for a minute or two.
What to serve with chicken muffins
- Or take these chicken meatloaf muffins for lunch as a high protein snack or breakfast on the go.
- Serve hot with a simple tomato sauce, with or without pasta. A marinara or a tomato cream sauce would work. Or maybe with some cheesy white beans?
- Or use a different pasta like this one pot pasta with ricotta and lemon or orzo pesto salad.
- Go simple with a steamed green vegetable and a salad like this rainbow salad bowl or peach burrata Caprese.
- Make an Italian-inspired garbanzo bean soup.
Recipe FAQs
Chicken Parmesan, or Parmigiana, is a dish of Italian immigrants. But chicken Parmesan is likely adapted from eggplant Parmesan (melanzane all Parmagiana), which has been around for centuries.
Leftover chicken muffins will keep in the refrigerator for a few days in an airtight container.
Yes. These chicken muffins will freeze well. Remove them from the muffin tin and let them cool to room temperature. Store in the freezer in a freezer bag for three to six months.
Related chicken recipes
Want more chicken? Check out the archives for some of the best Ugly Duckling Bakery chicken recipes like:
Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-heart 💜💜💜💜💜 rating in the recipe card below. Let me know how much you loved it, or any problems you had, in the comments section further down.
Recipe
Parmesan-Crusted Chicken Muffins
Ingredients
- ½ cup panko or other dried breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons milk
- ½ cup (57 grams or 2 ounces) Parmesan grated and divided in half
- ¼ cup pine nuts toasted
- ¼ cup fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 pound ground chicken
- ½ cup (57 grams or 2 ounces) Mozzarella fresh or low-moisture, shredded or chopped
- marinara tomato sauce for serving
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F.
- In a medium to large bowl, combine the panko and milk and let soak while you prepare the other ingredients.½ cup panko or other dried breadcrumbs, 2 tablespoons milk
- Add half of the grated Parmesan, the toasted pine nuts, parsley, garlic, salt, basil, oregano, and pepper, and mix to combine.¼ cup pine nuts, ¼ cup fresh parsley, coarsely chopped, 2 cloves garlic, 1 teaspoon salt, ½ teaspoon dried basil, ¼ teaspoon dried oregano, ⅛ teaspoon ground black pepper, ½ cup (57 grams or 2 ounces) Parmesan
- Add the beaten egg and ground chicken and use your hands to gently mix everything together.1 egg, lightly beaten, 1 pound ground chicken
- Use a medium cookie scoop or spoon to add about 2 tablespoons of the chicken muffin mixture to the bottom of eight muffin cups. Sprinkle the mozzarella on top, and then top with the remaining chicken mixture.½ cup (57 grams or 2 ounces) Mozzarella
- Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan on top of the chicken muffins.
- Bake for about 18 to 22 minutes, until the muffins have reached an internal temperature of 165°F and the tops of the muffins are beginning to brown. You can broil for a minute if the muffins are done but the muffins not yet lightly browned.
- Serve immediately with the tomato sauce.marinara tomato sauce
Notes
Nutrition
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These are sooooo goooood. And easy to make, which is key for me. Thank you!
Wondering about using a bigger muffin tins (six muffins) and how long to bake. As long as it reaches the temp?
Hi Maria – so glad you love these chicken muffins as much as I do! You can definitely make them as larger muffins or even in a single loaf pan. They’ll take a few minutes longer to get up to 165 degrees Fahrenheit, but that’s what you’re aiming for!
My family loved these. We left out the pine nuts because my sons are not that adventurous. We used Alfredo over the muffins which we loved. One son suggested using bacon crumbles in the mix which we will try next time. They want this dish in our “main (dinner) rotation”.
So glad your family loved these chicken parmesan muffins, Laura! I’d love to hear how they work with bacon crumbles!
I made these today and doubled the recipe. I used 1 cup muffin tins and used a 3 oz scoop. I also put a tsp of marinara sauce in the middle. Very tasty! I’ve got my lunchbox main for several days!! Next time I would rough chop the pinenuts.
Thanks for the comment, Jeanne. That sounds perfect. So glad you enjoyed these Parmesan chicken muffins!