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First Published on May 31, 2018, at 22:06
I made this Lentil Meatball recipe today and I was very pleased with the results, I was looking for an easy lentil meatballs recipe that would be packed with flavor yet fancy enough to be served even at the holiday table and enjoyed by everyone including meat-eaters. They actually remind me of Swedish meatballs.
I knew I found a winner of vegan meatballs when I serve them and my husband couldn’t stop saying how much he loves them and that they are definitely a keeper! They remind me of Swedish Meatballs, the kind you find at Ikea.
I love making vegan meatballs because they can easily feed a crowd, they are perfect for potlucks, and you can easily estimate the number of people you will be serving and make the right amount for them. My Vegan Tofu Meatball recipe is also a huge hit!
Health Benefits Of Lentils
Lentils are healthy and rich in nutrients and should be included as part of the diet: Want to gain muscles while on a vegan diet? Then you should eat more lentils. They’re high in fiber, protein, and folate. The fact is they can help you live longer, and they’re pretty much the perfect food. The little legumes have 250g of spermidine.
1 cup of cooked lentils contains:
- 226 calories
- 39 grams carbohydrates
- 18 grams of protein
- 16 grams of fiber
- 3.6 grams of sugar
- 0.8-grams of fat
How To Make Lentil Meatballs (Vegan, Gluten-Free)
To make these vegan lentil meatballs, first sort and wash dried lentils. Use brown or black lentils for this recipe, saute onion, garlic, herbs, add lentils, along with water or vegetable broth, and cook until tender and liquid has evaporated.
While the lentil is cooking, make oat flour, followed by finely chopped walnuts in a food processor, then stir them in the lentil mixture along with ground flaxseeds, yeast flakes, and Bragg’s Liquid Aminos.
Form into a meatball shape and place onto a prepared baking sheet and baked for 30 minutes. While lentil meatballs are baking prepare the cashew gravy.
How To Make The Cashew Gravy?
The cashew gravy is easy, you basically rinse cashews, and add all the ingredients except the herbs in a high-speed blender, and process until creamy.
Pour gravy into a saucepan, add herbs/seasonings and cook over medium heat until bubbly, while stirring with a whisk.
Please note to start by adding 2 tablespoons of the Bragg’s Liquid Aminos, then add the extra tablespoon if needed.
How To Freeze Your Lentil Meatballs?
- After baking the lentil meatballs, cool them completely.
- Place the lentil meatballs in a freezer-friendly container and place it in the freezer for up to 1 month.
- Make the cashew gravy and cool completely, place in a freezer-friendly container and freeze as well.
- To serve, remove the lentil balls from the freezer and place them in a preheated oven at 375 degrees F. for about 15-20 minutes or until heated through.
- You can transfer the gravy from the freezer to the refrigerator the night before serving to defrost. Heat up the cashew gravy and pour over the reheated lentil meatballs and serve.
I wanted a dish that was very tasty so I adapted the filling from my Jamaican Lentil Patties recipes.
I was going to add gluten-free flour to bind the meatballs and prevent them from breaking up, but to my surprise, the balls were quite sturdy without flour.
Feel free to add about 2 tablespoons of gluten-free flour of your choice, rice, oat flour or sorghum flour should work fine for this recipe.
I added my gravy when I’m plating my dish, just before serving, so that the meatballs aren’t sitting for long in the gravy. It is delicious served with rice or mashed potatoes, green beans.
If you are still searching for recipe ideas for the holiday, don’t worry we have you covered! Here are 25 DELICIOUS VEGAN RECIPES FOR THE HOLIDAYS.
Check Out More Lentil Recipe Ideas:
- Lentil Shepherd’s Pie
- Vegan Lentil Stew
- Jamaican Lentil Patties
- Vegan Lentil Loaf
- Creamy Lentil Pasta
- Loaded Taco Fries
- Vegan One Pot Taco Spaghetti
- Vegan Bolognese
- Lentil Curry Lettuce Cups
- Instant Pot Lentil Soup
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Categories
- Categories: Gluten-Free, Vegan
- Courses: Entrée, Main Course
- Cuisine: American
- Seasons: Christmas, Thanksgiving
Nutrition
(Per portion)- Energy: 335 kcal / 1400 kJ
- Fat: 21 g
- Protein: 13 g
- Carbs: 25 g
Cook Time
- Preparation: 20 min
- Cooking: 1 h
- Ready in: 1 h 20 min
- For: 6 Servings
Ingredients
Lentil Meatballs
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon parsley
- 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 cup dried lentils
- 2 cups vegetable broth, or water
- 1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons oat flour
- 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
- 2 teaspoons Bragg's liquid aminos
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Creamy Cashew Gravy
- 1/2 cup cashews, soaked for 1 hour then drained
- 2 cups water
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 clove garlic, chopped
- 1 tablespoon arrowroot powder, or cornstarch
- 3 tablespoons Bragg's liquid aminos, Start with 2 tablespoon and taste, then add the extra if needed
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- Pinch of Cayenne pepper
Instructions
- Heat oil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Stir in garlic, thyme, parsley, paprika, and lentils to coat.
- Add water and bring to boil over medium heat. Reduce heat to simmer and cover the pot. Cook until lentils are tender and water has completely evaporated about 30 minutes. (Make sure lentils are dry and not soggy)
- Transfer lentil mixture to a large bowl and set aside. Using a food processor, process/pulse walnuts until finely chopped. Stir walnuts into lentils along with the *oat flour, flaxseeds, yeast flakes, Bragg's Liquid Aminos and salt.
- Preheat oven 400 degrees F. Prepare baking sheet with lightly greased parchment paper.
- Scoop mixture, using about 1-2 tablespoons. Form into balls and placing them on prepared sheets in a single layer until mixture is all gone. Bake for 30 minutes or until brown and crispy on the outside.
To Prepare Cashew Gravy
- Combine cashews, water, yeast flakes, onion powder, garlic, arrowroot, Bragg's Liquid Aminos in a high-speed blender and process until smooth.
- Pour sauce into a saucepan and add thyme, Italian seasonings, paprika. Heat on medium-high, stirring constantly with a wire whisk until sauce thickens.
- Place meat balls in serving plate. Pour gravy on top and garnish with chopped parsley.
Notes
1. Substitute your favorite marinara sauce for the creamy cashew gravy.
2. Substitute cashews with sunflower seeds for a nut-free creamy gravy.3
3. *To make oat flour, I place rolled oats in a blender and process until smooth. I store it in an airtight container in my refrigerator and I love to use it to make gluten-free pancakes as well.
4. The gravy is thick so you might want to add extra water to make it thinner.
How much water do I add to cook the lentils? Every time I cook lentils I feel like they get mushy. Do you cover the pan?
Jaclyn, the recipe is perfect. 2 cups of water is fine, don’t worry. Yes cover the pot, make sure to use a bigger pot to prevent the water from boiling over. I hope you enjoy the recipe.
This is the second time I’ve made these lentil meatballs and I love them! I used barley flour as I didn’t have oat flour and added finely chopped mushrooms to the lentil mix before cooking on the stovetop. When I added the other ingredients after the lentil portion was cooked, I found it a bit too sticky to form into balls which might be because of the mushrooms? Solved that by just flouring my hands before forming the balls for the baking tray. I used home made tomato soup from all the tomatoes my garden produced this year and that worked well. Delicious, satisfying and tasty! Thank you so much for the recipe Michelle!
Trish, I’m so happy you enjoyed it. Thank you for sharing with us your adjustments.
what brand of Italian seasoning do you use, or what is in it so I can make my own? so far have loved all your recipes that I’ve tried. haven’t made this one yet.
Zahava, thank you for your feedback. My favorite Italian Seasoning is Tone’s from Sams Club, however here is my recipe https://healthiersteps.com/recipe/italian-seasoning-recipe/
I made this tonight and it turned out wonderful! Thank you for sharing this recipe!
My favorite veggie meatballs! It’s my current pregnancy craving. Making a double batch to be able to freeze for postpartum!
Lisa that’s awesome. 12 years ago my Oven Baked Potato Wedges were my pregnancy craving with cashew cheese so I understand.
This vegan meatball recipe is the BEST I’ve ever had!!!! WOW, it’s really amazing! I will always double the recipe from now on. Thank you so much! Looking forward to trying out more of your recipes. I did leave a comment earlier on your vegan split pea recipe, that one also was AMAZING!!! Again thank you!!
Ahh Sarah, thank you for sharing your feedback, I’m so happy you enjoyed my recipe. I appreciate it.
This is SO GOOD!!! I followed the suggestion to cook mushrooms in white wine and added that to the gravy. I think that makes the gravy so decadent. This recipe is definitely a keeper!