Vegetarian Greek Zucchini Meatballs are a healthy dinner idea even picky eaters love. Serve them with a side of pita bread and tzatziki for a hearty, flavorful meatless meal!
If you’re looking for delicious recipes without meat, you’ll love our Vegetarian Chili too. These Cauliflower Wings are another surprisingly delicious dish you need to try.
Why this Recipe Works
Remember that time I made delicious, healthy Zucchini Meatballs? Well I’m back with a new twist!
- Greek Zucchini Meatballs have a toothsome texture with a crisp exterior.
- Packed with the flavor of garlic, herbs and zesty spices.
- Oven baked in under 30 minutes.
- Delicious on pita bread with classic Greek toppings!
We were recently looking for a meal that uses zucchini, that wasn’t zoodles. Those zucchini meatballs were a hit with everyone! We enjoyed them over noodles with spaghetti sauce, and on meatball sub sandwiches.
After making gyros recently, I was inspired to use some of the aromatic Mediterranean flavors we love to give some Greek flair to zucchini meatballs.
You guys. These are fantastic. Even if you’re NOT vegetarian you’ll enjoy them!
Ingredient Notes
- Shredded zucchini. If you’re not sure how to shred zucchini, we put together an easy guide with everything you need to know!
- Greek seasoning. This blend of herbs and spices usually includes oregano, paprika, garlic and pepper. We like Cavender’s brand for these meatballs.
- Bread crumbs. Use plain, unseasoned bread crumbs for best results. Do NOT use panko bread crumbs.
- Garlic. For extra garlicky flavor, we added two cloves of peeled, minced garlic to the zucchini meatball mixture.
- Tzatziki sauce. I love this sauce so much I created a whole post to teach you how to make the best Greek yogurt sauce.
Tips and Tricks
- The less liquid in the zucchini the better. Cook your zucchini first then use a mesh strainer or clean kitchen towel to wring out the excess water.
- Make sure “meatballs” are evenly sized and shaped. I use a 2 tbsp cookie scoop to evenly portion out the zucchini mixture to ensure they bake evenly.
- Line your baking sheet with parchment paper. Do not skip this part, as these do tend to STICK. Reynold’s non-stick foil is amazing too!
- Eat immediately or freeze. Greek zucchini meatballs taste best hot and fresh. If you won’t eat all of them right away, freeze the remaining “meatballs” in a gallon freezer bag.
- Make the tzatziki sauce ahead of time. Plan ahead and mix together the sauce in the morning or the night before you plan to eat it. The longer the flavors mingle, the better it tastes.
- Make sure you dice your onion and cucumber SMALL. You want them to smoothly integrate into the yogurt sauce with no big chunks. Smaller chopping also releases even more flavor!
Recipe FAQs
You sure can. It does taste better the longer the flavors have to blend, but you’ll still enjoy it if you don’t have the time to spare.
I don’t recommend making the balls ahead of time. The longer they sit the mushier they will become.
If you need to make them in advance, bake them right away and store them in the freezer.
These can be reheated in the oven until heated through. You can microwave them too but the consistency will be softer.
Round out your meatless meal with a side of cucumber tomato salad or some sweet potato fries. This rolled baklava would make a perfect dessert for your Greek inspired meal too.
Love Greek food?
Have you tried making homemade hummus yet? This Lemon Hummus sounds bizarre but it’s my FAVORITE flavor, hands down!
This Greek Rice from A Family Feast is seriously on my menu for the week. Doesn’t it look amazing?
I’ve also got this American Greek Salad from Kalyn’s Kitchen on the menu (for the same night). LOVE how easy it is to make.
More Meatballs
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Greek Zucchini Meatballs
Ingredients
For the “meatballs”:
- 1 Tablespoon olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves pressed
- 4 cups shredded zucchini
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- several cranks of black pepper
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 2 teaspoons greek seasoning
- 1 cup plain breadcrumbs
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup parmesan cheese
For the tzatziki sauce:
- 1 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1 ½ cup diced cucumber about 1 cucumber
- ½ cup onion diced
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 3 cloves garlic pressed
- 1 teaspoon greek seasoning
Instructions
- Prepare the tzatziki sauce first, ahead of time. I prefer to make my sauce in morning, and allowing it to sit in the fridge all day until dinner. The longer time it has to sit, the better the flavor. But don’t worry, if you forgot to make it ahead of time, it will still taste amazing.
- For the sauce, combine all the ingredients in a bowl, then cover and refrigerate for 4 hours. Be sure to dice your onions and cucumbers SMALL.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with non stick foil. Set aside.
- In a large skillet, drizzle olive oil and heat over medium high heat. Add garlic and saute for about 1 minute. Add in shredded zucchini.
- Cook for about 5 minutes, until most of the water in the skillet has evaporated. Transfer to a colander and press out remaining liquid.
- In a large bowl combine bread crumbs, egg, seasonings, and parmesan cheese. Mix with the zucchini until fully blended.
- Using a 2Tbsp scoop, form 20 balls, rolling tightly, and transfer to prepared baking sheet. Bake for about 20-25 minutes, until firm and lightly browned.
- Serve meatballs with tzatziki sauce on a pita! ENJOY!
Notes
Video
Nutrition
Everyone loves meatless Mondays when these Vegetarian Greek Zucchini Meatballs are on the menu!
I made these and loved them! I made them for the week and they kept really well! With fresh pita and all the fixings, these were absolutely awesome!
THank you, they are one our menu for this week again because we love them so much!
Can these be made the night before and baked just before serving?
My only concern would be them getting mushy the longer they sit. I would suggest baking them the night before, then just reheating before you serve 🙂 You can freeze them once baked too, so make them when you have time off, then freeze them until ready to enjoy!
So YUM – thanks for sharing!
Ohhhh yum! Looks incredible!
I love the look of those zucchini meatballs. Big fan of Cavenders Greek Seasoning here too. Thanks for the shout-out for my American Greek Salad. I make that often!