Lemon Basil Greek Meatballs and Rice

Another 30 minute meal coming to your table! These juicy pork meatballs seasoned with lemon pepper and fresh basil are the perfect Greek meatballs with rice!

You'll Love This Meatball and Rice Recipe!

Served up next to a tangy, cucumber and kalamata olive greek yogurt sauce it's truly irrisistable! The Greek meatballs and rice are a pretty mild flavor that is appealing to kids and adults, both!

These are slightly reminiscent of my Lebanese kofta (a middle eastern style meatball!) and are so delicious paired with the Traditional Tabouli Salad.

Ingredients

These are easily some of the quickest meatballs ever! Here is everything you will need:

• Ground Pork - You can substitute beef or turkey too!
• Lemon Pepper - Use the pre blended spice mix from the store its easy and accessible!
• Fresh Basil Leaves - fresh basil is preferred you could use dried if you have it instead.
• Salt and Pepper
• Yellow Onion - I find grating the onion finely can trick even the pickiest eater!
• Olive Oil
• Greek Yogurt- I love a really thick, full fat plain greek yogurt for serving alongside this.
• Lemon
• Kalamata olives - Kalamata olives have the perfect amount of tang to our meatball rice recipe.
• English Cucumber - English cucumber has skin and seeds that are easy to eat and need very little prep.
• Garlic
• White Rice for serving with our greek meatballs.

I love that these easy greek meatballs are naturally gluten free since we're not using breadcrumbs!

Tip For Cooking Meatballs...

Let's just cut to the chase, we want recipes that are easy to make AND easy to clean up. So cooking meatballs can get a little messy....

If you don't want to babysit a skillet full of meatballs, line a sheet pan with tin foil and bake the meatballs for about 15 minutes.

I like to broil them for the last couple of minutes to mimic the sear of a skillet right on top!

Simply throw the foil away at the end for easy clean up!

Step By Step Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line a sheet tray with tin foil.
2. In a mixing bowl combine the pork, onion, basil, salt, pepper, lemon juice and lemon pepper. Use your hands to combine.
3. Using a cookie scoop, form 2 tablespoons of the mixture into a ball.
4. Place on the baking sheet and repeat until the mixture is gone.
5. Bake these for 7 minutes then turn them over.
6. Bake another 8 minutes then broil for 2-3 minutes.
7. While those are baking, prepare the the yogurt sauce by combining the yogurt, cucumber, garlic, kalamata olives, and a pinch of salt and pepper. Set aside.
8. Cook the rice according to the instructions and serve the meatballs on the rice with the yogurt sauce.

What Sauce Goes with Meatballs and Rice?

Tzatziki is a very popular side dish for any kind of spiced Greek or Mediteranean meat recipe. It's a fresh and light balance to the bold and savory flavors of these Greek meatballs and rice!

I've put my own spin on the traditional yogurt sauce by adding in a few extra ingredients:

• Greek yogurt
• Chopped cucumber
• Kalamata olives
• Lemon juice
• Salt & Pepper
• Fresh garlic

It's still light and fresh but with the added tang of the olives, it's just delicious and the perfect sauce to balance out the lemon basil meatballs with rice.

Other Delicious Meatball Recipes

Meatballs might be a moms best friend. They are quick to make, easy to serve, and universally loved by husbands and kiddos.

If you enjoyed these Lemon Basil Greek Meatballs with rice try these other meatball recipes...

• Mexican Enchilada Meatballs - skillet meatballs with delicious enchilada flavors

• Raspberry Black Bean Dip Meatballs - a twist on a classic college town favorite of mine! Sweet & savory recipe for beef meatballs.

• Easy Bruschetta Turkey Meatballs - A delicious appetizer idea! Or load them up on a bun for a yummy meatball sub.
• Or finally a 30 Minute Vodka Sauce with Meatballs that are freezer friendly and are perfect to warm you up on a cold day!

📖 Recipe

Lemon Basil Greek Meatballs and Rice

Simple ground pork meatballs and rice seasoned with light and bright lemon pepper and fresh basil. Served with a tangy kalamata olive and cucumber yogurt sauce, it's a perfectly light 30 minute dinner for your family.

5 from 3 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Prep Time: 5 minutes mins

15 minutes mins

Servings: 4 people

Author: Sara Ayesh

Equipment

• ▢
  sheet tray
• ▢
  tin foil
• ▢
  mixing bowl

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 lb ground pork can substitute beef or turkey too!
• ▢ 1 tablespoon lemon pepper
• ▢ 4-5 fresh basil leaves thinly sliced
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ an onion grated or finely diced
• ▢ olive oil
• ▢ 2 cups greek yogurt
• ▢ juice of 1 lemon
• ▢ ⅓ cup chopped kalamata olives
• ▢ ½ an english cucumber finely diced
• ▢ 2 cloves of garlic minced
• ▢ pinch of salt and pepper
• ▢ 2 cups white rice

Instructions

• Pre heat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with tin foil.
• In a mixing bowl combine pork, lemon pepper, sliced basil leaves, salt, and onion. Mix well with a fork or hands.
• Using a 1 tablespoon measuring spoon or cookie scoop, scoop the meatballs and place them on the baking sheet.
• Drizzle all of the meatballs with olive oil.
• Bake meatballs for 15-17 minutes until internal temperature is 145 degrees.
• While the meatballs are in the oven, in a mixing bowl combine the yogurt, chopped olives, cucumber, lemon juice, pinch of salt and pepper, and minced garlic.
• Mix and place in the refrigerator to set.
• Cook the white rice according to package directions.
• When meatballs are finished serve along side the rice and the yogurt sauce!

Notes

Feel free to sub in any type of ground protein you like! I think beef, lamb, or even turkey would be delicious for these Greek meatballs with lemon and basil. 

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