Aidells Chicken Meatballs (Teriyaki & Pineapple) Product Review

Many years ago a friend invited me to his house for a barbecue. When I got there he said we were having hamburgers but not made with ground beef. He was using ground chicken. "It's better for you," he said.

I like chicken and when I was growing up chicken was a delight only to be eaten on special occasions. It was fried chicken and never ground chicken. But hamburgers made with ground chicken? Better for me or not, I could hardly choke one down, even with the help of a drink. I learned over the years if I mix spices in with ground chicken I can enjoy eating it. So when I saw Aidells Chicken Meatballs I figured it was worth a try.

Aidells Chicken Meatballs are fully cooked but needs to be kept refrigerated and once they are opened they need to be eaten or frozen within three days. They can be microwaved, but since I have a convection oven, I like to bake them. It only takes eight to twelve minutes at 375°. Microwaving takes two minutes or they can be heated on the stove top.

Aidells Chicken Meatballs ingredients are: chicken, dried pineapple (pineapple, fructose), evaporated sugarcane juice, soy sauce powder [soy sauce (soy beans, salt and wheat), maltodextrin, and salt], vinegar, garlic, salt, miso powder (soybeans, rice, and salt), ginger, and spices, browned in vegetable oil. They are pork free.

Nutrition Facts for Aidells Chicken Meatballs are: serving size is three meatballs. A container holds about twenty meatballs. The package I bought from Costco has two containers (plastic bags) in it. Calories per serving are 130. Sixty calories are from fat. Total fat is 7g or 11% of the daily value. Two grams of fat is from saturated fat or 10% of the daily value. There are zero grams of trans fat. Cholesterol is 60 mg or 20% of daily value. Sodium is 500mg or 21% of daily value. Total carbohydrate is 7g or 2% of daily value. Dietary fiber is 1g or 4% of daily value. Sugars are 6g. Protein is 11g. Iron is 6%. The daily percentages are base on a 2,000 calorie diet.

Aidells Chicken Meatballs are distributed by Aidells Sausage Company, San Leandro, California 94577. Phone number 1-877-AIDELLS. The package I bought from Costco cost $12.79 or $6.395 a container.

Although Aidells Chicken Meatballs don't taste like beef meatballs, I found them to be very tasty. The pineapple, ginger, garlic and other spices are not overpowering. They taste a bit sweet but not so much to be sickening. I've eaten Aidells Chicken Meatballs by themselves, but mostly by mixing them with brown rice and spaghetti sauce to make a sort of Spanish rice. I once mixed them with alfredo sauce and brown rice. That was a bit bizarre, but it was edible. Overall I would give Aidells Chicken Meatballs four and a half stars out of five.