Simple Vegan Meatballs

10-ingredient vegan meatballs with tons of flavor and simple preparation.

Perfect atop pasta or on their own in your favorite marinara sauce.

Author Minimalist Baker

4.85 from 117 votes

PREP TIME COOK TIME TOTAL TIME

15 minutes 25 minutes 40 minutes

Servings 22 (meatballs)
Course Entree
Cuisine Gluten-Free, Italian-Inspired, Vegan
Freezer Friendly 1 Month (freeze before baking)
Does it keep? 2-3 Days

Ingredients

FOR MEATBALLS

1/2 cup white onion (minced)

3 cloves garlic (minced)
1 batch flax egg
8 ounces tempeh* (or as recipe is written, sub 1 heaping cup rinsed and drained chickpeas for
similar result)
1/3 cup vegan parmesan cheese
2 tsp Italian seasonings (or 1/2 tsp each dried basil and oregano)
1/4 cup fresh parsley (optional)
1/2 cup vegan bread crumbs (gluten-free for GF eaters // or sub almond meal)
2 Tbsp your favorite marinara or tomato sauce
Olive oil (for sautéing)
Salt & pepper (to taste)

FOR COATING
 1/3 cup vegan bread crumbs (gluten-free for GF eaters)
1/3 cup vegan parmesan cheese

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C) and prepare flax egg in a small dish.
2. In a large, deep skillet, sauté onion and garlic in 1/2 Tbsp olive oil (as original recipe is written //
adjust if altering batch size) over medium heat until soft and translucent - about 3 minutes. Set
aside.
3. Add tempeh to food processor and pulse to break down. Then add sautéed garlic, onion, and
remaining ingredients (except olive oil) and mix, scraping down sides as needed. You want it to
form into a moldable “dough.”
4. Taste and adjust seasonings as needed. The tempeh will come across as a little bitter, but once
coated, baked and served with marinara it's not nearly as apparent.
5. NOTE: Depending on how salty your vegan parmesan cheese is, you may need to add a little salt
and pepper at this point. However, I didn’t find it necessary.
6. Scoop out 1 Tbsp amounts of dough and roll into balls. At this time, heat the same skillet you
used earlier to medium heat.
7. Mix remaining bread crumbs and parmesan cheese together in a shallow dish. Add tempeh balls
one or two at a time and roll to coat.
8. Add enough olive oil to form a thin layer on the bottom of your hot skillet, then add your coated
tempeh balls in two batches, as to not crowd the pan. Brown for about 5 minutes total, shaking
the pan to roll them around to brown all sides.
9. Add browned meatballs to a baking sheet and add to the oven to bake for about 15 minutes, or
longer if desired for a crispier result.
10. At this time, prep any pasta your want to serve with your meatballs, as well as your favorite
marinara sauce (I love this pizza sauce).
11. Once meatballs are deep golden brown and fairly firm to the touch, remove from oven.
12. To serve, top cooked pasta with meatballs and pour over marinara sauce. Top with another
sprinkle of vegan parmesan cheese and fresh parsley. Leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to a
few days, though best when fresh.

Notes

*Though I haven't tried it myself, you can steam or boil tempeh for ~15 minutes before use to
neutralize its flavor. However, I didn't find it necessary.

*Heavily adapted from One Green Planet

*Nutrition information is a rough estimate.

Nutrition (1 of 22 servings)

Serving: 1 meatballs Calories: 66 Carbohydrates: 6.1 g Protein: 3.2 g Fat: 3.5 g

Saturated Fat: 0.7 g Trans Fat: 0 g Cholesterol: 0 mg Sodium: 45 mg Sugar: 0.6 g

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