Greek Meatball Bowls
Heads-up: A bunch of ingredients overlap but have been written out twice to be more clear! Greek Meatball Bowls are a flavor-packed feast! Juicy spiced meatballs, refreshing cucumber-tomato salad, fluffy couscous, and zesty lemon-herb sauce come together for a meal full of texture and taste. Perfect for meal prep, family dinners, or impressing guests!
Servings: 4 bowls
Cost: $17.43
Equipment
- Large sheet pan (15" x 21")
- Small blender or food processor
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 large red onion divided
- 1 pound ground beef 80/20; or use 93/7 ground turkey for lighter option
- 1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh mint optional
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon beef bouillon powder
- 2 garlic cloves finely minced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Herb Sauce, or make this Tzatziki sauce instead
- 1/2 cup parsley leaves and tender stems, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup cilantro or mint; leaves and tender stems, roughly chopped
- 1/3 cup jalapeños roughly chopped; leave seeds and ribs for heat, remove for mild
- 2 garlic cloves thinly sliced
- 1 lemon plus additional lemon wedges for serving if desired
- 1-1/2 tablespoons water
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- 5 tablespoons olive oil
Veggies/Serving
- 2 cups thinly sliced cucumber
- 2 cups halved cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup small couscous plus 1 cup water
- 1 cup Greek yogurt whole-milk, plain
- Feta cheese optional
- Pita charred/toasted, optional, see note 2
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Generously grease a dark-colored rimmed sheet pan with cooking spray and set aside. Add flour to a small bowl and set aside.
- Peel the onion and cut in half, saving one half for later. Grate the other half on the large holes of a grater until you have a completely filled 1/2 cup measure of grated onion. Add onion to a large bowl. Add remaining meatball ingredients (except for the flour). Season with 1/4 tsp pepper and 3/4 tsp salt. Gently knead the ingredients until they are integrated.
- Use a tablespoon measuring spoon to scoop a heaping spoonful of the meat mixture and roll it into an evenly-sized ball. Repeat with the remaining meat mixture to make around 25 meatballs. Working with 1 meatball at a time, roll to lightly coat in the flour, shaking off the excess. Arrange the meatballs, spaced apart, on the sheet pan.
- Generously spray the meatballs with cooking spray and bake for 15 minutes. Then use a metal spatula and your fingers (careful, they’re hot!) to gently flip the meatballs over. Bake for another 5–8 minutes, or until nicely golden brown and baked through. (If using turkey, bake for 18 minutes, flip, and bake for 5–8 more minutes.)
- Lemon-Herb Sauce: Meanwhile, place parsley, cilantro, jalapeños, garlic, 1-1/2 tbsp lemon juice, water, cumin, plus salt (to taste, I add 1/2 tsp) in a mini blender or food processor. Pulse until mixture is evenly chopped, scraping the sides as necessary. Stir in the oil and pulse just until emulsified (don’t over-blend!). Taste and add more salt or lemon juice as desired.
- Couscous: Meanwhile, pour 1 cup water into a small pot. Add 1 teaspoon olive oil and bring to a boil. Once boiling, remove the pot from heat. Stir in the uncooked couscous and cover the pot with a lid. After about 2–4 minutes the liquid should be absorbed; fluff couscous with a fork. Stir in 1/4 cup of the lemon-herb sauce, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, and about 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper (again to personal preference).
- Very thinly slice the reserved half of the red onion. Add to a bowl with the cucumber and tomato. Season with salt and pepper (just a pinch) and toss to combine. Optional: If you have some leftover herbs, chop ’em up and stir them in here too.
- Set out 4 plates. Use the back of a spoon to spread 1/4 of the Greek yogurt across the bottom of each plate. Sprinkle with salt to taste. Divide couscous evenly among the four plates. Top with cucumber-tomato salad and meatballs. Optionally drizzle a touch of olive oil over everything. Spoon the remaining lemon-herb sauce evenly on top and enjoy immediately. Charred/toasted pita for dipping is also so good!
Video
Notes
Note 1: There are different varieties of couscous, but I use small-grain or Moroccan couscous for this recipe. (Small-grain couscous has a fine texture and is the perfect size for steaming, which allows it to cook very quickly.) This recipe only works with this type of couscous.
Note 2: To toast the pitas, spray both sides of the pita with cooking spray and char directly over the gas flames (at medium to medium-low heat) for a few seconds. Use tongs to flip until pitas are lightly charred.
Nutrition Note: Calories above are for the entire recipe; just a serving of meatballs it is 278 calories.
Storage: Store leftovers by keeping each component separate. Place meatballs, salad, and couscous in airtight containers in the fridge for up to 4 days. Keep the lemon-herb sauce in a separate container. Reheat meatballs and couscous, then assemble with fresh salad and sauce when ready to enjoy.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 796kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 46g | Saturated Fat: 12g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 26g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 130mg | Sodium: 359mg | Potassium: 971mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1571IU | Vitamin C: 30mg | Calcium: 173mg | Iron: 5mg