Tender, meaty, and umami-packed vegan lentil meatballs. This recipe is simple, easy, and pairs perfectly with spaghetti in a tomato sauce.
These Vegan Lentil Meatballs are flavor-packed and oh so delicious with a traditional tomato sauce and spaghetti.
Ever crave spaghetti, but miss the meatballs? Well, you do not need to miss out on them when there is an abundance of substitutes out there.
At first, I wanted to make a traditional vegan meatball with black beans and grains, but knowing lentils and their meaty and savory taste, I knew it was the ideal ingredient for this recipe.
These meatballs are tender, moist, and oh so flavorful.
I kept this dish simple by tossing the meatballs in canned spaghetti sauce. I used this one. To spruce it up a bit I added chopped olives, capers, onion, and garlic. I love adding briny flavor to my sauce. It makes it 10x tastier.
If you are feeling a bit fancy and have the time you could also make my homemade spaghetti sauce.
I served this with spaghetti and garnished it with a bit of fresh parsley.
How to Make Vegan Lentil Meatballs:
- In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil. Add mushrooms, onion, and a pinch of salt. Saute for 5-6 minutes until onions are soft and translucent. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Stir in tomato paste, oregano, paprika, and nutmeg. Cook for 1-2 minutes until tomato paste has darkened in color and spices are fragrant. Transfer onion mixture to a bowl and place in freezer for 5 minutes to cool.
- Add cooled onion mixture, cooked and cooled lentils, parsley, miso paste, and flour to a food processor. Blitz until combined and a thick paste-like mixture forms. You don’t want to process it until smooth, some texture is good. Scoop mixture into a large bowl and stir in panko. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Use a small scoop to take 2 tbsp of the meatball mixture and roll into a ball. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the mixture. Spray meatballs with cooking spray.
- Bake meatballs for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through. If serving meatballs with tomato sauce, let meatballs cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes then stir in to the sauce and top on pasta of choice.
Frequently Asked Questions:
How do I make these meatballs gluten-free?
Just substitute the all-purpose flour with a 1-1 gluten-free flour.
Do I have to refrigerate the mixture before baking?
I highly recommend that you refrigerate the meatball mixture for at least 1 hr. The meatballs will be too soft and may fall apart if you bake them straight away.
Can I pan fry the meatballs?
I recommend first pan frying them in some oil until golden brown then finishing off in a 375F oven for 15 minutes so they firm up.
If you’re looking for more vegan pasta recipes, you’ll also love Cheesy Sun-dried Tomato Pasta, this Creamy Avocado Pasta, and this Creamy Roasted Red Pepper Pasta.
Also, if you make this recipe and decide to share it on Facebook or Instagram don’t forget to tag me @healthienut + #healthienut! I love seeing your mouthwatering recreations!
Tender, meaty, and umami-packed vegan lentil meatballs. This recipe is simple, easy, and pairs perfectly with spaghetti in a tomato sauce.
- 1 tbsp neutral-flavored oil
- 1 ½ cups diced crimini mushrooms
- ½ medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup cooked and cooled brown lentils
- ¼ cup roughly chopped, fresh parsley
- 1 tbsp miso paste
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tsp white vinegar
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp salt (or to taste)
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs
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In a large skillet, heat 1 tbsp oil. Add mushrooms, onion, and a pinch of salt. Saute for 5-6 minutes until onions are soft and translucent. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant. Stir in tomato paste, oregano, paprika, and nutmeg. Cook for 1-2 minutes until tomato paste has darkened in color and spices are fragrant. Transfer onion mixture to a bowl and place in freezer for 5 minutes to cool.
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Add cooled onion mixture, cooked and cooled lentils, parsley, miso paste, and flour to a food processor. Blitz until combined and a thick paste-like mixture forms. You don't want to process it until smooth, some texture is good. Scoop mixture into a large bowl and stir in panko. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
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Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Use a small scoop to take 2 tbsp of the meatball mixture and roll into a ball. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with the rest of the mixture. Spray meatballs with cooking spray.
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Bake meatballs for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through. If serving meatballs with tomato sauce, let meatballs cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes then stir in to the sauce and top on pasta of choice.
