The BEST Greek Chicken Meatballs Recipe- Quick Facts
- Time: 35 minutes
- Serves: 4 (makes approx. 24 meatballs)
- Method: pan-seared (with baked and air fryer alternatives)
- Flavors: lemon, garlic, oregano and dill.
- Diet: options for dairy-free, gluten-free, paleo and Whole30.
- Serve with: Greek salad, tzatziki, easy lemon orzo or rice.
- TWS Recipe Origins: I developed this recipe for a brand collaboration many, many years ago! It has since become a beloved blog favorite, which makes me so happy! I love how versatile it is (can be made dairy-free/gluten-free, but can also just use Italian breadcrumbs and greek yogurt tzatziki) and it always turns out!
Love a good bowl-for-dinner situation – try our reader favorite recipe: Sloppy Joe Bowls or these Lamb Gyro Bowls!
Key Ingredients + Substitutions
Be sure to see the full recipe card below for the full listing of ingredients, instructions, & estimated nutritional information.
- ground chicken – this is our favorite meat to use in this recipe card, but you could also use ground turkey, ground lamb or even ground beef.
- almond flour – to keep it Whole30/Paleo you could also use cassava flour or something similar. If you aren’t concerned with Whole30/Paleo you can simply use homemade breadcrumbs, gluten-free breadcrumbs or one reader even used crushed saltine crackers!
- fresh mint – a fresh herb that is traditionally used in so many Greek recipes.
- Greek vinaigrette – highly recommend making your own homemade Greek vinaigrette if you have the time, but if you don’t the Primal Kitchen greek vinaigrette is our go-to for this recipe!
- Greek salad – an easy Greek salad is the perfect pairing with these delicious chicken meatballs.
- tzatziki sauce – option to make a dairy-free tzatziki version that is listed out in the recipe card, make Greek yogurt tzatziki sauce, or buy your favorite store-bought version (my grocery store caries the Esti brand, which is usually really good).
How To Make Greek Chicken Meatballs
Step 1: Make your dairy-free tzatziki sauce (option to use greek yogurt tzatziki or store bought)
Step 2: Mix up your Greek Salad and set aside.
Step 3: Add your meatball ingredients (but not the Greek vinaigrette .. that is used later) to a bowl and mix to combine.
Step 4: Form meatball and sear on all sides in a cast iron skillet. Reduce heat and move meatballs around until fully cooked.
Chicken Meatball Tips + Tricks
Ground chicken meatballs are just … so sticky and hard to form into solid meatballs – right?! Here are a few tips + trick we learned along the way through testing:
- fill a little bowl with oil: when you set up to make your meatballs, put a little bowl of olive oil next to you – put some on your hands as you form the meatballs, rolling them between your palms – dip your fingers back into the bowl to re-wet your hands as you continue work through the meatball mixture.
- smooth out edges: again with oil on your hands, smooth out any edges that begin to form
- cold meat mixture: feel free to stick the combined ground chicken mixture in the freezer for a bit before forming meatballs – it will be less sticky when it’s cold.
Step 5: Toss the cooked chicken meatball in some Greek vinaigrette – this coats the meatballs with extra flavor!
Step 6: Choose how you want to serve your meatballs and enjoy!
Erin’s Testing Corner: What I Learned
The big things I learned were: 1) use oil on those hands when making the meatballs! 2) don’t skip on tossing in the dressing – it punches up that Greek flavor we know and love!
What To Serve With Greek Chicken Meatballs
There are so many different ways to serve up these juicy chicken meatballs! Our recipe card below includes a dairy-free/paleo/Whole30 option with the Greek cucumber salad that we love and dairy-free tzatziki, but here are a few other options for you:
- Rice + Feta: serve the meatballs over your choice of rice (like this Instant Pot jasmine rice or even homemade cauliflower rice) with lots of crumbled feta (reg. or dairy-free).
- Lemon Orzo: make a batch of the best lemon orzo and serve with the included Greek salad OR skip the Greek Salad and just make a batch of our Greek Orzo Salad instead (which incorporates both orzo + greek salad ingredients).
- Pita: add your choice of tzatziki to a pita along with your prepared meatballs and Greek salad!
- Appetizer: serve meatballs in a little cup with Greek salad at the bottom and a dollop of tzatziki sauce for a fun, light appetizer!
- Sheet Pan: add raw meatballs to a sheet pan along with your choice of veggies and bake for approx. 20 minutes (or until meatballs are cooked through) in a 400 degree f. oven.
Alternative Cooking Method Options:
- Baked: place meatballs on a baking sheet and bake in a 400 degree F. oven for approx. 18-22 minutes or until the internal temp reaches 165 degrees F. (use an internal meat thermometer).
- Air Fryer: place meatball in an air fryer preheated to 400 degrees F. – ensure they aren’t touching and cook for approx. 8-12 minutes or until the internal temp reaches 165 degrees F. (use an internal meat thermometer). You might need to do this in batches, depending upon the size of your air fryer.
Freezing and Reheating
- Freezing raw meatballs: to freeze form meatballs and place on a baking sheet, ensuring meatballs are not touching. Place in freezer for 1 hour. Then add to a freezer-safe bag, label and place in the freezer. Use within 3-6 months.
- Reheating raw meatballs: place in refrigerator overnight to thaw – cook on stove-top, air fryer or bake to cook.
- Cooking from frozen: place frozen meatballs on baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees F. for 25-30 minutes or until cooked through.
- Freezing cooked meatballs: let meatballs cool completely and then place in a freezer-safe bag, label and place in freezer. Use within 3-6 months.
- Reheating cooked meatballs: place on baking sheet and cover with foil. Reheat in a 300 degree F. oven for approx. 15 minutes or until warmed through.
Greek Chicken Meatball Recipe FAQs
Absolutely! This meatball recipe is great for meal prep. Just cook up the meatballs and store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. If you are making the salad and tzatziki sauce, store those in separate containers to prevent sogginess.
Yes! Just bake the meatballs on a baking sheet with parchment paper at 400 degrees F for about 18-22 minutes (or until internal temp is 165). Then toss them in the sauce. I personally prefer the stove-top version, but if you are more of an oven-baked chicken meatball person I totally get it!
Yes! Simply follow the recipe as-written, but add 1/3 cup of crumbled feta cheese.
Yup! I would add about 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest to the meatball mixture for a bit of added brightness and acidity.
Made this recipe and loved it?!
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Greek Chicken Meatballs + Homemade Tzatziki
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: Greek
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
A simple and delicious chicken meatballs recipe that is packed with flavor! The creamy Tzatziki Sauce (which is Paleo/Whole30) just brings this whole dish to the next level!
Ingredients
Dairy Free Tzatziki Sauce (see Notes for other options)
- 1 cup mayonnaise
- 1 cup cucumber, diced
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon dried dill
- 1 teaspoon fresh mint
Greek Salad
- 15 cherry tomates, halved
- 2 cups English cucumber, diced
- 1 cup kalamata olives
- 1/2 cup red onion, diced
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons homemade Greek vinaigrette (or store-bought)
Greek Chicken Meatballs
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 egg
- 1/2 cup almond flour
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon fresh mint, packed and chopped
- 1/3 cup Greek vinaigrette (note: reserve for after meatballs are cooked)
Other Serving Options:
- crumbled feta cheese
- cooked rice of your choice
- lemon orzo pasta
- pita bread
- quick pickled onions
Instructions
Dairy Free Tzatziki Sauce
- Combine: Combine ingredients in small food processor or blender. Pulse to combine until smooth.
- Taste + Adjust: Taste and adjust seasoning, as desired.
- Refrigerate: Place in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Greek Salad
- Combine: Prep and combine the fresh ingredients and salt in medium mixing bowl. Pour the Greek vinaigrette on top.
- Set Aside: Stir to combine and set aside.
Greek Chicken Meatballs
- Mix: Combine ground 1 pound ground chicken, 1 egg, 1/2 cup almond flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon dried basil, 1 teaspoon dried dill, 1/2 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper, and 1 tablespoon fresh mint in a large bowl. Stir to fully combine.
- Scoop + Form Meatballs: Use a cookie dough scoop to scoop out approx. 1 1/2 tablespoons of meatball mixture, forming a ball, and place on a large plate. Continue until all of the meatball mixture is used. (See: Notes for Ground Chicken Meatball Tips)
- Sear Meatballs: Take large cast iron skillet and bring to medium-high heat. Add a tablespoon of oil and use a spatula to spread evenly to coat the pan. Add chicken meatballs and sear on all sides, about 3 minutes.
- Continue Cooking: Turn down heat and continue cooking, about 10-15 minutes or until fully cooked (165 degrees F internal temperature – I recommend using a meat thermometer).
- Toss: Place cooked chicken meatballs in a large bowl and pour the 1/3 cup Greek vinaigrette on top. Toss to coat.
Serving:
- Whole30/Paleo Serving: Place Greek Salad and meatballs on a plate or in a bowl. Drizzle meatballs with Dairy Free Tzatziki Sauce.
- Other Serving Options: serve over rice with crumbled feta cheese and tzatziki sauce, in a pita with the greek salad and tzatziki, with some homemade lemon orzo, with greek quinoa salad or greek orzo salad!
Notes
- Tzatziki Options: we love the homemade dairy-free version included in the recipe card – of course feel free to grab your favorite store-bought version to make life easier (my local grocery store carries the Esti brand which is good) or we have a greek yogurt tzatziki sauce on the site as well.
- Tzatziki Consistency: if you want a thicker tzatziki feel free to shred the cucumber and squeeze out as much as water as possible. Blend all of the other tzatziki ingredients and then fold in the shredded cucumber.
- Greek Vinaigrette: we highly recommend making our homemade Greek vinaigrette dressing, but we also love Primal Kitchen’s Greek Vinaigrette!
- Almond Flour: sub breadcrumbs if want (regular or gluten-free) – one reader also used crushed saltines successfully!
- Ground Chicken Meatball Tips: Ground chicken can be very sticky so it helps to have a little bowl of oil next to you when you are making the chicken meatballs. Get a little oil on your fingers and then rub on the inside of the cookie dough scoop before scooping the meatball mixture. Then place directly on a plate and reform as necessary.
- Meatball Amount: this recipe makes approximately 20-24 meatballs.
- Meal Prep: this meatball recipe is great for meal prep! Just store in separate containers in the fridge.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 6 oz
- Calories: 339
- Sugar: 4.9 g
- Sodium: 606.6 mg
- Fat: 24.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 12.8 g
- Protein: 13.3 g
- Cholesterol: 91.4 mg
Erin T Secretarski says
Loved this so much, took me a long time to prep….I must have gotten side-tracked! 🙂
Mandi says
I subbed beef for the chicken and it was soooo flavorful. Great quick meal!
Chad says
The recipe is absolutely delicious! My only critique is the listed prep time. In what world is the prep only supposed to take 20 minutes? Especially for someone cooking it for the first time. Granted I did double the recipe which naturally takes more time. However the prep time was misleading for me.
Sally says
Can I sub tapioca flour for the almond flour? Tree nut allergy here.
Kelli says
This was a delicious meal! My son loved the meatballs so much he ate his entire Greek salad just so he could have more meatballs!
Thank you! I look forward to trying more of your recipes.
Emily says
Can I sub the ground chicken for turkey? My grocery store doesn’t currently have ground chicken.
Erin says
Yes!
RuthAnn L says
Excited to make these. Do you know the macro breakdown? Thanks!
Vicki says
Do you have the nutrition info for this recipe?
Annette says
Made this entire dish tonight and made it all from scratch. It was very yummy, however I had an issue with my chicken balls falling apart. I followed the recipe exactly so I’m not sure what I did wrong. I will still make these again as my hubby loved it and gobbled it down in no time!
Karol says
These are really yummy. Love the tzatziki sauce! Great recipe. I made mine a bit bigger, so only made 14.
Erin says
So happy to hear that! Thanks for coming back and leaving a review – I appreciate it!
Kat says
Made these with chicken a few weeks ago and going to try with lamb tonight! So yum!
Cindy Dudley says
This recipe is AMAZING and easy. Highly recommended
Jale Breidenstein says
I have made this recipe many times too and it’s delicious. Do you ever serve with rice or orzo?
Erin says
You can definitely serve it with rice or orzo – a lot of people don’t because they want it to be Paleo or Whole30, but if you aren’t concerned with that, then I would say definitely serve with either!
Gretchen says
I’ve made this several times with zero changes and my family, coworkers and I, love it! Like having a gyro but healthier!
Heather says
These chicken meatballs were amazing. My husband and daughter also loved them. I’m definitely adding them into rotation.
Lisa says
This is one of my go to recipes. So flavourful and my family LOVES it. Thank you !!!