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5.0 from 6 votes

Greek Meatballs (Keftedes)

Juicy, tender and flavorful meatballs made with ground beef, minced onion, earthy spices and fresh herbs. They are such a comforting mediterranean food and there are so many different ways to serve them.

Prep Time
40 mins
Cook Time
40 mins
Total Time
55 mins
Servings: 6 servings (30 meatballs)
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Greek

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil*
  • 1 1/2 cups (3.5 oz) stale sourdough breadcrumbs** (from about 2 slices)
  • 1/3 cup milk
  • 2 lbs 85% lean ground beef
  • 2 tsp salt
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 tsp ground coriander
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
  • 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh mint or cilantro
  • 1/2 cup finely minced red onion (chop as small as you mince garlic)
  • 2 tsp minced garlic
  • 2 large eggs

Instructions

    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Brush a baking sheet (preferably dark non-stick) with 1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil.
  2. In a mixing bowl toss fresh bread crumbs with milk. Let rest 5 minutes while you prepare the ingredients for the meatballs.
  3. Add ground beef to the soaked crumbs, evenly sprinkle over salt, pepper, cumin, oregano, and coriander. Add parsley, mint, red onion, garlic and eggs.
  4. Toss mixture with your hands and gently crumble and mix together until mixture is uniformly combined.
  5. Shape meatball mixture into balls about 1 1/2 inches each or 42 grams.
  6. Place on baking sheet and rub bottom side over the olive oil. Repeat to use up all of the meatball mixture and space meatballs evenly apart on baking sheet.
  7. Bake in preheated oven until center of meatballs registers 165 degrees, about 15 to 19 minutes (test a few meatballs in center of baking sheet too for doneness as the center usually cooks a little slower than edges).
  8. Preferably serve with fresh made tzatziki for dipping.

Notes

  • *If you want to deep fry the meatballs you'll need 3/4 cup olive oil. Fry in the oil in a non-stick skillet in two batches over medium to medium-low heat until cooked through in center, turning occasionally. Use a skimmer to transfer to a paper towel lined baking sheet to drain.
  • **Use stale bread that has started to dry. If it's fresh just leave the slices out uncovered for half the day to dry. To make it into breadcrumbs simply pulse in a food processor to fine crumbs, or just tear bread slices into small pieces and soak in milk then break up into smaller pieces after soaking.
  • White bread can be substituted for sourdough. Panko bread crumbs or regular bread crumbs should work as well, use only 1 cup.
  • Nutrition estimate is based off baking method.