Homemade Traditional Greek Meatballs
Greek food is known for its fresh, zesty, and savory meal flavorings. It's one of our favorite cuisines for that reason! Mediterranean dishes are nutritious and give us a break from common cuisine with its worldly flavor infusions.
The most popular Greek dishes are gyros, kabobs, baklava, and Greek salad. Entrees are usually meats paired with rice, pita bread, and a side salad. Since we appreciate the balanced simplicity of traditional Greek meals, we decided to share our Greek meatballs meal prep recipe with you today.
These herb-filled meatballs are an exotic spin on classic meatballs with robust herbs like dill, mint, and oregano. Served alongside tangy lemon rice and fresh tomato, cucumber, and olive salad, it’s like a trip to the Greek islands without leaving your house!
How long will Greek Meatballs last for?
Greek meatballs will last for 3 to 4 days in the refrigerator when properly stored. The entree (Greek meatballs with rice and salad) will last for four days. A fresh salad will last 3 days. To avoid soggy salad and still save time, chop and store salad vegetables separately in produce saver containers. When you're ready to go, toss the salad ingredients together and add the salad to your meal.
Can Greek Meatballs be frozen?
Yes, you can freeze Greek meatballs. Store them in containers, freezer wrap, or heavy-duty freezer bags. Greek meatballs can be frozen for up to 4 months. You can even freeze the rice with the meatballs, but be sure to do that as soon as the rice is cooked. Label and store Greek meatballs by themselves or the meal prep recipe (we don't recommend freezing the salad).
Greek Meatballs Ingredients:
For Meatballs
- 1 lb. 96% lean ground beef
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoon chopped dill
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup finely crumbled feta cheese
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 2 teaspoon olive oil for cooking
Greek Cucumber Salad
- 2 cups chopped cucumber
- 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
- ⅓ cup pitted kalamata olives, chopped
- ¼ cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon cracked black pepper
For Lemon Rice
- 1 cup dry basmati rice
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon cracked black pepper
How do you make Greek Meatballs?
It's super easy! The entire Greek Meatballs meal prep recipe is ready in under an hour.
Start by making your salad. Put the salad in a medium bowl with lid and store in the fridge while you make the rest of the meal. Once the salad is done, make the rice. Heat your chicken stock over medium heat, bringing it to a slight boil. Then add dry rice and cook for 15 minutes.
As the rice cooks, gather your meatball ingredients and mix them into a medium bowl. Form 12 meatballs. At this point, check on your rice. It should be almost done. Wash your hands, then add the zesty flavors to the rice once it's done. Cover cooked rice for warmth and set it aside.
Now for the fun part - the Greek meatballs! If you already formed your meatballs, it's time to cook them. If not, then that's alright. You can prep the meatballs as the rice cooks or wait until the rice is done. Either way, heat 1 teaspoon (tsp) of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat for one minute. Put half of your meatballs into the skillet. Cook for a total of 4 minutes, flipping the meatballs after 2 minutes for browning. When the four minutes are up, cover the meatballs with a lid and let them cook thoroughly for 10-12 minutes. When the first batch is done, repeat the process for the second batch.
And that's it! A complete Greek meal in less than an hour. Opa!
How to portion Greek Meatballs?
Line up four two-compartment meal prep containers. Divide rice evenly between them (about 1 cup per container). The rice goes into the bigger compartment and the salad goes into the smaller one. Add 3 meatballs to the rice with a lemon slice and you're ready to go!
More Meatballs meal prep recipes:
Who doesn't love a good meatball? They're delicious, easy, and fun to make! Here are some more meatballs recipes to hit a home run with:
Honey Garlic Mushroom Meatballs
Molasses Bourbon BBQ Glazed Chicken Meatballs
One Skillet Spaghetti Squash & Meatballs
Mozzarella Stuffed Meatballs
Eggplant Meatballs and Zoodle Meal Prep
Cranberry BBQ Vegan Meatballs
Cheesy Keto Chicken Meatballs
Keto Bacon Sausage Meatballs
Carrot Meatballs With Mint Cauliflower Rice
20 Minute Paleo Thai Almond Butter Turkey Meatballs
Other tips for making Greek Meatballs:
This meal prep recipe is pretty easy. But there are some important things to note about the star of the show - the meatballs.
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Start here: The Ultimate Guide To Meatballs Recipes. We wrote this especially for you, meatball lover!
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Use high-quality, fresh ground meat.
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If these meatballs are too lean for you, you can mix lean meat with fattier meat. The fat gives your meatballs moisture and flavor.
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Mix ingredients with clean hands or a wooden spoon. Mix everything together until it looks cohesive. Keep from over-mixing or you will mess up the texture.
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When rolling the meatballs, put a little olive oil on your hands so the crumbs don't stick to you. Roll them lightly. Keep from rolling firm meatballs so they can cook thoroughly and absorb all of the combined delicious flavors!
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Don't skip browning! The 4-minute cook time, in the beginning, is for searing. Start cooking for two minutes, flip, then cover and finish cooking.
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Add tzatziki sauce for added Greek authenticity!
Ingredients
For Meatballs
- 1 lb. 96% lean ground beef
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoon chopped dill
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup finely crumbled feta cheese
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- 2 teaspoon olive oil for cooking
Greek Cucumber Salad
- 2 cups chopped cucumber
- 1 cup grape tomatoes halved
- ⅓ cup pitted kalamata olives chopped
- ¼ cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon cracked black pepper
For Lemon Rice
- 1 cup dry basmati rice
- 2 cups chicken stock
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 3 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Stir together ingredients for Greek salad in a medium mixing bowl. Cover and refrigerate while preparing other recipes.
- Heat chicken stock in a medium saucepan over medium heat until boiling. Add rice and cook until Fully cooked, about 15 minutes. Turn heat off and stir in remaining ingredients. Cover with lid to keep warm.
- While rice is cooking, combine ingredients for meatballs in a medium mixing bowl and thoroughly mix with clean hands. Form mixture into 12 meatballs. Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil over medium heat in a skillet for 1 minute. Add 5-6 meatballs and cook for 4 minutes, turning after 2 minutes for even browning. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover with lid and cook for 10-12 minutes longer to cook meatballs through. Transfer to a bowl and cover to keep warm. Add another teaspoon of olive oil to pan and repeat with remaining meatballs.
- Divide lemon rice between large compartment of 4 MPOF teal containers and place 3 meatballs on top. Divide Greek salad between 4 small compartments.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
