GREEK LAMB MEATBALLS WITH TZATZIKI SAUCE

GREEK LAMB MEATBALLS WITH TZATZIKI SAUCE

★★★★★5 from 47 reviews

Author: Whip & Wander
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Yield: 12 meatballs + sauce 1x
Category: Mains
Cuisine: Greek

INGREDIENTS

For the Greek meatballs:

1 lb ground lamb
3 tbsp pork rinds (I like Epic Oven Baked Pink Himalayan + Sea Salt), crushed or blended until fine and granular
1 large egg
1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley, chopped (may sub 4 tsp dried parsley)
1 tbsp fresh oregano, chopped (may sub 1 tsp dried oregano)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp garlic oil (may sub 1/2 tsp minced garlic)
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 tbsp avocado oil, for cooking (may sub with your favorite cooking fat)

For the tzatziki sauce:

1 cup thick Greek yogurt (5% fat or higher is best)
1 medium cucumber (about 1 1/4 cup), peeled, deseeded, and shredded
1 tbsp garlic oil (may sub 1 tsp minced garlic)
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh mint, chopped
1 tbsp fresh dill, chopped
1/2 tsp sea salt, plus more to taste

INSTRUCTIONS

I like to prep the cucumber for the tzatziki sauce first by disgorging it:

Peel the skin of the cucumber, then slice it lengthwise and scrape the seeds out with a spoon.
Set a mesh strainer over the top of a bowl so that it has a few inches of space between itself and the bottom of the bowl.
Using a standard cheese grater, grate the cucumber flesh into the sieve set over the bowl.
Sprinkle with sea salt and toss gently. For this recipe 1/2 tsp of sea salt will do.
Allow to sit out for a minimum of 10 minutes. The longer you let the cucumber sit, the more water will eventually disgorge from the shreds and end up in the bottom of the bowl.
When you’re ready to assemble to sauce, simply add the disgorged cucumber shreds to the sauce and dispose of the excess water in the bottom of the draining bowl.

For the Greek meatballs:

In a large bowl, mix the lamb, crushed pork rinds, egg, parsley, oregano, cumin, coriander, garlic oil, pepper, and salt until fully combined.
Form the lamb into 12 golfball-sized balls.
Add avocado oil to a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the meatballs to the pan to cook, turning as each side browns. Cook until the internal temp of the meatballs reaches 165 degrees F and they are evenly browned.

For the tzatziki sauce:

In a medium bowl, mix the Greek yogurt, disgorged/drained cucumber, garlic oil, lemon juice, mint, dill, and sea salt with a spoon until well combined. Taste for salt.
Serve the tzatziki sauce with the lamb.

NOTES

Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site.