Greek Meatballs
Total Time
45 mins
Prep Time
30 mins
Cook Time
15 mins
Rating
5 out of 5 stars
(5)
Ingredients
About 30 meatballs
- 1 cup Panko breadcrumbs
- 1/3 cup milk
- 2 pounds ground beef or lamb (or a 50/50 mix of both)
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 eggs
- 2 scallions (both white and green parts), minced
- 1/3 cup fresh mint or cilantro
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
- 1/2 cup tahini
- 1/4 cup freshly-squeezed lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
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Preparation
Step 1
Make the panade. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the Panko and milk until combined. Set the mixture aside to soak for 5 to 10 minutes while you prep the other ingredients.
Step 2
Mix the meatballs. Once the Panko mixture has finished soaking, add the ground beef (or lamb), garlic, eggs, scallions and mint to the bowl. Sprinkle the oregano, cumin, sea salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper flakes and lemon zest evenly on top. Use your hands to mix the ingredients together until evenly combined, being careful not to overwork the mixture.
Step 3
Prep the oven and baking sheet. Heat oven to 425°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
Step 4
Form the meatballs. Form the mixture into 1.5-tablespoon balls and place them onto the prepared baking sheet. (I recommend greasing your hands with a bit of olive oil to prevent the meatballs from sticking.)
Step 5
Bake. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the meatballs are golden brown and cooked through. Remove pan from the oven.
Step 6
Make the yogurt sauce. While the meatballs are baking, whisk together the yogurt sauce ingredients until combined. If you prefer a thinner sauce, whisk in a few tablespoons of water until it reaches your desired consistency.
Step 7
Serve. Serve the meatballs warm with the yogurt sauce however you please and enjoy!
Step 8
Save recipe for the next time?
Chef's notes
Make a panade:
Don’t skip this step! Soaking the breadcrumbs in milk for 5-10 minutes to create a panade works wonders in helping your meatballs stay moist and not dry out while baking.
Don’t over-mix:
Mix all of your meatball ingredients together until they are just combined and avoid over mixing, which can lead to overly tough and dried-out meatballs. Always be gentle while forming the meatballs too and avoid packing them forcefully into balls.
Taste test if you’d like:
If you’d like to taste test the meatball mix and adjust the seasonings before baking the full batch, simply scoop out a small patty and sauté it in a bit of oil until cooked through. Then give it a taste and make adjustments as needed.
Use a cookie scoop or scale:
To ensure that your meatballs are roughly the same size, which will help them to evenly bake, use either a cookie scoop (I scooped out rounded tablespoons using a 1-tablespoon scoop) or a kitchen scale to measure the meatballs.
Don’t overbake:
Keep an eye on the meatballs and remove them from the oven once the internal temperature measures 160°F and the meatballs and are no longer pink inside.
