Mediterranean Ground Beef Stir Fry
233 Comments
Updated Feb 10, 2023
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This Mediterranean ground beef stir fry is what a quick and healthy dinner is all about! It’s loaded with savory veggies, classic coastal seasonings, and packs in a ton of flavor without the need for a sauce.
I hummed and hawed on what to call this recipe as ground beef is not typically what you’d consider mediterranean food. But the blistered tomatoes, bell pepper, baby spinach, green onion, and garlic are most definitely Mediterranean in nature. So consider it a healthier, veggie-packed ground beef stir fry that’s light in flavor. A divergence from your typical Asian chicken stir fry flavors, yet delicious in a whole new way!
And speaking of flavors and sauces, there’s actually no sauce in this recipe. Once the tomatoes break down they become oozy and liquidy, and that melds with the garlic and oregano and douses the rest of the ingredients in garlicky, Mediterranean goodness. You’re gonna love it.
What’s In This Mediterranean Stir Fry?
From the blistered tomatoes to bell pepper and oregano, this non traditional stir fry is made from the best Mediterranean ingredients.
- Bell Pepper: Red bell pepper is ideal for its natural sweetness and vibrant red color, but any color works!
- Cherry Tomatoes: Grape tomatoes can be a substitution, but cherry tomatoes are ideal here since they’re much juicier and blister beautifully in a pan.
- Baby Spinach: It’s amazing how much a small tub of spinach wilts down, so while it may look like a lot, trust me, it’s not too much.
- Garlic and Green Onion: Essential alliums give the recipe a punch of fresh flavor.
- Ground Beef: You’ll need one pound for this recipe. But if you’re not a fan of beef, you can also use ground chicken or turkey.
- Oregano: Can’t do a savory Mediterranean dish without oregano!
- Crumbled Feta: This can be optional if you’re dairy-free. Otherwise, the crumbled feta really adds a delicious Mediterranean flair.
Find the printable recipe with measurements below.
Let’s Make The Best Stir Fry Recipe!
What I love about stir fries is that they’re SO easy to make, yet just as flavorful as a recipe that takes hours. So grab a large pan and let’s get cooking.
- Saute the tomatoes and bell pepper. Heat the oil in a large pan, then saute the bell pepper and cherry tomatoes for 4 to 5 minutes, until the tomatoes are blistered. Then add the garlic and stir for another minute.
- Cook the spinach and green onion. Add the spinach and white parts of the green onion. Then stir for another 2 to 3 minutes, until the spinach has wilted. Remove these veggies to a plate.
- Cook the ground beef. Add the beef, oregano, salt, and pepper to the pan, and use a spatula to break up the meat. When it’s browned, drain off any excess liquid.
- Combine everything together! Transfer the veggies back to the pan, add the green parts of the green onion, and stir everything together. Then garnish with crumbled feta before serving it up.
Ways To Serve This Mediterranean Ground Beef Stir Fry
Honestly, I can just eat this as is with a sprinkle of feta because it’s that good. But if you want to make it a well rounded meal, here’s a few other fun ways to serve it.
- Serve over a bed of rice or lentils for an extra filling meal.
- Use this as a filling for a butter leaf lettuce wrap (great for a low-carb option!).
- For all my egg lovers, top a plate of this with a fried egg or poached egg.
How To Store Leftovers
This dish makes for great leftovers and meal prep for the week!
- To store: This will keep for up to 4 to 5 days in the fridge in a sealed container. Just make sure to let it cool before closing the lid.
- To freeze: Alternatively, you can freeze this for up to 3 months.
More Easy Ground Beef Recipes
From stuffed peppers to a big pot of chili, here’s a few comfort food favorites.
If you make this ground beef stir fry, let me know how it turned out! I’d love to hear what you think in the comments below.
Mediterranean Ground Beef Stir Fry
Description
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red bell pepper, deseeded and diced
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
- 8 ounces baby spinach (small tub)
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 green onion, thinly sliced, white and green parts separated
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 tablespoons crumbled feta
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pan on medium-high heat. Add the bell pepper and cherry tomatoes and saute for 4-5 minutes, until the tomatoes are blistered, and saucy. Add the garlic and stir another minute.
- Add the spinach and white parts of the green onion. Note that the spinach will take up most of the pan, but it will wilt down. Stir for another 2-3 minutes, until the spinach has wilted. Remove these veggies to a plate.
- Add the ground beef, oregano, salt, and pepper to the pan, and use a spatula to break up the meat. Cook the ground beef until it's browned, then drain off any excess grease.
- Transfer the veggies back to the pan, add the green parts of the green onion, and stir until warmed through. Garnish with crumbled feta before serving.
Nutrition
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Made this as written except we added an extra red pepper. This is delicious! Can’t wait to try more of your recipes!
Thanks so much, Melanie!
Delicious! My whole family loved it! It’s going on our food rotation!
Awesome! Happy they all loved it. It’s a great recipe to have on the regular. :)
I just tried it and am so happy to have shown me how to cook this recipe.
I love this page and advise from you> Bravo! Aime
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
Just oregano does not make it “mediterranean”. I am of mediterranean descent. I got a lot more creative with my spices and added za’atar and some greek season in place of the plain oregano since it already contains it. And I added a touch a aleppo pepper for a little heat. Served it with rice, tzatziki, and pita for those of us not gluten free. I also roasted the tomatoes and peppers to get more of a “blister”.
I’m glad you enjoyed it with your tweaks!
Another winner! Just made this tonight (and your Perfect Rice recipe) and my husband loves it! Thank you!!
Wonderful! I’m glad you loved this beef stir fry.
So yummy! Made this last night for dinner and enjoyed leftovers for lunch. Hubby went back for seconds!
I’m happy you both enjoyed the recipe!
Delicious
I’m glad you enjoyed this beef stir fry, Krista!
Great and quick! I prepped this the day before. My husband and I topped it on top of our salad. However, next time will use lentils.
Lentils would be a great swap for the ground beef. Happy you both enjoyed it!
So good!! We ate it over cauliflower rice. My teenage boys even loved it and said it’s a new favorite.
Thrilled to hear this Mediterranean ground beef stir fry was a hit!
My husband really liked it, said it was high in macros.
Glad your husband enjoyed this ground beef stir fry!
Really great, fast recipe. Awesome for quick weeknight meal. Light and filling!
I’m happy you loved it!
Super easy and delicious! I have made this recipe a couple of times but using chicken mince and it’s great! My husband loved it!
It’s great for meal prep too, I’m doing a batch right now to enjoy this week 😊
Thanks Lisa!!
That’s great to hear this stir fry worked out great with ground chicken instead!
Amazing recipe! I forgot to put in the spinach and it was still an amazing meal with great flavor. Served over jasmine rice. A definite staple for using ground beef!
I’m glad to hear you’re loving this ground beef stir fry, Joyce!
I always seem to have ground beef, so this is a go-to recipe for me. Sometimes I add your pickled onions as a garnish. This is a quick easy week night supper, and if there are any leftovers – it’s a delicious lunch.
Since I had some health issues that led to a new diet 2 years ago, these recipes have been life-changing for me. This is one of my favorites.
There are so many ways to spruce up this Mediterranean ground beef stir fry! But happy to hear you’re loving it.
Made this once when I was looking for something different to do with minced beef. It was amazing, absolutely loved the flavors. Didn’t save it, but had to look for the recipe again after the family all asked me to make it again. Very quick and tasty!
Happy to hear the whole family enjoyed this ground beef stir fry! Don’t forget to bookmark it this time around, ha!
Incredible dish!!! My teen son requests this several times a week. We love it as a bowl with hummus, tzatziki, and veggies
That’s awesome your son loves it! And sounds like a great combo with those other items in a bowl. Well done!
Made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious! The whole family loved it. I had some sliced baby portobello mushrooms left over from another recipe so I decided to add them in with the peppers and tomatoes. I think they work great in the dish. I’ll definitely make it again and keep the baby bella addition!
Sounds like a great addition with the portobello mushrooms, Jason! The more veggies the better!
Super easy & scrumptious!
For many years I was vegetarian and pescatarian and recently switched over to a paleo diet.
I used grass-fed beef, had three Roma tomatoes already in my fridge and lots of fresh homegrown oregano. The spring onions were a nice touch too! I will definitely be making this again and I think my teenage son will enjoy this also!
Glad you and your family is loving this ground beef stir fry!
DELICIOUS!!! Easy to prepare and CHEAP! Substituted ground turkey for the ground beef to reduce fat content and served over riced cauliflower to get one more veggie serving in my meal and tasted fantastic!
Glad you’re loving this stir fry recipes Betsy!
Super easy & delicious! I meal prepped the onion, cherry tomatoes and pepper ! So quick and yummy! 😋
Made this recipe for our good friends who just had a baby and WOW!! It was so good when taste testing that I have made it 3 times since! Super easy dish to make yet extremely flavorful!
I’m happy you loved the recipe so much that you keep making it over and over!
I couldn’t figure out what green onions were until I saw your photo. We call them spring onions in the UK 🇬🇧. This looks delicious.
Hope you enjoy this recipe with spring onions!
I have the ingredients on my shopping list, will let you know :)
It was absolutely delicious, it’s on my keto recipe list now. I will definitely be making this again, thank you.
So glad you’re loving this beef stir-fry, Barbs!
Lisa,
Is olive oil safe to use when sautéing the peppers? I know it is infinitely better than the seed oils, but what about the smoke point?
Yep, olive oil is fine!
I will make this again. It was easy and yummy after a work day. I prepped everything the night before (chopped veggies, cooked meat) and it came together fast. I added more oregano. I’m glad to serve my family a meal with so many veggies. I had leftover noodles and used those to go along with the meal. Thank you!
I bet it’s even quicker if you have all the ingredients chopped and prepped! Glad you’re loving this, Jennifer :)
Made this for meal prep for the week-pretty tasty. I added some cooked quinoa, garbanzo beans, asparagus, and some roughly chopped Kalamata olives-added quite a bit of flavor. Will definitely make this again. Thanks!
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
I make this recipe all the time, my boyfriend loves it as much as I do. We’ve made it for dinner guests and they raved about it as well. I add crushed red pepper to mine and when I want to switch it up I eat it over orzo or rice! 10/10 recommend.
Happy to hear you and everyone else is loving this stir fry recipe Sarah!
Quick, tasty, healthy. I ate 2 portions for my dinner. Will definitely make again.
Happy to hear this was a hit for dinner, Rick!
My husband and I love this dish. I replaced the spinach with zucchini, as we both dislike spinach. The second time I made this I added Kalamata olives…just because it’s Mediterranean and we both love them. Also, I added lots of butter instead of oil. This is becoming a staple recipe!!
It’s such a versatile dinner! Glad you enjoyed this stir fry recipe, Sue :)
This was very delicious! It was simple and easy to make and my family loved it.
A family member said they thought we should put this into our meal rotation and I agree.
It’s great for an easy meal to throw together on a time crunch! Glad you’re loving it.
This recipe looks healthy AND refreshing! Thank you! I am always looking for new healthy recipes for ground beef.
Hope you love this stir fry recipe, Bob!
I loved this recipe. I live in a county with more cows than humans, so we buy fresh beef. From rural America – this meal was wonderful!!! It was also a beautiful meal! I loved that it was Mediterranean and with ground beef, something I never see.
This recipe is perfect for you then Paula! I’m glad you enjoyed this fresh twist on ground beef.
Forgot to give it stars when I posted my comment.
Thanks, Jennifer!
We loved it. Based on other reviews, I upped the oregano to 1 tsp, added a 1/4 tsp red pepper flakes, sliced white mushrooms, and a handful of sliced Kalamata olives. My husband couldn’t stop eating it and asked me to make it again soon.
Loving all the ingredients you added to this recipe, Jennifer!