Greek Meatballs (Keftedes Recipe)
These Greek Meatballs are perfectly plump and loaded with authentic flavor using herbs and spices to pack into ground beef and served with pita bread and tzatziki sauce!
Recipe For Keftedes
These juicy Greek Meatballs are loaded with red onions and garlic giving your taste buds that authentic Greek flavor you crave! Feed them to your family for a weekend snack, bring them to your next potluck, or even make a meal around them!
They’re so satisfyingly delicious and filling that you’ll be looking for excuses to make up a batch!
Rebecca’s Recipe Review
Taste: Fresh herby flavor with garlicky goodness.
Texture: Slightly crispy on the outside yet juicy and tender on the inside.
Ease: 5/10
Pros: These meatballs store well in the freezer for a few months, making them a time-saving option for quick week-day dinners!
Cons: None.
Would I Make This Again? Yes, this Greek recipe makes up about 20 meatballs, the perfect size for feeding a large crowd!
Great taste, great texture. Made as rice bowls and it was wonderful!
– Richard Tunner
Ingredients For Greek Meatballs
The ingredient list for this Greek Meatballs Recipe might look long, but I promise it’s actually really simple to make and packed with flavor!
- Lean ground beef: You can use ground turkey, ground chicken, or even ground lamb instead.
- Egg: Used to bind the meatballs together and should not be substituted.
- Red onion: If you don’t have a red onion, yellow or white will work in a pinch, but it won’t give it that same “Greek” flavor.
- Lemon zest & Lemon juice: You are welcome to use juice from concentrate, but if you are zesting a lemon, might as well use its fresh juice too.
- Feta cheese: Crumble these or keep them large. I like they crumbled into smaller pieces before mixing them with everything else.
- Plain breadcrumbs: These can be homemade, or store-bought.
- Heavy cream: Replace with half and half or milk.
- Dijon mustard: You can replace this with normal mustard, but the taste will be slightly different
- Garlic powder: Mince a few cloves of garlic if you want some fresher ingredients.
- Fresh parsley: This is an optional garnish, but you could use cilantro or scallions instead.
- Additional spices: Cumin, salt, dried oregano, dried thyme, dried basil, and dried rosemary are all also used in this recipe to enhance flavor.
How To Make Keftedes
- Mix together all of the ingredients in a large bowl.
- Refrigerate the meat mixture for an hour to make handling them easier.
- Form the meatballs using a medium cookie scoop.
- Cook them on a lined baking sheet for 20 minutes. Turn each meatball to the other side halfway through the baking time to ensure they get browned on all sides. Before enjoying add salt and black pepper to taste and then garnish with fresh herbs!
How To Serve!
These Greek Meatballs are so versatile when it comes to all of the different ways to serve them! Here are some of my family’s favorite ways to enjoy them!
- Pile the meatballs on a platter with pita bread and serve them alongside a bowl of Greek Tzatziki Sauce for dipping!
- Make meatball subs with them!
- Whip up your favorite red sauce for a big plate of spaghetti and meatballs!
- Keep it authentic and serve them with a delicious greek salad!
One of the most classic sauces to serve with anything Greek is Tzatziki Sauce, which is a cucumber and yogurt-based sauce. However, you can also serve these with a lemon sauce or a red sauce. Get creative and try some other types of sauces.
How To Store Greek Meatballs
You can store these in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days in an airtight container in order to enjoy them later. They will also store in the freezer for a few months, so feel free to pull those out and use them when necessary.
Speed Up This Recipe!
Instead of putting the meatballs in the refrigerator for an hour, you can place them in the freezer for 20 minutes. You can also skip this step altogether!
Cook up another delicious meatball recipe to serve to your family!
- Slow Cooker Grape Jelly Meatballs – Sweet and tangy with only 5 minutes of prep time needed!
- Sweet and Sour Meatballs – A great appetizer that’s packed with flavor and ready in just 45 minutes!
- Crockpot Meatballs – Homemade Italian meatballs slow-cooked in a rich tomato sauce!
- Pineapple Tequila Meatballs – Whip up this appetizer with just 4 ingredients in the crockpot!
- Maple Chili Meatballs – The perfect combination of sweet and heat making for a tasty bite!
Did You Make This Recipe?
If you’ve tried this recipe, please let leave a review in the comments below. I love hearing from you! Don’t forget to tag me – @sugarandsoulco – on Instagram and Pinterest with your photos, or join our Sugar & Soul Show-offs Community and share them there.
Greek Meatballs – Keftedes Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 2 large eggs
- ½ red onion grated
- 2 Tablespoons lemon juice about one lemon
- 1 Tablespoon lemon zest about one lemon
- ¾ cup feta cheese crumbles
- ¾ cup plain breadcrumbs
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1½ Tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- ¼ teaspoon dried thyme
- ¼ teaspoon dried rosemary
- Fresh parsley for garnish chopped
Instructions
- Combine all the ingredients in a large bowl. Make sure they are mixed thoroughly.
- Optional step: Refrigerate for an hour to make handling easier (You can also place these in the freezer for about 20 minutes).
- Preheat the oven to 400°F and prepare a baking sheet by lining it with parchment paper.
- Take the meatball mixture out of the refrigerator and form meatballs into 2 to 3-inch balls.
- Place them on the sheet pan and cook in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, then turn each meatball to the other side and cook for another 10 to 12 minutes.
- Plate and serve with fresh parsley as a garnish.
Notes
- Because of the pink from the red onions, it can be difficult to tell if the meatball is cooked through. The meatball should be firm and dark brown with an internal temperature of 160 degrees F.
- Instead of putting the meatballs in the refrigerator for an hour, you can place them in the freezer for 20 minutes. You can also skip this step altogether!
- You can store these in the refrigerator for 2-3 days in an airtight container in order to enjoy them later. They will also store in the freezer for a few months, so feel free to pull those out and use them when necessary.
- You can use ground turkey, ground chicken, or even ground lamb instead.
- Heavy cream can be replaced with half and half or milk.
- You can use yellow mustard but it will change the taste slightly.
- If you don’t have a red onion, yellow or white will work in a pinch, but it won’t give it that same “Greek” flavor.
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Great taste, great texture. Made as rice bowls and it was wonderful!