Lentil meatballs

I got these lentil meatballs from Feasting at Home for my plant-based experiment week. My husband and I both loved them, my son said they were ok, my daughter did not even try them and the baby seemed to enjoy them as he ate a couple happily… Given the division of opinions I think I will have to do it again to give them a second chance…

The original recipe for these lentil meatballs calls for a diced tomato for the sauce, but because I don’t like that much the texture of cooked tomatoes, I blended the sauce once cooked to have a smooth sauce. I also skipped the garlic and I couldn’t find the fenugreek leaves so I did not use them either. Not sure if it would have made a big difference, but as it was it tasted great to me!

I love that you can bake the lentil meatballs and don’t have to pan fry them, and nutritionally they are excellent: high in protein and fiber. The only downside, as in any meatball recipe, is that it takes quite some time to prepare the meatballs, but if you do have the time, totally worth a try!

Lentil meatballs

★★★★★ 5 from 2 reviews

• Author: Feasting at home with my modifications
• Prep Time: 30
• Cook Time: 60
• Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
• Yield: 6 1x

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Description

Vegan meatballs with curry sauce. Very tasty, very healthy! A great dinner option.

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

Vegan Lentil Meatballs:

• 1 cup black lentils (uncooked)
• 1 cup quinoa (uncooked)
• 1 tsp fennel seeds
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ⅓ cup chopped cilantro
• 6 oz firm tofu (do not use silken tofu)
• 1 Tbs olive oil

Coconut Curry Sauce:

• 1 Tbs fresh ginger, grated
• 1 tsp ground turmeric
• 1– 2 Tbs olive oil
• 1 extra-large tomato, finely diced, with juices
• 1 Tbs dried fenugreek leaves
• 1 can (13.5 oz) coconut milk 
• 1 Tbs lime juice
• 1 tsp brown sugar
• salt
• fresh cracked pepper

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Instructions

1. On high heat, bring lentils and fennel seeds to a boil in a small pot with 3 cups water. Cover, turn heat to low and simmer 25 minutes, or until they are cooked. Drain well.
2. On high heat, bring quinoa to boil in a small pot with 1 cup water. Cover, turn heat to low, simmer 15 minutes, turn heat off, leave covered.
3. Make the vegan lentil meatballs:
   1. Pre-heat oven to 400F.
   2. In a food processor, place the cooked  quinoa and half of the lentils, and pulse until texture of coarse sand. Place in a large bowl.
   3. Add the remaining lentils, chopped cilantro and salt to the bowl and mix well.
   4. In the same food processor, add the tofu (pressed down to release water and patted dry) and 1 Tbs olive oil. (The tofu will bind the mixture and oil will keep it from drying out). Pulse tofu and oil until a smooth paste, scraping down the sides as necessary. Scoop it into the lentil mixture and mix it in well.
   5. Prepare a parchment lined baking sheet. With your hands, kneed lentil mixture briefly until it’s thoroughly mixed and salt and spices are evenly distributed.
   6. With wet hands form small ping pong sized balls.
   7. Place on baking sheet and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes.
4. Meanwhile make the sauce:
   1. In a medium pot, sauté ginger in olive oil on medium heat until just golden, stirring often to prevent scorching. Add turmeric and sauté 1 minute more.
   2. Add diced tomato and sauté until most of the juices evaporate, about 5-8 minutes. Stir in coconut milk, fenugreek, lime, brown sugar, salt and pepper. Taste for salt.
   3. Bring to a simmer, then turn off heat until ready to serve.
5. Place lentil meatballs over the sauce, and sprinkle with cilantro. Serve immediately.

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Notes

This recipe is the original post from Feasting at Home with minor modifications I made.

I could not find the fenugreek leaves but I left it in the recipe just in case anyone wants to try it.

Keywords: vegan meatballs, curry, lentils