I’m back with another one pan meal everyone is bound to obsess over. It’s seasonal, perfect for summer, and ABSOLUTELY PACKED WITH FLAVOR.
I’d like you to meet my cilantro chicken meatballs simmered in a easy, sweet mango coconut sauce. I’m in love and you will be too.
This recipe all started when I was digging around in my blog archives looking at some of my most popular dinner recipes. Most of them happened to be one pan meals: Mama’s Puerto Rican chicken and rice, Thai yellow curry chicken and rice and of course my tandoori chicken and rice.
Clearly I’m a one pan meal lover and so are YOU!
These healthy chicken meatballs are packed with SO much flavor, herbs and spices that it’s guaranteed to be your new favorite recipe.
To make these cilantro chicken meatballs you’ll need: ground chicken (or turkey!), egg, panko breadcrumbs, cilantro, red onion, jalapeno, garlic, ginger, cumin, turmeric and cayenne.
To make the meatballs gluten free: simply use gluten free breadcrumbs or 2-3 tablespoons coconut flour to help bind them together. I recently discovered these gluten free panko breadcrumbs and have heard amazing things.
We can’t deny the real star of this recipe though: SWEET MANGO COCONUT SAUCE.After I spotted a juicy, ripe mango on my counter, I knew what was about to go down: a sweet and savory mango coconut sauce for the meatballs to simmer in.
This mango sauce only requires only 3 ingredients: mango, light coconut milk and soy sauce (or coconut aminos!). First, you’ll brown the meatballs in a pan with oil, then you’ll add the mango coconut sauce on top, cover with a lid, then simmer for 20 minutes.
After that you’ll add your veggies, simmer for a few more minutes and serve with whatever you’d like!
Tips for making this recipe:
- You can use ripe mango or frozen thawed mango for the sauce — either will work!
- It’s important to use light coconut milk. Full fat coconut milk is too thick and won’t create as nice of a sauce.
- Serve them with any of the following to soak up all the extra sauce: brown rice, forbidden rice (aka black rice), quinoa, sweet potato noodles or zucchini noodles. My coconut cauliflower rice would be delicious too!
- You can use either ground chicken or ground turkey for this recipe. Do not use extra lean or the meatballs will be dry. I recommend using right around 93% lean for best results.
- Feel free to switch up the veggies based on what you have in your fridge.
More healthy one pan meals to try:
One Pan Ginger Chicken Meatballs with Peanut Sauce
One Pan Caribbean Jerk Chicken with Pineapple-Coconut Rice
One Pan Thai Coconut Yellow Curry Chicken & Rice
Sheet Pan Zucchini Chicken Meatballs with Coconut Curry Sauce
If you make these chicken meatballs, be sure to leave a comment below and rate the recipe below! You can also snap and picture and post it on Instagram using the hashtag #ambitiouskitchen. xo!
Cilantro Chicken Meatballs in Mango Coconut Sauce
Ingredients
- For the meatballs:
- 1 pound 93% lean ground chicken (or lean ground turkey)
- 1 egg
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs (or if GF sub 2-3 tablespoons coconut flour)
- 1/3 cup finely diced cilantro
- 1/4 cup finely diced red onion
- 1 jalapeño, seeded and finely diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/2 tablespoon freshly grated ginger (or ½ teaspoon ground ginger)
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- ½ teaspoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil (can also use avocado oil or coconut oil)
- For the coconut mango sauce:
- 1 (15 ounce) can light coconut milk
- 1 ½ cup diced mango (can use frozen, just make sure you thaw it first)
- 2 tablespoons gluten free soy sauce (or coconut aminos)
- Add-ins:
- 1 red bell pepper, julienned
- 3/4 cup frozen peas (or edamame)
- To garnish:
- Chopped honey roasted peanuts
- Diced green onion
- Fresh cilantro
- Hot sauce, if desired
Instructions
-
First, make your mango coconut sauce. Add coconut milk, diced mango, and soy sauce to a blender and blend until smooth. Set aside.
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Next, form your meatballs. In a large bowl, add the ground chicken, egg, breadcrumbs, cilantro, red onion, jalapeño, garlic, ginger, cumin, turmeric, cayenne, salt and pepper. Use clean hands to mix and form into 16 golf ball sized meatballs.
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Place a large deep skillet over medium-high heat and add in sesame oil. Add the meatballs and brown on all sides, about 5-6 minutes total. You may need to do this in batches, depending on how many meatballs you can fit in your skillet without overcrowding them.
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Reduce the heat to medium-low and add your mango coconut sauce to the pan with the meatballs. Cover the pan, reduce heat to low, and simmer for 20 minutes.
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After 20 minutes, remove lid and gently stir in the peas and red bell pepper. Simmer for 5 more minutes uncovered.
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Serve with brown rice, quinoa or with spiralized zucchini or sweet potato. There will be lots of sauce, which makes it delicious! Garnish with chopped honey-roasted peanuts, scallions, cilantro, and top with hot sauce if desired. Serves 4
Recipe Notes
Feel free to use ground turkey instead of ground chicken in this recipe.
You can use ripe mango or frozen thawed mango for the sauce -- either will work!
It's important to use light coconut milk. Full fat coconut milk is too thick and won't create as nice of a sauce.
Recipe by: Monique Volz of Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
111 comments
This sounds so good! I am one of those cilantro haters though-if I leave it out will they be a bit bland? Would you recommend a replacement? Thanks!
My husband is also not a cilantro fan–actually tastes like soap to him!–so we sub flat leaf parsley any time a recipe calls for cilantro. It’s not exactly the same, but does give a nice freshness
You can simply leave out the cilantro and they’ll still be delicious! 🙂
This looks fabulous! I can’t wait to give them a try.
They’re delicious! Hope you love them!
I can’t wait to try the recipe, but am writing to give you thanks from the bottom of my heart for listing the nutritional values. Please write a cookbook! I am standing in line! For diabetics, there is a huge void of recipes listing the carb count. I love to cook, but am so frustrated that my favourite cookbook authors never do this. It makes cooking wonderful and healthy foods very difficult. I am so very glad I discovered you. ❤️ Thank you, thank you!
Thanks so much for your note, Lorette! I’m hoping that a cookbook is in the future. I’ll be sure to continue listing the nutrition info for everyone, too! Glad you’re finding recipes you love.
Made this tonight. Didn’t have bell pepper. Added green beans and edamame. Delicious! Thank you for the recipe!
Perfect! Glad you enjoyed!
I made this last night, and it was fantastic! Full of flavor and easy to put together. I was looking to change up my weeknight meal rotation and this was a winner.
So happy to hear that, Joy! Perfect weeknight dinner.
This sounds AMAZING!!! Except for a coconut allergy😔. How do you think it would be with almond milk??? I hate changing peoes recipes, but I love me some meatballs!!!
I’m not sure how it would be with almond milk. You could try cashew milk!
This looks so yummy! I’m not a big fan of mango though… do you have suggestions for a fruit substitute?
Thanks!
Hmmm you could try pineapple! 🙂
My husband and I had this last night and we both loved it! Very interesting blend of flavors that just works so well. Thank you for sharing!
So happy to hear that, Kayla! This was a fun one to create with all of those flavors, so I’m glad you both loved it.
Just made but this found it excellent. The flavours were quite different but in a good way. I would not recommend substitutes but I thought I had all the ingredients so didnt have cloves of garlic or ginger so used the bottled stuff. i have been cooking for a very long time & am quite good at so if I need to substitute it usually works. In this case I would stick to the ingredients exactly as shown in the recipe, mine was great but think it would have been even better with garlic cloves & fresh ginger & also the fresh cilantro.
I do recommend using fresh ingredients whenever possible, but glad you enjoyed regardless! Perfect for dinner.
Do you know if this recipe freezes well?
I assume it does, but haven’t tried it!
this looks amazing! I’m allergic to coconut and tree nuts, so I was wondering, what would you recommend as a substitute for the coconut milk? 😋
I don’t really have a substitute in this case, sorry!
SOOO good and the groceries for this recipe cost me less than $20! I doubled the recipe for leftovers. I wish I had left the seeds in the jalapeno for some more spice but it was still packed with flavor. The bell pepper was a great addition. I’m not a fan of peas and went a little light on them. I also added a handful of fresh spinach followed by rice then the sauce and meatballs. Definitely going to make again!
Perfect weeknight dinner! Love the addition of spinach (and I’m all about extra spice in this one). Glad you loved it, Erika!
I’m not much of a fan of sweet foods, but i think I will try to make the meatballs in a soup. Do you think that would work? Thank you.
I haven’t tried that, but if you do — I think you should brown or completely cook the meatballs first, then add them to the soup.
Hi there! I made this last night and it was DELICIOUS! Thank you for the recipe! Just a tip for something I did, I only had 99% fat free ground turkey (I’m doing weight watchers, so that is what I keep in my freezer), so to avoid some of the dryness you warned about, I added a small shredded zucchini to the mix. It turned out great and didn’t take away from your flavors at all.
Thanks again for the inspiration!
Hi Rachael! Amazing – so happy you loved it and great tip with adding some zucchini!
This was a fantastic meal that was adult and kiddo approved in my house! And relatively easy to put together. My three kids (ages 1, 3, 5) all gobbled it up and asked for seconds. So many wonderful flavors together. I would rate this 5 stars for sure, but my iPhone won’t let me pick more than 3 stars on your scale.
Amazing! I’m so glad everyone loved it. We’re working on a fix for the stars – thank you for the heads-up!
This is one of my favorite recipes! So good!
Amazing! So happy to hear that.
There is only one word for this recipe: gorgeous! Well balanced flavours, easy to prepare, healthy. Love it.
Absolutely! So happy you loved this one.
This was so good! My husband and kids approved too. And leftovers (not many) were great reheated. Definitely adding it to our regular rotation. Thanks 😀
So happy to hear that! These make some of my favorite leftovers (better than takeout!)
For all those who actually read comments to decide if they want to try a recipe…try it! This recipe was so easy and delicious. I used turkey as my meat; I did not add the egg or bread crumbs to mine, but they turned out great and flavorful. I’m gluten free and didn’t have coconut flour on hand. I also used full fat coconut milk and it wasn’t too thick imo. My daughter only had one negative and that was bc my mango was ripe and super sweet. So if you want something not as sweet, don’t use a ripe mango. I personally loved it and had no complaints.
Glad those little swaps worked out! Such a great weeknight dinner. Noted on the ripe mango, too – good tip for people who might be more sensitive to sweet fruits.
I have made this recipe a handful
Of times now and seriously, it is SO YUMMY!! It’s now my default when I don’t know what to make Such an easy healthy weeknight dinner! So good with cauliflower rice mixed in also. Can’t wait to try other recipes
So happy to hear that, Amber! Sounds delicious with cauliflower rice. Hope you find some more recipes here that you love 🙂
Delicious. The flavors blend together so well. Everyone in my family loved it and my mom even went back for seconds (she never does that). I used frozen mango, coconut flour and cauliflower rice and it was perfect.
Amazing! So happy to hear that.
This turned out DELICIOUS. I initially tasted the mango/coconut sauce before adding it to the pot with the meatballs and wasn’t sure if i liked the taste much (i had used Coconut Aminos and not Soy sauce) – but after all of the flavors came together in the pot/simmering, they were absolutely delicious. I served with white rice which is less healthy, but went very well together! Highly recommend and love all of Ambitious Kitchen’s recipes!
Perfect! I’m glad you loved this one. The flavor combo is truly one of a kind!
We loved this dish! I recommend NOT tasting the sauce on its own as you are cooking. I did and thought the whole dish would be inedible. I plowed ahead and it was all wonderful all together! I used regular canned coconut milk (no additives), even though the recipe forbids it, and served it over quinoa. The leftovers were maybe even better the next day!
So glad you loved this one! The sauce does seem a bit odd, but the flavor combo is incredible when it all comes together 🙂
For the amount of ingredients this was pretty lack luster… won’t make again.
Sorry to hear that you didn’t like this one! There are tons of flavors and spices in the recipe so I’m not sure what could’ve been off.
Love this dinner! It has quickly been a favorite and part of our regular rotation. I add zucchini instead of red peppers and serve with brown rice.
Delicious! So happy to hear that 🙂
So delicious! Just became a new household favorite!
So happy to hear that!
Hi, I don’t have soy sauce (or coconut aminos) on hand. What can I use instead? Thanks
You could try using a pinch of extra salt and a splash of water instead.
Love the meatballs! They’re super flavorful! Sometimes I add fresh chicken sausage (out of casing) for a bit of extra pop. Although I love both the mango and peanut sauces, I’m wondering if you have a suggestion to make them a bit thinner…maybe adding water? Would love to know what you think! Thx so much for your recipes! We really love them!
Love it! So happy to hear that. And sure you can do that! 1/4 cup should be plenty. The sauces will thicken with heat so feel free to add more water if necessary.
This recipe is amazing!! Used broccoli (chopped up pretty small) instead of peas and only had a can of full fat coconut milk so I used about 1/2 the can and then added some water. The flavor was still creamy and awesome. The turkey meatballs were crispy on the outside and so tender on the inside. Yum
Perfect! Sounds delicious!
Great recipe! I made it exactly as written except I accidentally put a 1/2 tablespoon instead of a 1/2 teaspoon of ground ginger. Oops! I love ginger though. It was really good. I made for dinner for one, and will use the leftovers for weekday lunches. Thank you for the recipe!
Whoops! Glad it still turned out well! Perfect leftovers 🙂
Would this be considered Keto if I left out the rice? What would the carbs be for the meal then? Thanks!
Hi Audrey! I’m not sure as I don’t follow the keto diet. You might have to check all of the ingredients with the “rules” of keto (like the amount of mango, etc.) Feel free to look up the amount of carbs of the rice given and subtract it from the nutrition provided!
I was looking for a stuffing for zucchini that wasn’t Mexican or Italian and this caught my eye. I made everything into a stuffing, filled 1 1/2 large hollowed out zucchini and baked it at 350, covered with foil, for 45 min. The mango poured over the top was fantastic! I’ll be sharing this idea with friends and making it again for sure!
Wow love that idea!! Glad you enjoyed!
What would you suggest for a substitute for coconut milk? Unfortunately can’t use it.
I haven’t tried with any other milk so I’m not sure I can recommend a sub on this one.
My husband and I often went to a restaurant that served a similar dish but they took it off the menu and left us so bummed. BUT, when I saw this recipe, I thought maybe it would be similar and it did not disappoint. THANK YOU!
This meal was amazing! I’m so glad that I doubled the sauce because that was my favorite part. I had to make a few adjustments for my husband who has food sensitivities, but it was super easy and the sauce was so flavorful and delicious. SO good! Great job! We will make this again and again!
Amazing! So happy you found this one 🙂
This is just to die for. I followed the recipe exactly. I made the coconut cauliflower rice with it. This is very healthy and just absolutely delicious and healthy.
So happy you loved it!
Another winner from Ambitious Kitchen! Who am I kidding? Every one of your recipes is. So good. Unique. And so easy!
So happy to hear that, Jenna! I’m glad you’re loving the recipes here 🙂
I just made this dish for lunch and the Turkey meatballs were so juicy and flavoursome!
I added some chilli flakes to the sauce to spice it up but it was delish! My partner said next time he would add a splash of fish sauce to the mango coconut sauce to give a little more depth of flavour.
Perfect! And yes this one’s great for customizing with flavors, too. Glad you enjoyed!
The meatballs were tasty but the Mango sauce was pretty bland. i am not a professional cook by any imagination so I am not sure what to add the next time to kick up the flavor? I did not add the extra peanuts on top (did not want to add extra fat) but did add the cilantro and scallion- but it was not a hit.
Also- the mixture turned out pretty wet and the meatballs were hard to roll and keep together so i added extra breadcrumbs to hold them together. The only thing i can think of is maybe this was because i used chopped canned jalapenos instead of a fresh pepper?
Any ideas?
Thanks
Maureen
That’s so strange considering the mango should be sweet along with the coconut milk. You can try adding in any of the following to suit your taste preferences: soy sauce, lime juice, salt or a few teaspoons of fish sauce
My husband and I love this recipe. It is so flavorful and has great textures! I did use ground turkey and it was super flavorful and moist still!
Perfect! So glad you both love it 🙂
LOVE this recipe. I meal prepped it this week for dinner, and husband and 12-mo-old have both been scarfing it down. I used frozen mango and also finished it off with some lime juice for serving. This last time I realized we didn’t have enough ground turkey so I used half turkey half sausage. The meatballs were so so tender. So good!
Amazing! So happy to hear that 🙂
This was the third recipe I’ve tried of ambitious kitchen’s and none of them have disappointed!! So so good! I loved the flavor of the sauce on this one. I put it over zoodles.
I’m so glad! Great idea to serve with zoodles 🙂
I used ground turkey and frozen mango. Always turns out perfect!
Such a great dinner!
Such an easy and delicious recipe! So unique and flavourful! Will make again and again!
So glad you enjoyed!
So yummy! My whole family including a picky little eater loved it!😋
So happy to hear that!
This dish was a hit! It was a perfect healthy not-boring savory meal that was easy to assemble on a weeknight. The combination of different flavors were wonderful and I will definitely make again with brown rice. I did not substitute anything and followed the recipe exactly as instructed, very affordable list of ingredients by the way,
I have to say that Ambitious Kitchen is my go-to all the time for any dinner or baking recipe because you have never disappointed me, so thank you so much for sharing!
Amazing! So happy to hear that!
This is one of the best meals I have ever made!!! I don’t like spice so I skipped the jalapeño and cayenne, and there was still so much flavor. Absolutely LOVED it.
So happy to hear that!
I’m trying to leave a 5 star but I cannot click that final star (tried in all browsers, in Pinterest, and getting the same issue.)
Anyway… this meal was delicious!! The kids (3 & 5) devoured the entire meal and I added all the add ins and they even dug into the fresh cilantro and green onion.
I’m left with a lot of leftover sauce so I will double the meat next time and have lunch balls for the kids for school.
YUMMY!!!!
Sorry about the star issue! Can I ask if you’re on mobile or desktop? And so glad you loved these!
This is my second time making these delicious meatballs!! Great recipe! Love em!
So happy to hear that!
This recipe makes me really feel like a chef! I love this meal, its so filling and delicious. I love anything with mango, and this sauce is soooo delish! Makes such a great meal, and great leftovers as well. Can’t wait to make this one again!!
Absolutely! A little fancy but so easy 🙂
This was absolutely delicious. The flavors are great. Both the sauce and the meatballs could use a good amount more salt. I know saltiness is a preferences, but I usually prefer less salt.
Glad you enjoyed it! And good to know about the salt–I always recommend tasting and adding more if necessary before serving 🙂
So, cilantro is used just as a seasoning but the dish is called “Cilantro Chicken . . . !?”
Yep, I think the flavor is prominent enough for it to be included in the title 🙂
For a single parent of four(4) children; this a remarkable quick fix!
If you want to stretch the hamburger portions; just 2 cups rolled oats, six eggs, season to taste!
This is a real meal stretcher, especially during the “Covid-19” shutdowns!
Mr Esmond Graham
Hi, Esmond! Oh, I’m so glad to hear you guys are loving it. Those are great suggestions for stretching the meatballs–thanks for sharing! 🙂
This was wonderful. I did use full fat coconut milk and we enjoyed the sauce. Great flavor. I also used broccoli/cauliflower rice, green beans, orange pepper and mushrooms.
Nice!! That all sounds so delish. Glad you enjoyed it 🙂
This was pretty good, good change of pace. Very lacking in salt and spice though, and I didn’t de-seed my jalapeno. Would definitely add double the salt and either a second jalapeno with seeds or double the cayenne.
Hi, Stephanie! Glad to hear you enjoyed it. Totally fine to adjust the seasoning to your liking–the heat level of jalapeños can really vary!
Super tasty! Added zucchini, too, about 10 minutes before the sauce was done cooking. I would say this took about an hour and fifteen minutes as opposed to 45, the prep alone was 45, with 30 minutes cook time. Other than that, if I had the time, I would definitely make it again – yum!
SO happy you loved it, Danielle! And good to know about the prep time 🙂