Everyone needs a good one pan meal in their recipe rolodex.

It can be so hard coming up with ideas to make for dinner night after night. Double that difficulty if you have even remotely picking kids.

I typically go back to the same few meals each week. Turkey meatballs, black bean tacos, and of course, the OG: mac & cheese.

I do like to mix it up sometimes though! Because everyone can get bored eating the same meals on repeat, myself included.

And these one pan meatballs are so awesome to add to that list.

Of course, the highlight is that they come together in one just pan. Less cleaning, less work… just overall less to do, which is always a win in my book.

They’re full of flavor – made with shallots, garlic, and sun-dried tomatoes, and then paired with a lemony garlic orzo. To the orzo, you’ll add Castelvetrano olives, more sun-dried tomatoes, and feta. A Mediterranean dream.

I very firmly believe that food and nutrition should be simple and easy.

We have to eat every single day. It’s not supposed to be too complicated or stressful!

Food should be fun. It should be enjoyable. It should taste good and feel simple to make.

And even though groceries are a fortune right now across the board, you don’t need any *extra* expensive ingredients in order to create something nutritious and delicious.

So add this incredibly flavorful one pan meal to your rotation. You’ll be so glad you did.

Prep ingredients

You’ll need: ground chicken, 1 shallot, garlic, breadcrumbs, sun-dried tomatoes, breadcrumbs, paprika, oregano, chicken broth, lemon, orzo, Castelvetrano olives, feta, and dill.

Add meatballs ingredients to food processor

Add the ground chicken, shallot, garlic, breadcrumbs, 1/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes, oregano, paprika, salt, and pepper to a large food processor. Pulse until everything is well combined, for about 30 seconds.

Roll into meatballs

Using your hands, roll the mixture into meatballs (about 2 tablespoons in size). The mixture will be sticky. You’ll have about 12-14 meatballs.

Cook until golden

Add the olive oil to a large skillet over medium high heat. Once the oil is hot, add the meatballs. Sear the meatballs on each side until golden brown and almost cooked through. Transfer the meatballs to a plate.

Cook orzo

Add 2 cups of the chicken broth, plus the minced garlic and juice of 1/2 lemon to the skillet. Add the orzo and stir to mix. Bring to a boil and cook for 3-5 more minutes, stirring occasionally, until the orzo is soft and has absorbed the liquid.

Add the sun-dried tomatoes and olives

Turn the heat down to medium and add the sun-dried tomatoes and olives to the orzo and add the meatballs back in. Add the remaining 1/3 cup of broth. Cook for a few more minutes, stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is absorbed and the meatballs reach an internal temperature of 165 F.

Top & serve

Top with whipped cream, shaved chocolate, or fruit.

Notes

Chicken: While I don’t recommend using ground turkey in this recipe (it’ll get dry pretty easily), ground beef will work. Make sure the meatballs brown on the outside and cook through on the inside.
Sun-dried tomatoes: Make sure to use the ones in oil. You won’t use the oil from the tomatoes, but the ones that are in oil are a bit more flavorful and juicier than the ones that are not.
Chicken broth: Feel free to swap for vegetable broth or even bone broth.
Orzo: Orzo is a type of pasta that’s cut short, like a grain of rice. It’s hearty and cooks fast. To make this recipe gluten-free, you can swap the orzo for quinoa. Cook the quinoa a little longer to ensure it’s fluffy and cooked through.
Feta: While the feta cheese is just a garnish, I highly recommend it in order to add the most flavor to the dish. If you’d prefer to keep this dairy-free, skip the feta. I recommend using feta in brine and crumbling it yourself instead of buying pre-crumbled feta.
Storage: Store leftovers (or make ahead!) in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. To reheat, you can microwave or add it to a skillet on the stove over medium heat. I recommend adding a little broth when reheating so to keep the meatballs from getting too dry.