These Mediterranean-inspired pita pockets are stuffed with baked turkey meatballs, creamy yogurt sauce, tomatoes, cucumbers, and feta cheese. Warm up the pitas to make them easy to fill. They’re a delicious summer lunch or light dinner that you can eat with your hands!
Juicy Turkey Meatball Pita Pockets
Let’s pack the flavors of summer into a pita pocket! I stuff warm pitas with juicy baked turkey meatballs, creamy yogurt sauce, and a shopska salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, onion, and feta. If we haven’t eaten our whole stash of red pepper relish yet, I’ll add that, too. These pita pockets are seriously adaptable and filling when I need a fast lunch or light, easy dinner.
What You’ll Need
Here’s a look at what goes into these Mediterranean meatball pita pockets. Scroll to the recipe card for the exact recipe, including measurements for the meatball ingredients.
- Meatballs – I make my meatballs from scratch with lean ground turkey and a few seasonings. I love turkey meatballs, but you can fill the pita pockets with any homemade or even store-bought meatballs.
- Pita Bread – These can be whole wheat or regular. If you have a homemade pita recipe, use it!
- Cucumber, Tomatoes, and Onion – To make the salad/veggie filling. Cherry tomatoes are easiest to slice and have a sweeter flavor. Try to use seedless cucumbers, like English cucumbers, and a mild red or white onion.
- Feta – For crumbing over the stuffed pitas before serving.
Yogurt Sauce Ingredients
- Cucumber – Finely diced, or you can grate the cucumber using a box grater.
- Garlic – Also finely minced.
- Plain Yogurt – Greek yogurt or any thick, plain yogurt. Sour cream is a good substitute.
- Olive Oil – Choose a good-quality extra virgin olive oil.
Cooking the Meatballs
I usually bake the meatballs for this recipe, but if you’re opposed to switching on the oven in the summer, there are other ways. Alternatively, you could grill the meatballs like my meatball skewers.
- Oven: Bake the meatballs in a 350ºF oven for 16-18 minutes. I like to arrange them on a wire rack set over a baking sheet, and bake in batches so the air can circulate.
- Air fryer: To cook the meatballs in the air fryer instead, follow my air fryer meatballs recipe and air fry at 400ºF for 10-12 minutes.
Cucumber Yogurt Sauce (Taratur)
Taratur is the creamy cucumber yogurt dipping sauce from my chicken skewers recipe. It’s a bit like a thinner, Macedonian version of Greek tzatziki. It’s unbelievably easy to make and tastes great in these meatball pita pockets.
- Mix the sauce. Combine finely diced cucumbers in a bowl with minced garlic, salt, and olive oil. Mix, then stir in the yogurt.
If you have leftovers, keep the sauce in an airtight container in the fridge to use on everything from pita pockets and salmon kabobs to zucchini fritters.
Preparing the Salad
You could fill the pockets with shredded lettuce or cabbage, but I highly recommend you try the shopska salad! It’s similar to a Greek salad or my tomato cucumber salad, made by combining halved cherry tomatoes, diced cucumber, and sliced onion with olive oil and white wine vinegar.
The fresh, tangy flavors brighten everything up and complement the yogurt sauce and savory meatballs. I sprinkle feta cheese on top when assembling the pitas, but you can also mix it right into the salad.
How to Heat Pita Pockets
The best way to heat the pita pockets is in a dry pan on the stovetop, in the oven wrapped in foil, or you can use the toaster. If you’re using a microwave, wrap the pitas in a damp paper towel so they steam a little while they warm.
Assemble
When it’s time to serve, warm up the pita pocket and open it up. Spread the yogurt sauce inside, then tuck in 3-4 meatballs per pita. Fill the rest of the pita with salad and feta, and dig in!
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For the turkey meatballs:
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Get ready to bake. Preheat oven to 350ºF. Place a wire rack over a baking sheet; grease with cooking spray and set aside.
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Mix the meatballs. In a large bowl, combine ground turkey, panko crumbs, egg, paprika, cayenne pepper, salt, fresh ground pepper, garlic, and oregano. Using a wooden spoon, mix until well combined and thoroughly incorporated.
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Shape and bake. Shape mixture into 2-inch balls and place on previously prepared baking sheet. You may have to do this in batches, depending on the size of your baking sheet. Bake for 16 to 18 minutes, or until cooked through.
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Make the yogurt sauce. Place cucumbers and minced garlic in a bowl. Sprinkle with salt and 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil and mix. Stir in the yogurt until thoroughly incorporated. Chill until ready to use.
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Prepare the salad. Place chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, and onions in a mixing bowl. Add salt, oil, and vinegar to the mixture; toss and mix until well blended. Taste for seasonings and adjust accordingly.
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Assemble the pita pockets. Warm up the pita pockets. Open the pita pockets and spread about 1 to 2 tablespoons of the yogurt sauce on the inside of each pita. Place 3 to 4 meatballs in each pita pocket. Top with prepared salad and sprinkle with crumbled feta cheese. Serve.
Calories: 255kcal | Carbohydrates: 17g | Protein: 33g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 104mg | Sodium: 619mg | Potassium: 736mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 670IU | Vitamin C: 13.8mg | Calcium: 178mg | Iron: 2.2mg
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
