Easy Mediterranean-Inspired Power Bowls

Cooking at home is a favorite past-time of mine. And I've been getting to do a lot more of it lately. I mean, haven't we all? So today's dish is one that will hopefully upgrade your next meal at home and get you excited to mix things up in the kitchen. There are three components to these Mediterranean-inspired power bowls: juicy meatballs,  an easy Greek-ish salad, and yellow rice. Yellow rice rounds out my top three rices (Nigerian jollof rice and fried rice are the other two, in case you're wondering) and is the perfect flavor complement to the flavors in these power bowls.

What is a Power Bowl?

Power bowls are one of my favorite ways to enjoy versatility with my meals. I've broken down the basics of power bowls into a simple method before and even shared a soul food version with y'all. And today's Mediterranean power bowls follow that same magical formula of protein, veggies, and whole grains. AKA the kind of starm, meat, and vegetable square meal moms loved to put on the table during the 90s. The protein is a batch of juicy spiced lamb meatballs seared on the stovetop then finished in the oven. For veggies, we're talking a Greek-ish salad comprised of sweet baby tomatoes, fresh cucumbers, and red onion tossed in a simple dressing then topped with crumbled goat cheese. And, obviously, yellow rice is the grain in this equation.

Greek-ish Salad Dressing Recipe

To bring the fresh salad part of this power bowl together, you'll want to mix up a simple, refreshing dressing. And you probably have all the ingredients on hand to make this one. Even if you don't, you can certainly tweak it to your taste. I adapted mine from Simply Scratch's Greek dressing recipe and added a bit of crushed red pepper and raw honey for kicks of sweetness and spiciness. Here's how to make it:

• ½ cup lemon juice
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon honey
• crushed red pepper to taste
• sea salt to taste
• black pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl or cup and stir vigorously until uniform. Then simply pour it over top of the salad veggies and toss.

Substitution Suggestions for this Recipe

• I used a combination of ground lamb and beef to make these meatballs but you can use the ground meat of your choice.
• Feel free to make the Greek dressing your own by adding dried or fresh herbs, other spices, or even swapping out the olive oil for what you have on hand.
• Red onions are the most ideal flavor-wise for eating raw but, in a pinch, you could get away with yellow or white onion or even shallots in the Greek salad.
• I used sweet, baby champagne tomatoes but if you cannot find similar, dicing up larger tomatoes would work well, too.
• Although I used goat cheese in this recipe, feta would work perfectly well. The flavor will be tangier and and the texture a bit less creamy.

If you like these Mediterranean power bowls, you should definitely try my slow cooker Moroccan chicken next. And sharing is caring so be sure to pin this recipe to Pinterest. Thanks for reading!

P.S. more power bowls you'll love:

• Wonton Power Bowls
• Sheet Pan Power Bowls
• Roasted Chicken & Veggie Power Bowls

Mediterranean-Inspired Power Bowls

Jazzmine Woodard

Juicy lamb meatballs, fresh Greek salad, and fluffy yellow rice combine in colorful, satisfying power bowls.

5 from 5 votes

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

Course Main Dish

Cuisine American, Fusion, Mediterranean

Servings 4 bowls

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• ▢ 10 ounces yellow rice cooked per package instructions

Spiced Lamb Meatballs

• ▢ 2 pounds ground lamb
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
• ▢ ¼ onion finely diced
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ 1 tablespoon dried parsley
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cayenne
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cumin
• ▢ 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• ▢ ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ▢ ½ teaspoon cinnamon

Greek Salad

• ▢ 2 cucumbers
• ▢ 1 pint sweet baby tomatoes
• ▢ ¼ red onion
• ▢ ¾ cup Greek dressing
• ▢ crumbled goat or feta cheese

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Add yellow rice to a small sauce pan and cook per package instructions.
• Meanwhile, add all meatball ingredients to a large bowl and combine with hands until well mixed. Form into about 18 two-inch meatballs.
• Add a bit of olive oil to a large, oven-safe skillet over medium-high flame then place meatballs in pan. Sear meatballs for about 3 minutes then turn to brown opposite side. Remove pan from flame then place into oven for about 8 minutes or until meatballs are cooked through.
• While meatballs cook, prepare salad: chop cucumbers into one-inch pieces, finely dice red onion, and slice baby tomatoes into halves. Toss vegetables in Greek dressing then set aside.
• Assemble power bowls by adding cooked yellow rice, meatballs, and salad to each. Garnish salad with a bit of goat cheese.

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!