These zucchini and turkey meatballs are juicy, tender, and full of flavor. They’re perfect for the whole family and delicious served with some extra veggies or a fresh salad on the side. Enjoy!
We often have meatballs in this house, not only cause the kids love them but also because they are quite easy to prepare, you can add some hidden veggies and ready to eat quick.
I’ve shared two of our favorite meatball recipes with you before: pork & apple meatballs and baked beef meatballs. This time, I wanted to share another delicious recipe using ground turkey, which is leaner than pork or beef.
I’m using grated zucchini to add extra goodness while keeping the meatballs juicy and tender. Zucchini is one of those vegetables that many kids don’t particularly enjoy, but when it’s grated and mixed into patties or meatballs with some flavorful seasoning, it can be a great way to sneak some extra veggies and fiber into their meals.
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👩🏻🍳 Why you should try my recipe
- Easy to hold with their little hands.
- Makes a big batch.
- Freezable for up to 3 months.
- Great baked, fried or in the air-fryer.
- Perfect for main meal with a side or for lunchbox and packing.
🥘 Ingredients
To make these delicious turkey zucchini meatballs, we are going to use ground turkey, zucchini, onion, garlic, breadcrumbs, egg, olive oil, vinegar, salt, black pepper and fresh mint.
- Zucchini: I’m using one medium zucchini that makes about a cup when grated.
- Breadcrumbs: You could breadcrumbs or panko or old stale bread.
- Mint: I like to add some fresh mint for aroma and freshness. You could replace it with fresh parsley or a teaspoon of mixed dried herbs or dried mint.
For full quantities and to print the recipe, see the recipe card below.
🔪 Step-by-step Instructions
So get your ingredients ready and let's get started!
01. I start by grating the zucchini. I use the fine side of the grater so it blends more easily with the ground turkey and doesn’t stand out in the meatballs.
02. Before adding the grated zucchini to the bowl with the other ingredients, I squeeze out most of the moisture using a clean tea towel. You could also use a sieve or simply squeeze it with your hands to remove most of the moisture.
03. In a food processor, I add the onion, garlic and olive oil. You could also finely chop the onion by hand, but I like using the food processor to chop it very finely so it blends more easily with the ground turkey.
04. Next, I place all the ingredients to a bowl. The ground turkey, grated zucchini, blended onion, breadcrumbs, egg, vinegar, chopped mint, salt and pepper.
05. I mix all the ingredients well by hand until all the flavors are blended and set aside the mixture to rest for 10-15 minutes in the refrigerator.
06. I take a heaped tablespoon of the ground turkey and zucchini mixture and shape it into a ball with my hands.
07. I place the meatballs on a lined or lightly oiled baking tray, leaving about a finger’s width of space between each one to allow the air to circulate and help them bake evenly.
08. It takes about 30 minutes for the meatballs to cook through. You’re looking for an internal temperature of 165°F. They won’t brown as much as beef meatballs because ground turkey has a lighter color. I like to broil them for 3–4 minutes at the end to give them a nice golden color on top, but this is completely optional, and you can skip this step if you prefer.
🍽 Serving Suggestions
Babies under 12months: For younger little ones, you could leave out the salt when preparing the meatballs to keep sodium as low as possible, or you could bake half batch without salt and separate for the rest of the family.
Serve the turkey zucchini meatballs with some veggies or cucumber sticks and tomatoes. Have a look at my baked potato wedges or zucchini sticks to serve on the side with the meatballs.
Older kids and adults: For older kids and adults, you could serve them with their favorite sides like mashed potatoes, salad greens with tomatoes and cucumbers or rice with mixed veggies.
🧰 Storage
You can store any leftover turkey and zucchini meatballs in the refrigerator for 3–4 days. Warm them up in the microwave or air fryer before serving.
The meatballs can also be frozen for up to 3 months before baking. I like to place them on a tray and freeze them for 15–30 minutes first, then transfer them to a Ziploc bag. This helps prevent them from sticking together and saves space in the freezer.
❓ FAQ
Yes, you could add more spices that your family likes. Some of my favorite to add to meatballs are sweet or smoked paprika, oregano or Italian seasoning, turmeric and cumin.
You can also cook these meatballs in the air fryer at 375°F (190°C) for about 15–20 minutes, or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F (74°C). Turn them halfway through cooking to ensure they brown evenly.
If you tried my turkey and zucchini meatballs or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!
📋 Recipe
Turkey Zucchini Meatballs
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs ground turkey
- 1 zucchini (about 1 cup)
- ½ cup breadcrumbs or panko
- 1 egg
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt (NOT for kids under 12 months)
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon vinegar
- 7-8 mint leaves (see notes for substitutions)
Instructions
- Grate the zucchini over a tea towel on the fine side of a grater. Squeeze out the juices using the towel.
- Add the onion, garlic cloves and olive oil to a food processor. Blend until finely chopped.
- Add the grated zucchini and blended onion to a bowl. Add the ground turkey, egg, breadcrumbs, vinegar, chopped mint, salt and black pepper.
- Mix with your hands for a couple of minutes until all blended. Rest in the fridge for 10-15 minutes while you preheat the oven to 375℉ / 190℃.
- Take a heaped tablespoon of the mixture and shape into a ball with your hands.
- Place on a lined or lightly oiled baking tray. Continue with the rest of the meatball mixture, leaving about a finger space between the meatballs.
- Bake in a preheated oven to 375℉ / 190℃ for 30-40 minutes or until internal temperature of 165℉.
- Optionally, broil for 2-3 minutes to get a nice brown color on top.
Notes
- You could use a teaspoon of onion powder and half a teaspoon of garlic powder instead of onion and garlic cloves.
- You could use fresh parsley instead of mint or a teaspoon of dried herbs or Italian seasoning.
- Freezable for up to 3 months before baking.
Nutrition
🥣 More to try
If you liked my delicious turkey and zucchini meatballs, you should try some of these recipes too:
Julia Droulia
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