What are your favorite ingredients for easy Greek Bowls?
Amid a busy season and party food, sometimes you just need a healthy recipe like easy Greek Bowls. It also makes a good meal to take to a friend because it isn’t lasagna and can be prepped ahead for the mealtrain. My favorite ingredients are the tzatziki sauce and the kalamata olives!
Whether you are a busy teacher, a tutor who works afternoons, a stay at home mom, or a single professional, here’s my recipe for Greek bowls. The meatballs can be made ahead and stored in the fridge or freezer. To serve, warm the meatballs and rice and top with the rest of the Greek bowl ingredients. This also makes it super easy to double and take to a friend.
Greek Meatballs: (serves 4-6 people)
1-1.5 lb of lean ground turkey
½-¾ c grated zucchini, squeezed
1-2 tbsp minced garlic
¼ c minced red onion
1 tbsp dried oregano
½-¾ tsp each, salt and pepper
⅓ c crumbled feta (skip if you are dairy free, I like goat feta)
½ tsp lemon juice
Preheat oven to 375*. Stir ingredients to combine. Use an ice cream scoop or your hands to make mini meatballs with about 1-1 ½ tbsp of meat and place on a baking sheet. Bake 375* for 15-17 minutes or until 165*. You can broil them for a minute or two to brown the top if you want. Refrigerate or freeze if not used right away.
Greek Bowls ingredients:
¾ c cooked rice per person (make the rice or use a microwave rice pouch)
1 mini naan bread or pita per person (skip if you are gluten-free)
1-2 diced cucumbers (peeled or not)
2 medium diced tomatoes
¼ c diced red onion
Kalamata olives, pitted
1 tbsp crumbled feta per person (I like goat feta)
1-2 tbsp hummus per person (most any savory flavor of hummus works)
1-2 tbsp tzatziki per person (store-bought or recipe below)
If I have other veggies on hand I sometimes add baby spinach, mini peppers, or shredded carrots.
Forgot to buy the tzatziki?
Here’s a quick recipe. Double if you want extra sauce.
½ c plain Greek yogurt or sour cream
¼ c diced or grated peeled cucumbers
1 tsp+ white vinegar or lemon juice
½ tsp garlic powder
¼-½ tsp dried dill or oregano
¼ tsp each, salt and pepper
Tips:
- Gluten-free? Skip the naan bread or pita bread.
- Dairy-free? Skip the feta and tzatziki or make DF versions.
- Taking as a meal to a friend? Package the meal ingredients separately so they can build their own bowls.
- Short on time? Make the meatballs ahead. Buy microwave rice bags. Prep the veggie ahead.
- The bowl ingredients are not exact amounts. Use what you like and have on hand!
- Don’t have a meat thermometer? Cut a cooked meatball in half to see if it’s done.
- Worried about making meatballs without bread crumbs and eggs? Just try it!
- Feeling spicy? Add some harissa!
- Feeling tangy? Add pickled red onions!
- Feeling blue? Invite a friend to share a Greek bowl with you!
Easy Greek Bowls are the new taco bar. Use what veggies you have on hand. Make tzatziki while you bake the meatballs. Make extra meatballs for the freezer. Keep a jar of olives on hand. Go ahead and pause right now to throw these ingredients on your grocery list. I’ll just sip my coffee while you do. I’ll be right here!
In our house, when we take a meal to someone, we make the same for ourselves that night. It shows the importance of our family along with the value of serving others. Easy Greek bowls is a recipe that your kids can help put together on slow nights or busy nights.
Table Talk: Would you rather have a Greek bowl or a taco bowl? What’s your favorite ingredient in the Greek bowl recipe?
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