Greek Meatballs

This recipe for Greek Meatballs with feta is great as an appetizer, lunch or dinner. Made with traditional Greek flavors and best served in a yummy tomato sauce.

8 Simple ingredients. Done in less than 30 minutes. Gluten-Free. Low-Carb. Keto.

One day somebody told us about a local traditional greek restaurant that was very popular. Surprisingly, this was news to us. We had never heard of the place.

When the first opportunity arose we went for dinner there. In hindsight it was a big mistake because we fell head over heels in love with the place. Now, we had a new obsession – greek food, and this restaurant is one of our very favorites to this day.

We immediately started planning ways to incorporate the delicious Greek flavors into our home cooking.

What Are Greek Meatballs:

Greek meatballs are called Kleftedes. They are little balls made of ground meat (beef, turkey or lamb), spiced in a variety of ways and can be fried, sautéed or baked.

These delicious little things are famous as an appetizer served on mezze platters with some Tzatziki sauce for dipping. They’re also delicious as a lunch or dinner protein.

How To Make Greek Meatballs:

This recipe for traditional Greek meatballs with feta makes 20+ meatballs, which for the 3 of us was enough to fill us up for lunch AND breakfast the next morning.

What are Greek Meatballs Made Of?

Greek meatballs are so simple to make and can be prepared a variety of ways.

The majority of Greek meatballs recipes do contain ground meat, fresh herbs and lots of garlic.

Here’s what you need for our recipe:

1. Ground Beef
2. Onion
3. Spinach
4. Egg
5. Garlic
6. Fresh Herbs
7. Salt and Pepper

Here’s what needs to happen:

1. Start by sautéing the garlic, onions and spinach together. (Photos 1 & 2)
2. When the onion is soft you can add this to a large mixing bowl with all the rest of the ingredients. (Photo 3)
3. Using a wooden spoon (or your hands) and combine everything very well. (Photo 4)
4. Now, take about and 1/4 cup of mixture and roll into small balls. (This is a personal preference. You can make them as big or small as you like. Bigger meatballs will need a bit more time in the oven. Smaller meatballs need less.) (Photo 5)
5. Using 1/4 cup of mixture per meatball will make 20+ meatballs. We like to sear the meatballs for a minute or two per side before transferring to a lined baking tray. (Photo 6)
6. When we’ve seared them all (it usually takes about 3 batches), we pop them into a preheated oven for 10-15 minutes, depending on the size of the meatballs. (Photo 7)
7. Remove the meatballs from the oven when they reach an internal temperature of 165F/73C, and serve immediately. (Photo 8)

What to serve with Greek Meatballs?

1. When we cook this Greek Meatball recipe (topped with our Marinara), we like to serve it with a simple salad as a side.
2. If you’re serving these as an appetizzer, we recommend a simple Tzatziki sauce for dipping!
3. You can also mix them in Marinara and serve them on top of zoodles (or regular noodles if you’re not low-carb).
4. Serve them as is, with some grilled vegetables on the side.

Can Greek Meatballs be Frozen:

Yes! Our recipe for greek meatballs freezes great! Here’s a great guide on the correct process for Freezing Meatballs from Will Cook For Smiles.

If the meatballs are properly stored they will maintain their best quality for 3-4 months, but they’ll stay safe indefinitely if kept at a constant frozen state.

This recipe is also great for meal prep! (See some other ideas here).

If you’re looking for more easy recipes with ground beef, take a look at these:

1. Easy One Pot Keto Ground Beef Stroganoff
2. 10 Low-Carb Ground Beef Recipes
3. One Pot Amish Beef and Cabbage Skillet
4. Easy Philly Cheesesteak Casserole

If you’re dead set on meatballs, we also thoroughly recommend our super delicious and highly rated Chicken Zucchini Meatballs!

If you make our Greek Meatballs recipe that is Gluten-Free, Keto and Low-Carb friendly – please leave a comment (with a rating!). We’d love to hear your feedback, as that helps us improve our recipes!

Greek Meatballs Recipe Video:

Greek Meatballs

This is a recipe for Greek Meatballs baked in the oven. It’s great as an appetizer, lunch or dinner – also great served in tomato sauce. 8 simple ingredients and less than 30 minutes. Gluten-Free. Low-Carb. Keto.

5 from 2 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

Servings: 6 servings

Calories: 298kcal

Author: Roche Woodworth

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef (500g)
• 1 egg
• 1 onion (finely diced)
• 4 garlic cloves (minced)
• 2 cups frozen spinach
• 1 cup feta cheese (crumbled)
• 1/4 cup fresh dill (roughly chopped)
• 1/4 cup fresh parsley (roughly chopped)
• 1/4 cup fresh mint
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Instructions

• Preheat oven 400ºF/200ºC.
• Sauté the onion in a bit of olive oil until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and spinach and sauté for another 2 minutes.
• Put the ground beef in a large mixing bowl and add the spinach and onion mix, feta cheese, salt, pepper, dill and egg.
• Mix until well combined and start rolling the meatballs. Ours were a little over an inch (3cm) in diameter.
• Heat up some of the olive oil in a large pan to a medium/high heat. Add the meatballs and sear each side for 1-2 minutes before transferring to a baking sheet. I do it in 2-3 batches.
• Once all the meatballs are seared, slide the sheet into oven for approximately 10-15 minutes, to ensure the insides are cooked.

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Tips and Tricks:

1. It’s not strictly necessary to sear these meatballs. You can also pop them straight into the oven and bake them from completely raw. It will need at least 10 extra minutes in the oven if you decide to do this.

2. Beef meatballs are cooked when they reach an internal temperature of 165F/73C. Invest in a meat thermometer!

 

Nutrition

Calories: 298kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 22g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 103mg | Sodium: 770mg | Potassium: 465mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 6604IU | Vitamin C: 10mg | Calcium: 222mg | Iron: 3mg

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This post was updated on 2 October 2019 to include more detailed step by step instructions.