Mediterranean Style Greek Meatballs

Meatballs that are low in carbs but bursting with flavor!

The tastes of the Mediterranean are often full of color, flavor, and local spices! Our dish of Mediterranean style Greek meatballs is full of all of those things and more! As always, we have found a way for it to be chalked full of nutritional value as well. There are so many reasons that the Mediterranean diet is good for you and we hope you will start including Mediterranean recipes like this one in your weekly meal plan!

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Reasons to Love this Low-Carb Meatball Recipe

Greek meatballs (also commonly known as keftedes to the locals) are usually made of beef or ground pork, which are definitely delicious but can add up in fat content pretty quickly. In this recipe, we will be using ground turkey and some olive oil to still give you the crispy deliciousness without taking up all of your fat calories for the day. 

This healthy recipe is packed with flavor that will make you feel like you are sitting along the Mediterranean Sea with your flip-flops and sun hat on. If you need proof that healthy recipes can be super flavorful, this is it!

Our Mediterranean style Greek meatballs are nutritionally dense enough to be the main course of a meal. Serve them alongside your favorite pasta for a more filling option or a salad for a lighter but still complete meal! We have some great recommendations for each below. These low carb meatballs are also a fantastic option to throw together for a party appetizer or Mediterranean-themed dinner party! They also make a mighty tasty high-protein, low-carb snack on any given day.

Gather Your Ingredients

The Mediterranean diet is known for using fresh, local ingredients, including fresh herbs and spices. We have worked hard to keep this meatball recipe in line with that strategy. Simplicity truly is the best way to keep your nutrition in check! 

Related: How and What to Focus on With a Mediterranean Diet

Here is what you will need to create these classic Greek meatballs with a healthier twist!

• Salt and Black Pepper
• Ground Turkey
• Almond Flour
• Fresh Parsley
• Garlic Cloves
• Dried Oregano
• Lemon (or lemon juice if that’s what you have on hand)
• Olive Oil

If you use the ingredients listed, some of the perks you will get are 20 grams of protein, 10 grams of healthy fat, 1 gram of sugar, and 4 grams of carbs per serving! 

As always, you can substitute ingredients where needed to fit your dietary restrictions or needs, but just keep in mind that the nutritional aspect might vary depending on which ingredients are used. 

It is so important to find food and ingredients that work for you, as no two people will love all of the same foods, and no two bodies will react to the same ingredients, either! 

A few fun things we can think of to add in would be a red onion, or even some fresh mint or fresh dill to really up the flavor without adding in unwanted fat or calories.

Creating Your Delicious Mediterranean-Style Greek Meatballs

Another great reason to love this recipe, outside of the simplicity of the ingredients, is that it is super easy to make! These meatballs require only 15 minutes of prep time and about 20 minutes to cook (depending on how many batches you end up making!) This recipe can work for a quick weeknight dinner or a great option to add to your weekly meal plan. Let’s get to making these yummy Mediterranean-style Greek meatballs!

Related: Essential Meal Planning for Beginners

Get out a large bowl and gather up your ground turkey, almond flour, parsley, garlic, oregano, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. You will then take your mixture and form it into 1-inch balls. You can do this with your hands, or a cookie scoop can give you a more uniform look for your finished product and speed up the prep process just a little bit.

For the cooking part, you will heat up your olive oil to medium high heat and cook each meatball for about 5 to 7 minutes, or until they are the perfect golden brown color. 

Set them to the side and let them cool a bit before serving.

Storing and Reheating Low-Carb Meatballs

Greek meatballs (which could also fall into the low-carb meatball category) are a great option to add to your next meal prep day! With so much protein without unnecessary fat, they are perfect for travel and life on the go. 

This recipe is designed to make around 18 meatballs with a serving counting as 3. If you are using them for meal prep, this would get you completely through the workweek. Just store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. These will fit great in the Bento boxes that are currently all the rage!

You could even make some, not complete the cooking step, and store them in the freezer for something that you could thaw quickly and throw together on a night when you’re struggling to decide what to make but don’t want to end up in the local drive-thru line. Just store them on a baking sheet to freeze, and then once they are frozen all the way through, you can put them in freezer bags to keep them good until you are ready to use them.

What to Serve With Your Greek Meatballs

If you are new to trying out Mediterranean cuisine, you might be unsure of what to serve with your Greek Meatballs. No worries, we have that covered too! Meatballs are a great option to throw onto a platter or dinner tray and serve with olives, creamy dips, rice, tzatziki sauce, fresh vegetables like a cucumber or Roma tomatoes, and something rich like feta cheese. Put some pita bread on the side, and you will have your own little Greek festival going on!

If you’re looking for more of a family meal, you could choose to pair them with Mediterranean-Style Greek Pasta Recipe, Mediterranean Angel Hair Pasta, or even this fresh 6-Ingredient Mediterranean Salad!

Have fun with it and try new things. This keeps your meals interesting while still giving you tons of nutritional value each time. 

How Do These Meatballs Differ From Traditional Greek Meatballs?

Traditional Greek Meatballs, while also filled with fresh herbs and spices, tend to be a little bit on the fatty side as they usually are made with ground beef and are deep fried. While still better than many foods out there on the market, we want to find a way to up the nutrition information a bit so that you get all of the flavors without all of the unnecessary fat.

You could try to make Greek Chicken Meatballs to provide a little different flavor if turkey isn’t your favorite protein option.

We always encourage you to try and eat around the world when it comes to your daily diet. There are so many great options available out there that you may not even realize exist! Not only do you get to widen your nutrition and dietary options, but you can also take the time to learn about different cultures and how their cuisine became what it is today. 

Food is the one thing that is absolutely universal. Everyone needs it, and it is so much broader, interesting, and more creative than most of us realize.

Combining Low-Carb and Mediterranean Diets

Mediterranean and low-carb diets have a lot of similarities. They both focus on getting in high amounts of protein without unnecessary fillers. The mediterranean diet tends to allow more overall calories, but both find a lot of value in getting in lots of veggies and finding foods that give you the most nutritional value per bite. 

This makes them pretty easy to pair together. Just look for ways that you can take out some of the more carb-heavy options in the Mediterranean diet (think legumes, whole grains, and root vegetables) and focus more on getting in lots of green, leafy vegetables to keep you feeling fuller longer. 

If you’re looking for some inspiration, check out some of our best Mediterranean diet recipes, as well as these delicious low-carb dinner recipes, to get started!

More Healthy Meatball Recipes

The best thing about a good meatball recipe is that they give you a lot of options when it comes to creating them. We have gone over some of the differences between using ground beef or ground pork versus turkey. You can also think outside of the box and mix it up with some ground lamb or a meatless or gluten-free version!

Many people like to use eggs to help keep their mixture together, but if that isn’t available to you due to diet restrictions, that’s okay! The recipe we have today doesn’t include them, and we find that they stayed together without issue. 

A few of our favorite meatball recipes you might like to try next include:

• Easy Oven-Baked Meatballs
• Italian Meatballs
• Quinoa Meatless Meatballs
• Mediterranean Chicken Meatballs
• Traditional Spaghetti and Meatballs
• Chicken Parmesan Meatballs
• Slow Cooker Healthy Meatloaf
• Greek Chicken and Meatballs

If you give this yummy Mediterranean-style Greek meatballs recipes a try (or any of our other meatball recipes) be sure to let us know what you think in the comment section!

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