Chicken Meatball Pita

Juicy, fragrant chicken meatballs taste even better on a warm pita with plenty of hummus. Paired with summer vegetables, it's a dinner you'll want on repeat.

5 from 2 votes

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Prep Time: 40

Cook Time: 15

Total Time: 1 25

Servings:

Calories: 548kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

1 shallot (about 2 ounces, peeled and minced)
4 cloves garlic (peeled and minced)
2 scallions (trimmed and minced)
¼ cup oregano leaves (minced, plus more for serving if desired)
¼ cup parsley leaves (loosely packed, minced; plus more for serving if desired)
⅓ cup Greek yogurt
1 egg
1 pound ground chicken
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon kefta spice rub (see note 2)
2 teaspoons Aleppo pepper (or use a pinch of crushed red pepper to taste)
¾ cup panko
½ pound zucchini (trimmed and diced)
½ pound cherry tomatoes (halved)
1 shallot (about 2 ounces, peeled, halved lengthwise, and each half thinly sliced lengthwise)
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (divided)
Salt and pepper to taste

For serving:

½ cup store-bought hummus
4 pieces pita (or flatbread)
Lemon wedges

Instructions

Make the meatballs:

Preheat oven to 425ºF.
Combine the minced shallot, garlic, scallions, oregano, parsley, Greek yogurt, and egg in a large bowl and mix until combined.
Add the chicken, salt, black pepper, kefta spice rub, and Aleppo pepper and mix with your hands until combined. Add the panko and mix until combined. The mixture should hold together without feeling too dense. If you like, you can fry or microwave a small piece of the mixture until cooked through to taste test. Adjust the seasonings as needed.
Roll the mixture into tablespoon-sized meatballs and set aside. The mixture should yield 15–16 meatballs.

Fry the meatballs:

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, ovenproof skillet over medium heat. Once hot, add the meatballs in an even layer and fry for 4–5 minutes until golden brown. Once the meatballs release easily from the bottom of the skillet, flip them and cook for 1 minute. Turn off the heat.

Bake the meatballs:

Add the zucchini, tomatoes, and sliced shallot around the meatballs in the skillet. Drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and a big pinch of salt and pepper. See note 3.
Transfer to the oven for 20–25 minutes or until the meatballs reach 165ºF and the zucchini is tender but still a bit crisp.
Broil for 2–3 minutes to brown the tops of the vegetables. Remove from the oven but leave the broiler on.
Place the four pitas under the broiler and cook for 1–2 minutes until warmed through. Remove and transfer to four plates.

To serve:

Spoon 1 to 2 tablespoons of hummus on each piece of pita. Cut the meatballs in half and add 4 to 6 meatball haves on top of the hummus, depending on the size of your pita. Spoon the zucchini and tomatoes over each pita. Finish with more minced parsley or oregano, if you like. Enjoy!

Notes

Note 1: I recommend using a food processor for the shallot, garlic, scallions, oregano, and parsley to save on prep time. You can pulse all of these ingredients together at once.

Note 2: If you don't have kefta rub, you can approximate the flavor with the following ingredients:

1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
½ teaspoon paprika
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon cayenne
¼ teaspoon dry mint
Pinch of ground cinnamon

Note 3: If your skillet isn't ovenproof, you can transfer the meatballs (after browning them) with the zucchini, tomatoes, and shallot to a baking sheet lightly greased with extra virgin olive oil and continue on with the recipe as-is.

Nutrition

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