What can I serve with the meatballs?

These meatballs are SUPER versatile. They can be served with so many things, which is why they're perfect for meal prep. - pile them on top of steamed white rice, quinoa, brown rice or couscous and pita chips . - serve stuffed into pita or piled on top of flatbreads . - enjoy them with a couple of salads (a smacked cucumber or green goddess salad would be lovely). - pair with crispy roast potatoes , pesto potatoes , miso sweet potatoes or oven fries . - toss through orzo pesto salad for an extra kick of protein. - pile on top of creamy hummus , green tahini sauce or tahini yogurt sauce . - serve with the tzatziki sauce on the side as a delicious party bite!

Can I make them ahead of time?

Yes! There are a couple of ways you can prep these ahead. You can form the meatballs, then place them on a plate covered with cling film (or in a covered container) and store them in the fridge until you’re ready to cook them (they'll be fine for a day like this). You can also freeze the formed meatballs – place them on a lined oven tray in the freezer for 20 minutes, then store them in zip-lock bags. You can then cook them straight from frozen (add 5 minutes to the cooking time). The cooked meatballs will keep well for 5 days, making this a great recipe for meal prep.

Can I make them in the air fryer?

You can! Pop them into your air fryer then cook at 200C/400F for about 10 minutes.

Can I cook them on the stovetop?

Yes! It's even quicker this way - just cook them with a little olive oil over medium heat for about 5 minutes on each side, until they're golden all over.

Greek Chicken Meatballs

Name: Greek Chicken Meatballs
Prep time: 8 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 20 min
Cuisine: mediterranean
Ingredients: 500g/1lb ground chicken; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 small onion, finely diced or grated; 3 garlic cloves, crushed; 1 teaspoon dried oregano; 1 teaspoon dried thyme; ¼ cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped; ¼ cup mint, finely chopped; 1 lemon, zested and juiced; 1 teaspoon fish sauce (optional); ½ cup Greek yogurt or labneh; 1/2 a cucumber; 1 garlic clove, crushed; 1 lemon, zested; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 250g/9oz cherry tomatoes, halved; ½ cup feta, crumbled; A handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped; A handful of mint leaves, chopped

Description

Fresh, zesty, juicy Greek chicken meatballs are a super easy, versatile 20 minute meal. Piled onto quick tzatziki sauce, topped with creamy feta, cherry tomatoes and herbs, they make a wonderful weeknight winner the whole family will love.

Ingredients

Units Scale

For the meatballs –

500g/1lb ground chicken
1 teaspoon salt
1 small onion, finely diced or grated
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
1/4 cup mint, finely chopped
1 lemon, zested and juiced
1 teaspoon fish sauce (optional)

To serve –

1/2 cup Greek yogurt or labneh
1/2 a cucumber
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 lemon, zested
1/2 teaspoon salt
250g/9oz cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup feta, crumbled
A handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped
A handful of mint leaves, chopped

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Instructions

Mix the meatballs. Heat your oven to 210C/400F fan. Add the ground chicken, 1 teaspoon salt, the finely diced or grated onion, 3 crushed garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley, 1/4 cup chopped mint, the zest and juice of 1 lemon and 1 teaspoon of fish sauce (if you’re using it) into a mixing bowl. Using either your hands or a large spoon or spatula, mix the ingredients together until they’re all combined into a cohesive mix. Stop mixing as soon as everything is combined – overmixing can result in dense, dry meatballs.
Form the meatballs and bake. Line an oven tray with baking paper, then lightly wet your hands (this will stop the mixture sticking to them). Use a spoon or cookie scoop to scoop up a heaped tablespoon of the meatball mixture, then roll it into a ball in your hands. Place on the lined tray, then repeat with the rest of the meatballs. Drizzle them with 1 tablespoon of olive oil, then pop into the oven for 12 minutes.
Make the tzatziki. While the meatballs are cooking, grate your 1/2 cucumber on the coarse side of your grater, then squeeze as much moisture out of it as possible. Combine 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, 1 crushed garlic clove, the zest of 1 lemon, 1/2 teaspoon of salt and the grated cucumber in a small bowl. Mix to combine, taste and season with a little more salt if you think it needs it, then set it aside.
Garnish and serve. After 12 minutes, the meatballs should be looking golden on top and they should be cooked through. Use a probe thermometer to check the internal temperature is 165F/75C or just cut into one to check – it should look white. Divide the tzatziki between plates, then top with the meatballs. Finish with the chopped tomatoes, creamy feta and the herbs, then dig in.

Notes

INGREDIENT NOTES: Grating the onion results in super fine pieces of onion throughout the meatballs, and provides more liquid to keep them moist, so I recommend giving it a go! I LOVE the savoury depth fish sauce brings, but you can leave it out if you like. Try to use a thick Greek yogurt for the tzatziki, rather than a plain yogurt. The consistency is a lot nicer when the sauce isn’t super runny. Low or zero fat yogurt is absolutely fine. Use whatever fresh, crunchy veggies you like to serve alongside the meatballs – diced cucumber, red onion or red peppers would be great too.

SUBSTITUTIONS: Swap the ground chicken for ground turkey or pork. You could also use all dried herbs in the meatballs, instead of the fresh mint and parsley. Switch out dried thyme and oregano for dried parsley, mint or marjoram. I like to use lemon zest in my tzatziki because you get that hit of lemon flavour, without the added liquid, but you could just use 1 tablespoon of lemon juice if you don’t want to zest another lemon. You could also use a store-bought tzatziki if you like.

STORAGE INSTRUCTIONS: The cooked meatballs will keep well for 5 days, stored in a covered container in the frdige, making this a great recipe for meal prep.You could also form the meatballs a day in advance, then pop them onto a plate otr tray, cover them with cling film, and store them in the fridge until you’re ready to cook them. You can also freeze the formed meatballs. Just place them on a lined oven tray in the freezer for 20 minutes, then store them in zip-lock bags. You can cook them straight from frozen in the oven (add 5 minutes to the cooking time).

SERVING SUGGESTIONS: There are SO MANY ways you can serve these meatballs. Add rice or quinoa and pita chips to make a meatball bowl, serve stuffed into pita or on top of flatbreads, pile on top of creamy hummus or sundried tomato feta dip, toss through pasta salad, serve with a selection of salads (smacked cucumber and green goddess are my favourite), with crispy potatoes, oven fries or a pesto potato salad. They’re also great served with the tzatziki (or green tahini sauce or tahini yogurt sauce) on the side as a party snack.

Prep Time: 8
Cook Time: 12
Category: fakeaways
Method: oven
Cuisine: mediterranean

Nutrition

Serving Size: 3 meatballs

Keywords: chicken meatballs, greek meatballs