Greek Turkey Meatballs with Lemon Orzo & Creamy Feta Yogurt Sauce

The formula

Every ingredient resolved to grams, expressed against the recipe's own base — next to the median of all 38.

	this recipe	typical
binder	10%	0%
egg	10%	10%
dairy	24%	6%
aromatics	39%	9%
salt	1%	1%
liquid	26%	12%
vegetables and beans	47%	0%

Where it stands out

• #2 of 38 for richness

Adapts cleanly: egg-free, nut-free (documented swaps, applied on the dish page)

Ingredients

Weights computed by us.

	For the feta yogurt sauce:
122 g	1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
61 g	1/2 cup feta crumbles
14 g	1 tablespoon olive oil
10 g	2 teaspoons lemon juice
	1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 g	1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
	Freshly ground salt and black pepper, to taste
10 g	1-3 teaspoons water to thin sauce so you can drizzle it over meatballs
	For the meatballs:
454 g	1 pound lean ground chicken or turkey (around 93% lean is best)
50 g	1 egg
54 g	1/2 cup breadcrumbs
40 g	1/4 cup finely diced red onion (from about 1/4th large red onion)
9 g	3 cloves garlic, minced (or sub 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
19 g	3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
	3 tablespoons chopped fresh mint
1 g	1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
4 g	3/4 teaspoon salt
	Freshly ground black pepper
	For the veggies:
120 g	1 red bell pepper, julienned
120 g	1 orange bell pepper, julienned
150 g	1 red onion, sliced
14 g	1 tablespoon olive oil
	Freshly ground salt and pepper
	For the lemon orzo:
227 g	1 1/3 cup orzo pasta (8 ounces)
	1 teaspoon lemon zest
	Juice from 1/2 lemon (about 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice)
21 g	1-2 tablespoons butter (or olive oil)
	Freshly ground salt and pepper, to taste
	Optional: 1/2 cup pitted and sliced kalamata olives
	To garnish:
	Fresh torn mint and parsley
	For serving:
	Optional: Pita bread

Method: 7 steps, published by www.ambitiouskitchen.com — open the original ↗ or use bake mode for a follow-along with a screen that stays on.

“Holy Cow! These were amaaaazing! The feta sauce was a bit tart, so we wound up adding some dill and extra olive oil. Gluten free 4C in the meatballs and casava orzo to make it gluten free. I sauteed the peppers and onions on the stove and let me tell you, my d” — a cook, 5.0★

“While it looked like a lot of fussing at first this dish came together quickly and easily. Very much worth a couple extra dishes. I think the mint was a game changer so try not to skip that. The feta sauce was also delicious. All in all a dish to impress.” — a cook, 5.0★