Vegan meatballs
Full of flavor vegan meatballs made with beans and quinoa. Great on a sandwich, in a salad bowl or in tomato sauce over pasta.
Ingredients
- 2 cup cooked and cooled red or black beans (beans made from scratch* or canned)
- 2 tbsp olive of avocado oil (divided; for cooking)
- 1 small red onion (chopped)
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1/2 tsp fine grain sea salt
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp chili powder (optional; leave out or add more to taste)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika powder
- 1 cup cooked and completely cooled off quinoa (cooking and cooling time not included in total cooking time)
- 1/4 cup (vegan) parmesan cheese
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp Lizano sauce or Worchestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp fresh basil (plus some for garnishing (optional))
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley (plus some for garnishing (optional))
Instructions
- Preheat oven: 350F/175C
- Add rinsed, dried beans to a baking mat or parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until beans appear cracked and feel dry to the touch. Remove beans from the oven and then increase oven heat to 375F/190C.
- In the meantime, heat a large, oven safe skillet over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp of oil. Once hot, add garlic, and red onion. Sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat (and reserve pan for later use).
- Add the beans to a food processor along with garlic/onion mixture, sea salt, oregano, chili powder, and smoked paprika and pulse into a loose meal (be careful not to over mix). Then add cooked & cooled quinoa, (vegan) parmesan cheese, tomato paste, fresh basil & parsley, and Lizano/Worcestershire sauce. Pulse to combine until a textured dough forms (again, don’t over mix… you are not looking for a pureé). Taste and adjust flavor as needed, adding more salt for saltiness/depth of flavor, chili for heat or herbs for earthiness. If your mixture is too wet, add more (vegan) parmesan cheese and pulse to combine.
- Now scoop out 1+ tbsp of mixture and gently form into small balls using your hands. Add to a plate and refrigerate for 5-10 minutes.
- Reuse the skillet you made the garlic/onion mixture in. Heat it up remaining oil over medium heat. Once hot, add the meatballs and sauté for a few minutes, gently turning the meatballs to get a slight crust on either side. Then transfer to the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on the edges and slightly dry to the touch.
- These meatballs are delicious as is, or you can add them to this oven roasted tomato sauce. Heat it up over medium heat for 5-10 minutes to infuse more flavor. Optional: add 1 tsp of cumin, 1/2 tsp of cinnamon and 1/2 tsp of ground cardamom to the sauce to give the sauce even more depth of flavor. Serve it on top of pasta, rice or quinoa. Bon appétit!
Notes
*recipe for beans from scratch
Nutritional information:
the information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist's advice.