Mix the meatballs. If you're using your oven to bake the meatballs, heat it to 220C/420F. Add the ground chicken to a mixing bowl along with 1/2 cup of panko breadcrumbs, 1/2 cup of ricotta cheese, 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, 1 teaspoon of dried oregano, 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika, the chopped parsley, 1 teaspoon of salt, a very good grind of black pepper and the zest of 1 lemon. Use a wooden spoon (or your hands if you like) to mix everything into a cohesive mixture. 

Cook the meatballs (oven instructions). Bake the meatballs on the prepared tray for 20 minutes, or until they're lovely and charred on the outside and cooked all the way through (cut into one to check they aren't pink or use a probe thermometer - it should read at least 165F/74C).

Cook the meatballs (air fryer instructions). Pop the meatballs into your air fryer and air fry for 11 minutes at 400F/200C. Try to have them on one layer, but it's not a massive deal if they overlap, just give them a shake halfway through the cooking time.

Cook the meatballs (pan-frying instructions). Drizzle one tablespoon of olive oil into a large, high-sided skillet and set it over medium-high heat. Add the meatballs and cook for about five minutes, before turning the meatballs to brown them all over. They don't need to be fully cooked through as you'll add them into the sauce later. Remove from the pan.

Start the sauce. Set a large, high-sided skillet or pan over medium-high heat (if you've pan-fried the meatballs, use the same pan and keep any chicken fat in it for flavor). Add 2 tablespoons of butter and the 4 crushed garlic cloves. Stir as the butter melts and the garlic starts to soften. After a minute, add 1 teaspoon of bell pepper flakes and stir through the butter.

Add the flour, wine, stock and capers. Scatter 1 tablespoon of flour into the pan and stir it through the butter, garlic and bell pepper flakes for a couple of minutes. At this point, pour in 1/2 cup of white wine and use a whisk to mix it into the flour and butter. This will help create a lovely, emulsified, thick sauce. Pour in 1/2 cup of chicken stock, continuing to whisk, then add 1/4 cup of capers, 1 tablespoon of caper brine and the juice of 1 lemon (approximately 2 tablespoons).

Simmer the sauce. Continue to stir the sauce and bring it to a simmer. Leave to simmer and thicken for about five minutes. 

Add meatballs to the sauce. After five minutes, add the meatballs to the sauce and lower the heat a little. You want the sauce to continue simmering, but not too rapidly. Keep the sauce on a low simmer for another five minutes.

Garnish and serve. To finish, scatter with the flat-leaf parsley and stir through the meatballs and sauce. A little extra lemon zest is a lovely touch too. Serve while hot, with soft garlic flatbreads, over orzo, spaghetti, rice, garlic butter potatoes or straight from the pan with a spoon!