This is the best ground chicken meatloaf recipe! It's moist, juicy, and packed with flavour. You will love how easy this meatloaf is to make and it's made with simple ingredients including ground chicken, applesauce, and spices. This healthy meatloaf is also gluten-free, dairy-free and made without breadcrumbs.
If you love easy ground meat recipes like my ground duck burgers, blueberry sweetened meatloaf, and cranberry turkey meatballs then you are going to love the meatloaf recipe I am sharing with you today!
Table of Contents
Why you will love this meatloaf:
- The taste! This meatloaf is moist and tender and packed with flavour. It's never dry or boring like so many other meatloaf recipes.
- It's quick and easy to make and only requires a few minutes of hands on time.
- Not only is this meatloaf healthy and delicious but it is also gluten-free and dairy-free and can easily be made paleo and Whole30 compliant, just like my healthy ho bean chili. It's also made without sugar.
If you are looking for more delicious chicken recipes you need to try my healthy chicken pad Thai, and mango chicken curry.
Ingredients:
For the exact measurements refer to the recipe card later in this post.
Jump to the Recipe Card.
- Ground chicken - I recommend using ground dark chicken meat if possible for more moisture and flavour rather than white chicken meat. If you don't have ground chicken meat you could use ground turkey instead.
- Applesauce - use unsweetened applesauce.
- Mustard - you can use any type of mustard that you like including dijon mustard, grainy mustard or yellow mustard.
- Eggs - are used as a binder and to help add moisture.
- Spices - sea salt, ground black pepper, dried rosemary and herbes de provence spice blend. You could easily swap the herbs de Provence spice blend for Italian seasoning and turn this into Italian chicken meatloaf.
- Almond flour - to help bind the meatloaf together.
- BBQ sauce - this is optional but I like topping meatloaf with bbq sauce to give it even more flavour.
Recipe variations and add ins:
- Instead of almond flour you could use bread crumbs, almond meal, oatmeal, or crushed crackers to bind this ground chicken meatloaf.
- Instead of bbq sauce you could top this meatloaf with ketchup.
- To make this chicken meatloaf Whole30 compliant: use applesauce and bbq sauce that is Whole30 compliant - or make your own Whole30 bbq sauce.
- To make it paleo: use a paleo safe bbq sauce to top this meatloaf.
How to make ground chicken meatloaf:
- Step 1: Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and add all the meatloaf ingredients (except the bbq sauce) to a large bowl.
- Step 2: Mix all the ingredients together until they are well combined.
- Step 3: Now transfer the meat mixture to a lined or greased bread pan and bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes or until the loaf is cooked though.
- Step 4: Remove the meatloaf from the oven and let it cool for a few minutes. Then top the meatloaf with barbecue sauce or ketchup and serve while warm.
Top Tips:
- Use your hands rather than a spoon to mix the meat mixture.
- Line the bread pan with parchment paper to make it even easier to get the meatloaf out of the pan.
- Ground turkey is fully cooked with it reaches an internal temperature of 165 ºF when checked with a meat thermometer so if you aren't sure if your meatloaf is done this is an easy way to check.
- Let this ground chicken meatloaf rest for 10 minutes after cooking to allow it to become even more tender and to help it hold its shape better. If you cut it too soon it will be more crumbly.
- Storage: store any leftover meatloaf in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
Ground chicken meatloaf FAQs:
I don't recommend using ground beef for this recipe but you can use ground turkey. If you’re looking for a meatloaf recipe that uses ground beef, try healthy gluten free meatloaf instead.
You do not need to cover your meatloaf when cooking it in the oven. It bakes perfectly even if it’s uncovered.
To keep meatloaf from falling apart it needs binding agents. The most common binders for meatloaf are eggs and breadcrumbs but other binding options include almond flour, almond meal, crushed crackers, or oats.
No this meatloaf is not keto or low carb.
Yes, this ground chicken meatloaf freezes really well for up to 3 months. If you are going to freeze it, don't top it with bbq sauce or ketchup before doing so. Add the toppings after it has been thawed.
Other meat recipes you will love:
Recipe
Ground Chicken Meatloaf
Equipment
- Loaf pan
Ingredients
Meatloaf ingredients
- 2 lbs ground chicken
- 1/2 onion, finely chopped (3/4 cup)
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 3/4 cup applesauce
- 2 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon dried rosemary
- 1 tablespoon herbes de provence spice blend
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 1/2 cups almond flour
- 2 eggs
Meatloaf topping
- 1/4 cup barbecue sauce
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350F.
- Add all the ingredients to a large bowl and stir everything well until combined.
- Transfer the meatloaf mixture to a bread pan and bake for 45-50 minutes, until cooked through.
- Top with the barbecue sauce and allow it to cool for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
- Nutritional values are an estimate and will vary depending on the exact ingredients used.
- Instead of almond flour you can use breadcrumbs or crushed crackers for this recipe.
- Instead of bbq sauce you could top it with ketchup instead.
- Store this meatloaf in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
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