Why feta inside the meatball matters
This is the single change that takes ground chicken meatballs from fine to genuinely good. Crumbled feta tucked into the mix melts as the meatballs bake, leaving small pockets of salty, tangy cheese throughout. It also adds moisture, which is the thing ground chicken needs the most.
Use block feta and crumble it with your hands. Pre-crumbled feta works in a pinch, but the pieces are smaller and drier and you lose those bigger pockets of cheese.
Related -> More easy chicken dinner recipes
Ingredients worth thinking about
Most of the ingredient list is straightforward. Three things actually move the needle:
Ground chicken. Look for ground chicken made from thigh meat if you can find it. Most grocery stores carry standard ground chicken (a mix of breast and thigh), and that works fine. All-breast ground chicken will run drier and you’ll want to be extra careful not to overbake.
Fresh dill and oregano. Dried oregano is fine as a swap (1 teaspoon dried for 1 tablespoon fresh), but dill needs to be fresh. The flavor of dried dill is faint and a little sad. If your store doesn’t have fresh dill, parsley plus a little extra lemon zest will get you most of the way.
Almond flour or breadcrumbs. Either binds the meatballs. We default to almond flour since we usually have it on hand, but breadcrumbs work the same way.
How to make Greek chicken meatballs
What we learned testing this
Three things came out of our testing that are worth passing along.
The meatball and tzatziki share a few ingredients (garlic, dill, lemon). Prep them all up front when you are prepping the meatball ingredients so you don’t have to go back and chop more garlic and dill later.
Don’t overbake the meatballs. We pulled the first batch at 20 minutes thinking longer was safer. They were already past 165°F and dried out around the edges. Use a probe thermometer if you have one and start checking at 15 minutes. The difference between 165°F and 175°F is the difference between juicy and rubbery bordering on dry.
Tzatziki thickness depends on your yogurt. Some Greek yogurt brands run thicker than others. If yours comes out spoon-stand-up thick and you want it more pourable, add water a tablespoon at a time and stir. We did this in testing and it works perfectly.
This tzatziki would also go great with our turkey meatballs or buffalo chicken meatballs.
How to serve them
Over white rice or orzo with extra tzatziki on top is the easiest move. For a bigger meal, build a bowl with rice, the meatballs, a Greek salad of cucumber, tomato, red onion, and feta, and a drizzle of tzatziki and olive oil. Pita and hummus alongside if you want to go big. The meatballs also work as a packed lunch the next day, eaten cold or warmed in the microwave.
Greek Chicken Meatballs (30 Minutes, Oven Baked)
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
- 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion or shallot
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped (or 1 tsp dried)
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup almond flour or breadcrumbs, binder
Easy Tzatziki
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- 1/2 English cucumber, grated and squeezed dry
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Chop, prep and gather all the meatball ingredients.1 lb ground chicken, 1/2 cup crumbled feta, 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion or shallot, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tbsp fresh dill, 1 tbsp fresh oregano, 2 tbsp fresh parsley, 1 tsp lemon zest, 1 tsp sea salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1 egg, 1/4 cup almond flour or breadcrumbs
- In a large bowl, combine ground chicken, feta, onion, garlic, dill, oregano, parsley, lemon zest, salt, pepper, egg, and almond flour. Mix gently with hands just until combined. Do not overmix. Overmixing is the #1 cause of tough meatballs.1 lb ground chicken, 1/2 cup crumbled feta, 1/4 cup finely chopped red onion or shallot, 2 cloves garlic, 1 tbsp fresh dill, 1 tbsp fresh oregano, 2 tbsp fresh parsley, 1 tsp lemon zest, 1 tsp sea salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1 egg, 1/4 cup almond flour or breadcrumbs
- Scoop into 12 meatballs, about 2 tbsp each. Roll lightly. Mixture will be soft.
- Bake 18 to 20 minutes, until internal temp hits 165°F.
- While the meatballs bake, make the tzatziki. Grate cucumber, wrap in a clean towel or paper towel, and squeeze out as much water as possible. Combine with yogurt, garlic, dill, lemon juice, olive oil, and salt. Add water to thin to desired consistency. Refrigerate until meatballs finish cooking.1 cup Greek yogurt, 1 clove garlic, 1 tbsp fresh dill, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 1 tbsp olive oil, 1/4 tsp sea salt, 1/2 English cucumber
- Serve with tzatziki.
