Greek Turkey Meatballs

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Great for stuffing into pita or serving as an appetizer, these baked turkey meatballs are full of Greek-inspired flavors. Double the recipe to keep a quick meal on hand!

Around here ground meat is one of our staple ingredients, and it’s been that way ever since I was a kid. Economical and versatile, there’s always something you can do with it.

One of my favorite easy meals is turkey meatballs. They’re about the same level of work as turkey meatloaf, but cook in half the time and are so much easier to serve! Plus, the flavor variations are practically endless, so it’s hard to get tired of them.

I particularly love making a Greek-inspired version, with plenty of fresh herbs and tangy feta cheese. These tender meatballs are perfect for dinner with your favorite rice, for lunch stuffed into a pita, or even served as a party appetizer. 

Ingredients for turkey meatballs

Full list of ingredients including quantities is located in the recipe card.

You’ll need:

• Ground turkey
• Feta cheese crumbles
• Egg
• Shallot, or red onion
• Garlic cloves
• Panko breadcrumbs
• Olive oil
• Fresh herbs: dill, oregano, and mint
• Lemon zest
• Salt and pepper

To make the tzatziki sauce, you’ll also need:

• Plain whole milk yogurt
• Cucumber
• Lemon juice (from the lemon you zested)

If you want a thicker sauce, use Greek yogurt or skyr (thick Icelandic yogurt). You can also strain regular yogurt by letting it rest in a coffee filter-lined sieve set over a bowl. Pop it into the fridge to strain for a few hours or overnight. 

While you can use dried herbs here, I definitely recommend using fresh if you can. The flavor will be much better!

If you don’t want to make tzatziki, you can swap in a creamy dressing instead. I really like my homemade garlic dressing when I’m having these meatballs over rice.

How to make this recipe

First, preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. (If your parchment comes on a roll and won’t lay flat, crumple it and then smooth out again; it won’t roll after that.)

In a large bowl, combine the turkey, feta cheese, egg, shallot (or onion), garlic, breadcrumbs, olive oil, herbs, salt, and pepper. Zest the lemon to yield 1/2 teaspoon and add it to the bowl. Set the lemon aside for juicing later.

Mix everything together until the ingredients are evenly disbursed throughout. Your hands are the best tool here; make sure they are clean or use kitchen gloves. The mixture should not feel overly wet and should form into a cohesive ball.

Shape the meat into balls about 3 tablespoons in size (a cookie scoop is handy here) and place on the baking sheet, leaving a little space between each. You should end up with about 18 meatballs.

Place in the oven and bake for 20-23 minutes, or until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of a meatball reads 165°F.

While the meatballs are baking, make the tzatziki sauce.

Grate the cucumber to yield 1/2 cup and add to a bowl along with the yogurt. Juice the lemon to yield 2 tablespoons and add it to the bowl, along with the olive oil, garlic, dill, mint, salt, and pepper. Stir to mix well, then taste and add more lemon juice or seasonings as needed.

Serve the meatballs hot with the tzatziki for dipping, or over rice or greens with the sauce drizzled on top.

Storage and reheating

Leftover meatballs should be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container and eaten within 3 days. Cooked meatballs can be frozen and transferred to freezer bags, then frozen for up to 3 months for best quality.

To reheat baked meatballs, the best way is in a lower-temperature oven. Set it to 300°F and place the meatballs in a shallow baking dish. Cover with foil to avoid drying out, then bake for about 15 minutes to warm through.

If you are baking the cooked meatballs from frozen, increase the time to 30 minutes, but keep the temperature at 300°F.

Give these Greek turkey meatballs a try for a new family favorite!