Sheet Pan Greek Meatballs with Tzatziki Sauce

We are meatball lovers around here. You too? Then you are in good company. There are few things I love more than meatballs baked in marinara sauce, but making them is more of a Sunday afternoon project than a quick weeknight meal.

This Greek meatball recipe is the quick weeknight variety but still so super juicy and flavor-packed. Baking meatballs on a sheet pan in the oven means no frying mess and they cook in about 10 minutes. 

Pile them into bowls with Tzatziki sauce, marinated artichoke hearts, and tomato and cucumber salad for a quick, fresh-tasting meal that’s full of the bold flavors Greek food is famous for.

Ingredients Needed to Prepare this Recipe

Here's everything you need to make a pan of juicy Greek Meatballs:

• Cooked long grain white rice. Any kind of long-grain white rice will do here and these meatballs are a fantastic way to use up any leftover rice from earlier in the week. If you've just cooked the rice, let it cool to room temperature before mixing it into the other ingredients.
• A couple slices of hearty white bread. Cut the bread into small pieces which will make it easier to mix them into the meatballs. Bread acts as a binder, keeping the meatballs tender while holding them together.
• Buttermilk adds flavor, a bit of tenderizing acidity, and works with the bread to help hold everything together. No buttermilk? No problem. DIY Buttermilk: How to make your own
• 1 large egg yolk. Also works with the buttermilk and bread to bind everything together.
• Worcestershire Sauce. Just a few dashes adds a remarkable amount of umami to these meatballs.
• Fresh dill, garlic, oregano, coriander, crushed red pepper, salt and pepper. So many bold flavors in these little meatballs.
• 85% lean ground beef is just the right amount of fat to keep these meatballs juicy without being greasy.

And here's what you'll need to throw together the tomato and cucumber salad:

• Cherry tomatoes and cucumber, of course.
• Plenty of chopped fresh parsley to keep it fresh.
• The zest and juice from one large lemon to add some zing.
• Extra virgin olive oil.
• A pinch of sugar elevates the natural sweetness in the veggies.
• Salt and pepper to taste.

The little extras that make this Greek meatball recipe EXTRA in every good way:

• Tzatziki sauce! If you have a favorite brand of prepared Tzatziki that you'd like to use, that's great. But making tzatziki only takes a few minutes and is infinitely better than anything you can purchase.
• Marinated artichoke hearts, plunked straight from the jar into the bowl.
• A bit more extra virgin olive oil to drizzle over the top of everything.
• A handful of chopped fresh parsley for even more fresh flavor.
• A few lemon slices so anyone who wants to can squeeze a few more drops of bright fresh flavor over their meatballs.
• Crusty bread to help sop up every last drop of all that deliciousness.

Step by Step Photos and Instructions

Making sheet pan Greek meatballs is really quite simple:

1. Mix up and shape the meatballs then toss together the tomato and cucumber salad while they bake.
2. To serve, add a generous scoop of Tzatziki to bowls and top it with a few marinated artichokes, several Greek meatballs, and a huge scoop of cucumber and tomato salad. Drizzle the whole thing with olive oil and a sprinkle of fresh parsley.

Use a fork to mash the rice into a chunky paste.

Add all the ingredients except the ground beef to the rice and use your hands (or a spoon) to mash everything together.

Mix in the ground beef.

Form the mixture into 20 meatballs and place them on a foil-lined baking sheet. Bake the meatballs for 10-12 minutes.

While the meatballs bake, mix up the cucumber and tomato salad. Toss the chopped tomatoes, cucumber, and parsley in a bowl.

Put the the lemon zest, lemon juice, olive oil, sugar, and a sprinkle of salt and pepper into a small bowl, whisk to combine, and then pour it over the vegetables.

Toss the veggies in the dressing to coat, taste, and sprinkle in a bit more salt and pepper if you like.

To test that the meatballs are baked through, remove one meatball from the oven and cut it in half. If the inside is pink, the meatballs need a few more minutes in the oven. If there is no pink, the meatballs are done and can be removed from the oven.

To serve Greek Meatballs, add a generous scoop of Tzatziki sauce to 4 bowls and toss in a few marinated artichoke hearts. Add 4 or 5 meatballs to one side of the bowl and a big scoop of cucumber and tomato salad to the other side.

Drizzle everything with a bit of extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of chopped, fresh parsley. Serve the meatballs with lemon wedges and hunks of crusty bread.

How to Cook Greek Meatballs on the Stovetop Instead of in the Oven

Cooking Greek meatballs on the stovetop is just as simple as baking them in the oven, albeit a bit messier.

1. Add a couple tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil to a 12-inch skillet. You can use a non-stick, carbon steel, or cast iron skillet.
2. Set the pan over medium high heat. When the oil is hot and shimmery, add the meatballs. It's important to not overcrowd the pan and leave an inch or so in-between the meatballs. You will most likely need to cook the meatballs in 2 batches, 10 meatballs at a time.
3. When the bottom of the meatballs are dark brown, turn them over. Continue to cook, turning them in the skillet so that they brown on all sides. To test that the meatballs are done, cut into one. If there is no visible pink, they are cooked through.

Make Ahead and Storage Tips

Raw Greek meatballs can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours before cooking them. Shape the meatballs and then store them in an airtight container or zip-top bag in the refrigerator until ready to cook.

Homemade tzatziki sauce and the tomato and cucumber salad will keep well in the refrigerator in a covered container for up to 3 days.

After the meatballs are cooked, store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave, oven, or in a hot skillet with a little bit of oil.

You can also freeze raw or cooked meatballs:

• To freeze raw meatballs, shape the meatball mix into balls and lay them in a single layer on a flat surface (like a plate or a small tray). Cover the meatballs and place in the freezer until they are frozen through. Once frozen, you can pile them into a ziptop bag or other container and then put back in the freezer for up to 3 months. To thaw, lay the meatballs on a plate in a single layer, cover, and let them sit in the refrigerator overnight.
• To freeze cooked meatballs, place them in an airtight container and place in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow the meatballs to thaw in the refrigerator overnight then reheat in the microwave, oven, or in a hot skillet on the stovetop with a bit of oil.