Greek Meatballs Recipe

On Italian menus, meatballs are always one of the most popular items that people order. Who doesn't love some spaghetti and meatballs to warm your soul? And believe it or not, other cuisines offer tasty meatballs as well. These Greek meatballs are filled with flavor — the recipe includes a mix of beef, lamb, breadcrumbs, and red onion. Of course, they're also packed with garlic and other spices that add plenty of kick to the dish. It's simply a must-try dish to add to your recipe collection. 

Recipe developer Catherine Brookes of Blue Sky Eating is the brains behind this recipe, and there's so much to love about it. "I love how the addition of classic Greek flavors transforms a basic meatball recipe. The slightly smaller size of the meatballs also makes them great as an appetizer or part of a buffet spread," Brookes raves. "The flavors of oregano and mint are the main additions, as well as using part lamb instead of just beef."

Keep reading to find out how to make this yummy dish! 

Let's make some meatballs. First, head to the store and grab all of the ingredients you'll need. Pick up ground beef, ground lamb, a large egg, breadcrumbs, red onion, two garlic cloves, fresh parsley, chopped mint, dried oregano, salt, pepper, and olive oil.

That's all you will need to throw together these delicious Greek meatballs.

Now that you have all your ingredients, it's time to get started on the prep work. Add everything you purchased from the store (aside from the olive oil) to a mixing bowl that's large enough to fit everything. Toss in the ground beef, ground lamb, a large egg, breadcrumbs, red onion, garlic cloves, fresh parsley, chopped mint, dried oregano, salt, and pepper. This makes up your meatball mix! 

Using your hands, mix all ingredients until they're well combined. In this case, your hands are just easier than a spoon because you can really incorporate everything better. "Yes, you can definitely wear gloves if preferred to make clean up easier!" Brookes said when asked if gloves should be worn for this step. Now, the meatball mix should be starting to look more like meatballs. 

Once you are finished mixing, it's time to shape the meatballs. Take small handfuls of the mixture and shape them into balls with your hands. You want to make sure each ball is about 1-inch in diameter. "You don't really need to measure them; that's just a rough size to go by. They can be slightly smaller or bigger if preferred, just adjust the cooking time to make sure they're completely cooked through," Brookes notes.

Continue shaping the meatballs until you use up all the mixture. 

Take out a large frying pan and set the heat to medium-high, which is the perfect temperature for cooking meatballs. Drizzle in the olive oil and begin frying the meatballs. Depending on the size of your pan, you may need to cook in batches. Continue cooking until the meatballs are browned on the outside and cooked through in the middle. This should take about 4-5 minutes on each side, so be sure to flip them halfway through. "You can slice one meatball in half to check [that] it's cooked all the way through and not pink in the middle," Brookes notes. 

Remove the meatballs from the pan and serve them while they're nice and hot! These would be great on their own, but they would also go well with some pita bread or a fresh salad. "You could eat them with pasta and a tomato sauce, or as appetizers," Brookes suggests. If you have any other go-to Greek staples to pair these with, feel free to get creative.

And if you have any leftovers? "Leftovers should keep for up to 2 days in the fridge, and you can reheat [them] in the oven," Brookes notes.

We hope you enjoy this dish as much as we do!