These Mediterranean-style Chicken Zucchini Meatballs are simple to make and bake up in the oven for an easy weeknight (or anytime) meal!
I love a good meatball and in our house, baked meatballs are our go-tos. Zucchini is also a favourite so it was only a matter of time before I put the two together. Part zucchini fritter, part meatball recipe, these Chicken Zucchini Meatballs are fun to make and fun to eat too.
These meatballs make a great snack, app, or even main course which makes them pretty popular around here. Especially in the middle of summer when our zucchini plant is producing so much zucc we are trying to find more ways to incorporate it into our recipes. With all the zucchini we have growing in our garden these days, we are pretty much putting it in all of our meals. And I am a-okay with that.
This recipe is super simple and uses easy to find ingredients. If you don’t have ground chicken you can swap in ground turkey as well.
It’s also a great way to sneak in more veggies if you have picky eaters in your house. You don’t really taste any zucchini at all and so kiddos (or picky hubbies- ahem) are more likely to eat more veggies this way! If you want to camouflage the zucchini even better, you could peel off the skin and then it really goes undetected!
But when something tastes good and is good for you, why wouldn’t you want to eat it all the time?
Fried vs. Baked Meatballs
While this recipe is written as a baked meatballs recipe, you are definitely able to switch things up and fry the meatballs instead. I personally opt for baked for a couple of reasons:
- They are less greasy and therefore lower in calories.
- I don’t have to stand over them as they cook! Just set them in the oven and let it do the work for you.
That said, if you are not worried about either of those things and are hoping to get dinner on the table even faster, frying will do that for you. It also tends to make a tastier meatball as anything fried is always tastier.
If you are looking to fry these meatballs, heat your oil over medium-high heat and opt for smaller meatballs to ensure they cook all the way through. I use a meat thermometer to check the internal temperature just to be sure.
Tips for making meatballs
- mix the meatball mixture a fork (or two forks) to keep it fluffy and prevent getting a dense meatball
- use a cookie scoop to ensure you get a uniform size
- use a little oil to grease your hands when you are rolling the meatballs. This will prevent sticking.
- be gentle when forming the meatballs to keep them fluffy and tender
- check the temperature with a meat thermometer to be sure they are cooked through
What to serve chicken zucchini meatballs with
The best thing about meatballs is that they are so versatile. They make a great snack, appetizer or main course. I have included my personal favourite ways to use these meatballs:
- marinara, tzatziki or your favourite dip will go perfectly to make these a dippable snack!
- add them to pita bread with some tzatziki, fresh onions and tomatoes for a delicious Greek-inspired wrap
- serve alongside grilled veggies, rice or your favourite sides
- add them over pasta for a spin on a classic spaghetti and meatballs
How to store leftover chicken zucchini meatballs
My recipe for meatballs makes about 2 dozen meatballs but that will depend on how big you make them, of course. Unless I am making this for a crowd, we always have leftovers and these meatballs are still super awesome the next day or even a couple days later.
To store leftovers, place cooled meatballs in an airtight container in the fridge. You can reheat them in the oven or an air fryer when you are ready to enjoy them again.
The beauty of this recipe is that it also freezes well. You can freeze baked meatballs in a freezer safe bag or container for future use. This is awesome for meal prepping as you can make a super quick weeknight meal with your freezer stash! Since they are already cooked, you just need to heat them in the oven until they are nice and warm.
You may also like:
Greek Spanakopita Chicken Meatballs
Baked Swedish Meatballs with Gravy
Salisbury Steak Meatballs
I hope you enjoy this recipe! If you try it and love it as much as I do, I would love to hear about it! Leave a rating and/or comment below to let me know!
Chicken Zucchini Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken or ground turkey
- 2 large eggs
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 1 cup zucchini shredded
- 1/2 onion finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley finely chopped
- 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
- salt and pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Finely chop the herbs and onion. Mix all the ingredients in a large bowl until well combined.
- To form the mixture into meatballs I like to use a 1 1/2 tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop out the mixture (about a golfball size). Lightly grease your hands with a bit of oil and roll the mixture in your palms to form the meatballs.
- Place the meatballs on the baking sheet and bake in the oven for approximately 25-30 minutes or until cooked through.
Note: Metric ingredient measurements are provided as a courtesy using a third-party calculator and are rounded to the nearest unit. The recipes provided on this site have not been tested with metric measurements and their accuracy cannot be verified.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is based on third-party calculations and is an estimate only. Accurate nutritional facts will vary based on the particular brands used, portion sizes, measurement accuracy and more.
Cathy, I am on a chicken zucchini fixation!!! I doubled this recipe as well as the chicken spanakopita meatballs. For chicken zucchini ones, I divided the mixture and added crumbled feta and drizzling of evoo to 1/2 and left rest as your recipe stated. Needless to say have lots of meatballs and hamburger patties in freezer for whenever I have no clue what to make. These have the kitchen smelling just as delicious as the couple I snuck after cooking!!!!
PS: looking through you archives as well and having the time of my life!!
Thank you so much! I’m so happy to hear you enjoy them as much as we do!