Recipes With Feta Cheese and Ground Beef

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These Greek Meatballs (aka Keftedes) are made with ground beef and lamb or pork mixed with fresh garlic, feta cheese, other herbs and spices, then cooked to tender, savory perfection. They go perfectly with tangy tzatziki sauce, sliced red onions, tomatoes, and soft, grilled pita bread to create a meatball gyro sandwich or mezze platter for an easy dinner or party appetizer that is ready in under 30 minutes!

If you love Greek food as much as we do, be sure to try our Greek 7 Layer Dip, Greek Marinade for chicken, and Skordalia (a delicious garlic-potato spread that is frequently served with roasted beets).

We LOVE these savory, tender Greek meatballs, or Keftedes as they are known in Greece. They make a fantastic party appetizer or can be served as a main course for a relaxed dinner that the whole family will enjoy.

It's pretty well-documented here that I love the flavors of Mediterranean food. We have been able to travel all over different parts of Greece, including the islands, and the robust spices, the tangy, salty feta cheese, smooth, rich olive oil, bright lemon juice, and fresh, bold garlic and onions and herbs all work some kind of magic together to create some of the best dishes ever.

We always serve our keftedes with homemade tzatziki sauce (a cucumber and yogurt dip with flavors of garlic and olive oil), some sliced tomatoes and onions, and soft, grilled pita either whole for making gyro meatball sandwiches or cut into triangles for dipping. Serve with a side of our Greek Feta Fries for an epic dinner of homemade Mediterranean deliciousness! And maybe consider a batch of Greek Baklava for dessert!

Why this Recipe Works

• We are talking less than 30 minutes of work to get dinner on the table, which is always a win in my book.
• You can bake them for a healthier version of the traditional Greek meatball recipe or go all out and fry them in a little olive oil in a skillet instead.
• They are great for getting little hands involved in the kitchen since kids enjoy mixing the meatball mixture and shaping them.
• Greek meatballs can be made ahead and even frozen for quick weeknight dinners that just need to be reheated, so you might want to consider making a double batch!

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Ingredient Notes

• Meat: The combo of ground beef, ground lamb, or ground pork makes for exceptionally rich, tender, and delicious meatballs. Beef & pork has a more mild flavor, lamb & pork is extra rich, and beef & lamb is great for big flavor. Pair any two proteins for a different taste each time!
• Feta cheese: This wonderful salty cheese is a classic in Greek cuisine. You can buy it in block form and crumble it up yourself or buy it pre-crumbled at the store.
• Fresh parsley: The flavor of fresh herbs makes a big difference in these little meatballs. I love the flat leaf Italian parsley best.
• Lemon zest: This ingredient cuts the richness of the meat and feta with its bright citrus notes that are a great compliment to the herbs and spices used to flavor these Greek meatballs.

How to Make This Recipe

There is a little prep work involved of chopping the garlic and fresh parsley, grating some onion, and zesting a lemon or two, but otherwise the effort involved in this recipe is minimal.

Just combine all of the meatball ingredients in a large bowl and use your hands (or a wooden spoon) to mix everything together until evenly dispersed. I don't recommend using any tools like a mixer to combine the ingredients because you will get lighter, more tender meatballs by not overworking the mixture, which is easy to do with a machine. Besides, squishing everything together by hand is so much fun!

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Evenly divide the meatball mixture into small portions and roll them into balls between the palms of your hands. Arrange them on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil sprayed with cooking spray or parchment paper to keep them from sticking.

Then just pop them in a 425°F oven for 10-14 minutes until they are cooked through and nicely browned on the outside.

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Pan-fried method: If you prefer to cook your meatballs on the stovetop instead, heat a generous drizzle of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the meatballs, working in batches as needed. Cook, turning occasionally, until browned on all sides and cooked through.

Recipe FAQ's

Can these be made with ground turkey or ground chicken?

If you want an even healthier protein option, yes, you could make these Greek meatballs with ground turkey or ground chicken for a lighter version. Be really careful not to overbake them though, as the leaner proteins tend to dry out more quickly, so the meatballs might not be as tender.

What is a serving size?

The nutrition information in the recipe card is based off what I consider a dinner-sized serving of 5 meatballs per person. But if you are planning on these for a party appetizer, I would plan on most people taking 2-3.

How do I get evenly sized meatballs?

The easiest way to get consistent sized meatballs is to either use a small cookie scoop or a tablespoon to measure out the meat before rolling it into balls. Or divide the meatball mixture into ¼'s, then pinch off five equal-sized portions from each quarter of the meat to end up with exactly 20, evenly-sized meatballs every time.

Recipe Tips

• Storage: These will be good for 3-4 days in the fridge and make excellent leftovers the next day for lunch!
• Freezing: You can freeze these Greek meatballs either before or after baking. If freezing before baking, I recommend freezing them spaced out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper until they are hard, then transfer to a freezer-safe container for longer-term storage. Thaw before baking. If you want to freeze the meatballs AFTER baking, then just let them cool completely, freeze spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet, then transfer to a freezer-safe container for longer-term storage. You can reheat directly from frozen in the oven or air fryer in this case. To reheat, place the frozen meatballs on a baking sheet and bake at 300°F until warmed through, about 20-25 minutes.
• Using ground lamb: Lamb is so a wonderfully rich and flavorful protein and is used more frequently in Greek food than in American food. I really recommend trying it at least once.
• Don't overwork the meatball mixture: I always work the ingredients together with my hands, squishing it until the spices are evenly distributed. Just be careful not to work the meat and spices too hard by mashing them too much or too hard because you don't want to end up with tough meatballs.

More Dinner Recipes You'll Love

• Grilled Cilantro Lime Chicken Thighs
• Grilled Chicken Shawarma Wraps
• Sheet Pan Shrimp Fajitas in 30 Minutes
• Cheesy Chicken Quesadillas

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Greek Feta Meatballs

• ▢ ½ lb. ground beef
• ▢ ½ lb. ground lamb or pork
• ▢ ¼ cup Panko breadcrumbs
• ▢ 2 Tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley
• ▢ 3 Tablespoons grated onion
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ Zest of 1 lemon
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ 1 teaspoon oregano
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground coriander
• ▢ ½ teaspoon cumin
• ▢ ½ teaspoon coarse kosher salt
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon freshly cracked black pepper
• ▢ 2 ounces crumbled feta cheese

For Serving

• ▢ Soft pita bread
• ▢ Sliced Roma tomatoes or grape tomatoes
• ▢ Sliced red onion
• ▢ Tzatziki sauce

Meatball preparation

• Preheat oven to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with foil or parchment paper and spray with cooking spray.

• Combine all meatball ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Use your hands to gently mix everything together until the meat is uniformly combined with the other ingredients.

• Use a small cookie scoop to portion out the meatballs or divide the mixture into 4 equal parts. From there, divide each portion of the meatball mixture into 5 meatballs so you end up with 20 equal-sized meatballs. Roll each meatball between your hands to shape it and then arrange them on the prepared baking sheet.

• Bake in the preheated oven from 10-14 minutes, until they are nicely brown and cooked through.

For gyro sandwiches

• To assemble gyros, warm the pitas on a grill or in the oven, just until soft.

• Place a few slices of roma tomato and some sliced red onions onto each pita bread, then top with 4 or 5 meatballs. Add a couple dollops of tzatziki sauce and serve with Greek feta fries.

For a mezze platter

• If you prefer to serve this as a more of a grazing board or appetizer like for a party, I like to arrange the meatballs in a pile on a large platter with a bowl of tzatziki sauce, warmed pita triangles, grape tomatoes, sliced red onion, and a brick of feta cheese drizzled with olive oil. You could also add kalamata olives or cucumber slices to your spread. Serve with toothpicks for spearing the meatballs.

• Storage: These will be good for 3-4 days in the fridge and make excellent leftovers the next day for lunch!
• Freezing: You can freeze these Greek meatballs either before or after baking. If freezing before baking, I recommend freezing them spaced out on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper until they are hard, then transfer to a freezer-safe container for longer-term storage. Thaw before baking. If you want to freeze the meatballs AFTER baking, then just let them cool completely, freeze spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet, then transfer to a freezer-safe container for longer-term storage. You can reheat directly from frozen in the oven or air fryer in this case. To reheat, place the frozen meatballs on a baking sheet and bake at 300°F until warmed through, about 20-25 minutes.
• Using ground lamb: Lamb is so a wonderfully rich and flavorful protein and is used more frequently in Greek food than in American food. I really recommend trying it at least once.
• Don't overwork the meatball mixture: I always work the ingredients together with my hands, squishing it until the spices are evenly distributed. Just be careful not to work the meat and spices too hard by mashing them too much or too hard because you don't want to end up with tough meatballs.

Meatballs adapted from Recipe Runner.

Calories: 437 kcal | Carbohydrates: 31 g | Protein: 23 g | Fat: 24 g | Saturated Fat: 10 g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2 g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9 g | Trans Fat: 1 g | Cholesterol: 108 mg | Sodium: 694 mg | Potassium: 412 mg | Fiber: 2 g | Sugar: 2 g | Vitamin A: 447 IU | Vitamin C: 7 mg | Calcium: 141 mg | Iron: 3 mg

This post was originally published in October, 2016. The photos and content were updated in January, 2022.

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Source: https://houseofnasheats.com/baked-greek-feta-meatballs/

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