Greek Orzo Salad with Turkey Meatballs and Tzatziki

For people reading from the future, I’m going to give you some context: I’ve made this dish during the time where everyone is obsessed with making what they call “Tik Tok Pasta”. So I was surprised when I went to the store that I was able to find a block of feta.

Anyways I was craving orzo this week and ground turkey was on sale so I leaned into this dish here. A colorful orzo salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, feta and lots of lemon, dill and mint. Made with greek style meatballs and tzatziki sauce for topping. I’ve made mine but to save time you can also do store bought.

Overall I love how light this meal is and it’s great for either lunch or dinner. I’ve eaten it all cold but you can certainly serve the meatballs warm if that’s what you prefer.

Ingredients

Turkey Meatballs

• 1.5 lbs ground turkey

• 1 egg

• 1/4 c milk

• 1/3 bread crumbs

• 2 T red onion, finely, chopped

• 1 T fresh dill, finely chopped

• 1 T fresh parsley, finely chopped

• 1 t oregano

• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• salt & pepper to taste

Orzo Salad

• 1/2 lb orzo

• 1 T butter

• 1 lemon, zest & juice

• 2 oz crumbled feta

• 1/2 red onion, sliced

• 1 english cucumber, seeded and sliced

• 10oz cherry tomatoes

• 2 T fresh dill, finely chopped

• 1 T fresh mint, finely chopped

• salt & pepper to taste

Other

• Tzatziki Sauce (Tzatziki Sauce Recipe)

• Extra fresh herbs, chopped

• olive and canola oil for pan frying

Directions

1. Start by mixing all of your meatball ingredients together. In a large skillet on medium heat heat up a mixture of 1 T olive oil + canola oil (enough to cover the bottom of the pan). Cook the meatballs for about 10-15 minutes or until meatballs are crispy and cooked through.

2. Meanwhile cook your orzo according to package directions, strain and mix in the butter, lemon, feta and let cool to at least room temperature.

3. Once cool mix in all of the orzo salad ingredients in with your orzo. Toss and serve with your meatballs, tzatziki and sprinkled with more fresh herbs.

Notes

Gluten-free: This recipe is gluten-free if you use panko bread crumbs

Dairy-free: This recipe is dairy free if you use dairy-free butter and cheese. You can also make substituting the butter with oil and omitting the cheese.

Ground Turkey: You can also try this dish out with ground lamb or chicken. If you don’t eat meat you can buy or make your own falafel.

Herbs: I used fresh dill mint and parsley. I suggest using fresh for the best results but you can certainly substitute for dried herbs.

Tzatziki: Buy some or make your own using my Tzatziki Sauce Recipe.

Cooking the Meatballs: You can also cook the meatballs in the oven at 400F for 25-30 minutes.