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These gyro bowls are loaded and delicious. Lamb or beef meatballs spiced to taste just like roasted gyro meat on a bed of tender lemon rice, topped with creamy tzatziki and a quick tomato and cucumber salad. One of my personal favorite recipes, I could go for this Greek dinner anytime! Better yet, even my kids love them.
What Makes This Recipe So Good
- There’s so much incredible flavor! Seasoned lamb (or beef, or pork) meatballs. Lemony rice. Rich, tangy tzatziki. Fresh cucumber and tomato with olive oil. Then you serve it with hummus, olives, and pita?? I’m drooling just thinking about it.
- The recipe card below looks a little overwhelming, but I promise you, this recipe is really so simple. The instructions for each component of the gyro bowl are basically just “mix together”, and then you just put a little of each component in a big bowl! Even the meatballs are just “mix and bake”.
- This is a great option for you meal-preppers. Each component can be prepared ahead of time, refrigerated individually, and then assembled into a bowl when you’re ready to eat. Or, if you’re more of a grab-and-go type person, you can prepare the full bowl ahead of time. If you’ll want to enjoy the meatballs and rice warm, though, keep that in mind if you’re putting everything in the same meal prep container.
Chef’s Tips
- If you follow the recipe as written, you should get 14-20 meatballs from the gyro meatball mixture. It just depends on the size of meatballs you make. Depending on your preferred portions, this recipe will yield 3 to 5 gyro bowls easily.
- Don’t overwork the meat mixture or you’ll end up with tough, unpleasant meatballs. Stop mixing when all the ingredients are just combined, and be gentle when you’re forming the scoops into meatballs.
- For even more flavor (or if you’re looking to cut costs a little), mix together ½ pound of ground lamb with ½ pound of ground beef. The two pair well together and give the meatballs a little something extra. You can also use 1 pound of each, making twice the meatballs, and save the extras for later. They freeze well – just keep them in an airtight container in the freezer for 1-2 months.
More Incredible “Bowl” Recipes
- Blackened Fish Taco Bowls with Mango Salsa and Cilantro-Lime Rice
- Whole30 “Peanut” Chicken Bowls (Paleo)
- Greek Chicken Skillet with Orzo, Feta, and Spinach
- Egg Roll in a Bowl Meal Prep (Whole30, Paleo, Keto)
- Whole30 Fried Chicken and Mashed Potato Bowl with Gravy
- Loaded Greek Chicken Bowls
- Instant Pot Burrito Bowls
Recipe By: Cheryl Malik
5 from 17 votes
Gyro Bowls (Meatballs with Tzatziki, Lemon Rice, and Cucumber Salad)
Prep 15 minutes minutes
Cook 20 minutes minutes
Total 35 minutes minutes
Delicious lamb or beef meatballs, cucumber salad, lemony rice, and creamy tzatziki sauce combine incredible Greek flavors into one delectable bowl.
4 bowls
Equipment
Oven
large baking sheet
aluminum foil or parchment paper
Cooking spray
large mixing bowl
scoop with release handle (optional)
Cutting board
Fork
Paper towels
2 medium mixing bowls
small mixing bowl
Ingredients
For the Meatballs
- 1 pound ground lamb, beef, or pork lamb preferred
- ¼ cup minced onion
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 1 large egg
- ½ cup finely crumbled feta cheese
- 1 teaspoon Greek seasoning
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the Tzatziki
- 1-2 cloves garlic minced or pressed
- ¼ teaspoon salt to taste
- half of one European cucumber peeled, grated, drained (see Notes)
- 1 cup plain yogurt drained
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint plus more to taste, see Notes
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill see Notes
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
For the Lemon Rice
- 2 cups cooked rice white or brown
- juice of one half lemon roughly 1 tablespoon
- ¼ teaspoon salt to taste
For the Cucumber & Tomato Salad
- 1 cup tomatoes diced, halved, or chopped
- 1 cup diced cucumber drained, see Notes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt to taste
Recommended Garnishes (All Optional)
- hummus
- olive oil
- crumbled feta
- Kalamata olives
- chopped dill
- chopped parsley
- sumac
- pitas
Instructions
For the Meatballs
Preheat oven to 425° Fahrenheit. Line baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Spray foil or parchment paper lightly with cooking spray and set baking sheet aside.
Add all meatball ingredients to large mixing bowl. Using your hands, gently mix together ingredients until uniformly combined.
Divide mixture into even portions using scoop with release handle. Roll each scoop between palms of hands to form meatball, then place on lined baking sheet. Repeat until all mixture has been formed into meatballs. Mixture should yield 14 to 20 meatballs depending on size of scoop. Note: if not using scoop, divide entire mixture into 4 equal parts, then divide each part into 5 equal meatballs.
Place baking sheet in preheated oven. Bake 10 to 14 minutes or until meatballs are nicely browned and cooked through. Prepare remaining components of gyro bowl while meatballs bake.
For the Tzatziki
Place garlic on cutting board. Sprinkle salt over garlic then use back of fork to mash garlic into paste.
Add garlic paste, drained cucumber (see Notes), drained yogurt, mint and/or dill, black pepper, and olive oil to medium bowl. Stir well to combine all ingredients, then taste and adjust salt as needed. Set aside.
For the Lemon Rice
Add 2 cups cooked rice, juice of one half lemon, and salt to medium mixing bowl. Stir well to thoroughly incorporate ingredients, then taste and adjust lemon juice and salt as needed. Set aside.
For the Cucumber & Tomato Salad
Add all components to small mixing bowl. Gently stir to distribute ingredients, then taste and adjust salt as needed. Set aside.
To Assemble the Bowls
Divide rice evenly into serving bowls. Top rice with meatballs, tzatziki, cucumber & tomato salad, and any other desired garnishes. Serve immediately.
- Tzatziki: You can use fresh mint AND fresh dill, or choose just one.
To Drain Water from Cucumbers
- Peel and grate/dice cucumbers.
- With paper towels, squeeze as much water as possible out of cucumber.
- Place cucumber in colander. Set colander over bowl to catch liquid. Liberally sprinkle salt over cucumbers, tossing or moving cucumbers as needed to salt entirely.
- Let cucumbers rest 20 minutes.
- Transfer drained cucumbers to fresh paper towels. Press or blot to remove any remaining liquid. If desired, you can quickly rinse the drained cucumbers in cold water to remove excess salt, then press or blot with paper towels.
Approximate Information for One Serving
Serving Size: 1gyro bowlCalories: 615calProtein: 28gFat: 41gSaturated Fat: 17gTrans Fat: 0.01gCholesterol: 154mgSodium: 1246mgPotassium: 568mgTotal Carbs: 31gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gNet Carbs: 29gVitamin A: 314IUVitamin C: 5mgCalcium: 246mgIron: 3mg
Nutrition Disclaimers
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
Did You Make This Recipe?
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Cheryl Malik
In addition to being a certified health coach, certified yoga instructor, and mom of 3, Cheryl is also the recipe developer, editor-in-chief, food photographer, and passionate foodie behind 40 Aprons. Having spent the last 10+ years as a food blogger, she's become known for her flavorful recipes, detailed instructions, gorgeous photography, and down-to-earth approach to food and cooking in general.
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So easy and delicious!! Can’t believe it tastes just like a gyro – I’m very picky usually too and loved this
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I’m so happy you enjoyed it so much, Tay! Thank you for sharing your review!
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This dish was amazing!!!!
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So glad you loved it, Anne! 😊
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I don’t make this whole recipe, but I do make the meatballs for greek salads. I love how the simple ingredients have so much flavor! I use lamb every time and the feta is just a perfect complement for these juicy little meat bites. Thank you so much for the recipe!
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Thank you so much, Audrey! I’m so happy you enjoy them so much!
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This was so good. I am following the Mediterranean diet and trying to avoid red meat for the most part. I subbed the lamb for ground chicken and it was fabulous. Simple ingredients, but so much flavor! I will definitely be making this again.
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So glad you loved it! Thanks for sharing, Jennifer! 😊
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Was delish and a nice change. Easy to make
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So glad you enjoyed it, Mari!
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Such a great recipe! I made it last night for me and my mom, and we both loved it! I used turkey meat instead of the gyro meet and the recipe still came out great! Next time will definitely try it with the gyro meat!
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So glad y’all loved it! Thanks for sharing, Taylor! 😊
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We absolutely loved this recipe! It was very easy and fast. I have a dairy allergy, so we used Follow Your Heart vegan feta. The meatballs were juicy and tender, and I don’t think the vegan feta changed the meatball’s texture. The lemon rice is fantastic- we might even make lemon-y rice for a usual side dish. We added kalamata olives, hummus, more vegan feta, and Good Foods vegan tzatziki (instead of making our own). We’ll definitely be adding this meal to our rotation. Thanks, Cheryl!
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Ooh, your additions sound delicious! Thank you for the helpful tips, Kayla! So glad everyone loved it. 😊
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what is greek seasoning
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It’s a spice blend! You can find it at most grocery stores or online.
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Delicious! I went a bit rogue with the meatballs because I didn’t have “Greek” seasoning and added garlic, lemon rind, juice and veggie broth powder to the rice liquid before cooking in my rice cooker. These bowls were flavourful and very satisfying – I will definitely be making again and may try with ground turkey instead of beef.
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Your version sounds delicious, Jessica – thanks so much for sharing!
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Meet Cheryl
Passionate foodie, certified health coach, serial entrepreneur, and mom of 3.
I've been developing and sharing delicious, approachable recipes on 40 Aprons for more than a decade. My goal is simple: take the chore out of mealtime by creating recipes that anyone can cook and that never skimp on flavor.
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