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Crockpot Garlic Butter Chicken Meatballs with Creamy Orzo. Turning a meatball and pasta dinner into an easy slow cooker meal. We’re using white wine, creamy Dijon mustard, garlic, herbs, parmesan cheese, and orzo. Then adding in some vibrant spinach and sun-dried tomatoes for veggies, flavor, and a pop of color. This slow-cooked chicken meatball dinner is a delicious meal to come home to at the end of the day. And the best part? It’s the easiest, cozy fall-winter dinner to prepare. Directions for the Instant Pot and stove-top are provided!
I know I’ve said something like this before. But when a recipe I’m not sure about works out so well, I get incredibly excited! When I had this idea, at first I didn’t want to make it. I was honestly scared it would end disastrously. But after some pushing from mom, I decided to just go for it.
I kept asking her about the recipe, “should I make this”? I think I asked her 3 days in a row until she finally said, “Tieghan, MAKE THE MEATBALLS”! Finally, I listened and I sent her a text a few hours later to thank her for the encouragement. The recipe turned out better than I’d imagined and more importantly, it was so delicious.
Here are all the easy details
To be honest, I may only want to make meatballs in the crockpot from now on. This was so easy and almost mess-free.
Start with the meatballs. I make mine using ground chicken, Italian seasoning, dijon, and parmesan cheese. Just mix everything together and roll it into meatballs. Then place them in the crockpot with a little olive oil to prevent any sticking.
Next, pour over white wine, add an onion, and a whole head of garlic. Cover and slow cook. Since these are meatballs, they can cook quickly on high for a couple of hours or cook them low and slow all day. Either is great and the meatballs are never dry. The wine will add moisture to them.
When the meatballs are cooked, pull them out along with the garlic, then set them aside on a baking sheet.
Add the orzo to all the yummy broth in the crockpot. Now simply cover and cook a few minutes longer, until the orzo is al dente.
Meanwhile, I love to add butter to the meatballs and garlic and toss on some rosemary. Then place the sheet pan under the broiler for a couple of minutes to crisp them up.
What happens is that the butter browns around the meatballs, garlic, and rosemary. I then chop up the garlic and rosemary and toss them back onto the pan with butter. Then toss the meatballs with the garlicky butter to finish. This step is optional, but I think it really adds flavor.
When the orzo is finished, stir in the spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, then add the cream and parmesan, stirring until the orzo becomes very creamy.
Serve the garlic butter meatballs over the orzo, then drizzle any butter left on the pan over top.
So simple and quick with barely any clean-up and minimal hands-on time too.
What I love most about this recipe is the fact that it’s a complete all-in-one dinner. You have your protein, your carbs, and even your vegetables. You can serve this up on busy weeknights, but it’s equally great for those upcoming holiday dinners with friends and family.
Looking for other slow cooker meals? Here are a few ideas:
Creamy White Bean Noodle Soup with Rosemary Bacon.
Mustard Herb Chicken and Creamy Orzo
Crockpot Crispy Buffalo Chicken Tacos with Jalapeño Ranch
Slow Cooker Saucy Sunday Bolognese Pasta
Slow Cooker Herbed Chicken and Rice Pilaf
Crockpot Spaghetti Squash Lasagna Bolognese
Lastly, if you make this Crockpot Garlic Butter Chicken Meatballs with Creamy Orzo, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crockpot Garlic Butter Chicken Meatballs with Creamy Orzo
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 878 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds ground chicken, pork, or turkey
- 3 tablespoons Italian seasoning
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
- kosher salt and black pepper
- 1 onion, quartered
- 1 head garlic, top trimmed off to reveal the cloves
- 1 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc
- 6 tablespoons salted butter
- 1 sprig rosemary
- 2 cups dry orzo pasta
- 2 cups fresh baby spinach
- 1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes
- 1/2 cup heavy cream or canned full fat coconut milk
Instructions
Slow Cooker
- 1. Add the chicken, Italian seasoning, dijon, and 1/2 cup parmesan to a bowl. Season with salt, and pepper. Mix to combine. Coat your hands with oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-16 meatballs). Add olive oil and place the meatballs in the bowl of your crockpot. 2. Pour over the wine and 1/2 cup water. Add the onion and garlic. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or on high for 1-2 hours.2. Preheat the broiler to high. Remove the meatballs and garlic from the slow cooker and place on a baking sheet.3. Crank the heat on the slow cooker to high. Stir in the orzo, and 1 cup water. Cover and cook 20-30 minutes, or until the orzo is al dente. If the orzo needs more liquid, add additional water. Stir in the spinach, sun-dried tomatoes, cream, and 1/2 cup parmesan.4. Arrange the butter and the rosemary around the meatballs and garlic, then broil 1-3 minutes, until crisp. Peel away the garlic skin, then chop and mix with the butter and rosemary on the sheet pan. Toss the meatballs in the butter. 5. Serve the meatballs over the orzo.
Instant Pot
- 1. Add the chicken, Italian seasoning, dijon, and 1/2 cup parmesan to a bowl. Season with salt, and pepper. Mix to combine. Coat your hands with oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-16 meatballs).2. Set the instant pot to sauté. Add olive oil, then add the meatballs to the instant pot and sear until browned, about 5 minutes, Pour in the wine and 1/2 cup water. Add 1 chopped onion. Cook 5 minutes, then add the butter, garlic and rosemary. Let the butter butter, another 2-3 minutes. Cover and cook on high pressure for 6 minutes.3. Once done cooking, release the steam. Set the Instant pot to sauté. Remove the garlic. Stir in the orzo and 1 cup water. Cook 6-8 minutes, until the orzo is al dente. Stir in the spinach, tomatoes, cream, and parmesan.4. Serve the meatballs over the orzo.
Stove-Top
- 1. Add the chicken, Italian seasoning, dijon, and 1/2 cup parmesan to a bowl. Season with salt, and pepper. Mix to combine. Coat your hands with oil, and roll the meat into tablespoon-size balls (will make 15-16 meatballs).2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil, then add the meatballs and sear until browned, about 5 minutes. Add 1 chopped onion. Cook 5 minutes, then add the butter, garlic and rosemary. Let the butter butter, another 2-3 minutes. 3. Reduce the heat to medium. Pour in the wine. Stir in the orzo and 1 1/2 cups water. Cook, stirring often, another 6-8 minutes, until the orzo is al dente. Stir in the spinach, tomatoes, cream, and 1/2 cup parmesan.4. Serve the chicken over the orzo. Enjoy!
Are the onion and garlic just infused into the dish or should it be served with the final product? I am a little confused what to do with those ingredients (doing the stovetop version).
Hey Maddie,
The garlic is used to infuse the dish, the onions can be served or not, totally up to you! Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
Made this for Thanksgiving this year and was absolutely in love with the orzo! It was perfectly cooked and had that yummy creamy flavor. Only issue I ran into was the meatballs being a bit dry – any idea where I went wrong? Maybe I cooked them in the crockpot a little too long?
Thanks!
Hey Emily,
Thanks so much for making this dish! I love to hear that it was enjoyed:) Next time, try adding an egg to the meatballs, that should help! xT
Made this tonight in the Instapot and it was SO GOOD – definitely putting it on our biweekly rotation! I did read a lot of the comments beforehand and made a few modifications which were: to remove the meatballs from the pot before adding the orzo, and omitting the cream from the orzo. Doing those things made it turn out delicious!! I also used 1.5 cups of low sodium chicken broth instead of the wine+water because I wanted my 8 month old daughter to be able to have some.
Hey Lauren,
Happy Wednesday!! I truly appreciate you giving this recipe a try and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a hit:)
Great cozy meal.
I made the meatballs in the oven however they were a little dry but i will definitely add an egg next time!
Thanks for the recipe!!!
Hey Emily,
Happy Wednesday!! I truly appreciate you giving this recipe a try and sharing your review, so glad to hear it was a hit:)
Orzo was good but the meatballs turned out so dry they were nearly inedible and we followed the recipe closely. Definitely a bit disappointing…since some other people have had the same problem hopefully something can be modified. Also – the Instagram video does a few things a little differently, which was a bit confusing.
Hey Sara,
Thanks for giving the recipe a try and sharing your feedback. So sorry to hear that this recipe was not enjoyed. You could try adding an egg to the meatballs to see if that helps any. Again, sorry for the trouble! xx
I’m planning to do stovetop preparation, how do I go about the head of garlic? Since it won’t be roasted whole in a crockpot, should I just mince it all up and add it to the pan with the meatballs? Thank you !
Hey Maddy,
You’re still going to just use the head of garlic, it will infuse the dish on the stove top as well. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
For the garlic do you still put the whole head in with just the top trimmed off for the stovetop version or do you separate each clove?
Hey there,
You’re going to use the whole head with the top trimmed off. Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love this recipe! xx
Yum, definitely going to make this again. We’ve been making a few of your recipes and we’re very impressed.
Just a comment about the instructions, you’ve said “let the butter butter” in a number of the sections.
Thanks for your hard work.
Hey Dimitri,
Wonderful!!❄️ Thanks a bunch for giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, I am so glad it was a winner:)
Hi Dimitri, I noticed that typo too. This recipe was a little different before where Teighan instructed to brown the butter on the stovetop with the garlic and rosemary. She changed the recipe but I’m not sure why. Maybe she wants us to melt the butter? Maybe brown the butter in the instant pot (I use the instant pot for this recipe)? Not quite sure.
I am wanting to make this … or the Coq au vin meatballs … for a larger crowd. Can I double the recipe and still be successful in the crockpot? Worried about cooking them correctly.
Hi Amber,
You really need to make sure your pot is large enough to handle all of the ingredients when doubling:) Please let me know if you give the recipe a try! xx
Tieghan, did you change this recipe recently. It’s different than it was originally.
Hi April,
Nope, I haven’t changed it:) Is there something specific you had a question about? Let me know how I can help! xx
Ya, you had the rosemary, garlic and butter brown in a skillet and then added to the orzo at the end. Now the recipe has the browned butter done in the instant pot (I use the instant pot variation). I printed it out when you first posted but gave that copy to my mother in law and reprinted the recipe recently and noticed a change in operations and some typos that were a bit curious.
Hi! In the stovetop section you leave the meatballs in when you add the other ingredients to cook the orzo, correct? Looking forward to making this tonight!
Hi Kathleen,
Yes, that is correct:) I hope you love this recipe! xx
Hi! Is it possible to make the meatballs and freeze them (trying to pre-make for company coming!) will the recipe still work to add them once ready to be eaten with the rest of the recipe?
Hey Shelly,
Totally, that will work well for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope it’s delish! xx
The meatballs were pretty dry. I would add some breadcrumbs next time maybe. Not sure I would do them in the crockpot. But the flavours were nice! I Used the gluten free banza rice! It sucked up the sauce nicely yum!
Hey Leah,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! Sorry to hear about the meatballs:) Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃
Hi there!
What would you recommend as a replacement for the wine? Thanks!
Hey Annan,
You can use broth in place of the wine! Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope this recipe turns out well for you! xT
Can I sub ground turkey? Thanks!
Hey Anna,
Totally, ground turkey will work well for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions! Happy Thanksgiving! xT
Such a delicious and easy meal. Loved it and will be adding to my rotation
Hi Kelly,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃
My H‑E‑B didn’t have ground chicken so I got ground Italian turkey instead. I only used 2 tbs of Italian seasoning instead plus the salt and pepper. Could have gone without the salt seemed a bit too much. Turned out really great! The orzo was a bit watery but I’m sure it will thicken up over time! I just couldn’t wait to eat it
Hey Melonie,
Wonderful!! Thanks so much for making this recipe, I love to hear that it was enjoyed!! Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃
Mine turned out very liquidy….I don’t know if I made it wrong or what….the recipe does day add water fpr meatballs and then to cook orzo aswell as wine/broth and there was leftover liquid when i cooked orzo… so I was kinda disappointed with the end result..
Hey Tessa,
All of the measurements are correct here, so sorry to hear the recipe was not enjoyed. Was there anything you may have adjusted in the recipe? Did you use the slow cooker method? Please let me know how I can help! xx
Hey Tieghan,
I may have done just under 2 cups of orzo (I just finished the bag I had) so maybe should have had more to absorb more liquid?
And yes I used slow cooker method 🙂
Yes, I would have added more orzo or reduced the liquid a bit:)
Hey! Haven’t made this yet, but I can’t use wine in cooking for health reasons. What would you use as a substitute in this case? Would you sub chicken broth, or just more water?
Hey Gavin,
You can use an equal amount of broth for this recipe. Please let me know if you have any other questions, I hope you love the recipe! xx