Vegan Swedish Meatballs

Course: Dinner

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Dinner, Meatball, Vegan

Prep Time: 30

Cook Time: 1

Total Time: 1 30

Servings: Meatballs

Calories: 115kcal

Author: Those Vegan Chefs

There are plenty of ways to make vegan meatballs these days. Frozen tofu is the secret to creating these amazing Swedish meatballs. The texture fits the bill for that realistic meatiness, it also does not hurt that these vegan Swedish meatballs are high in protein. Tender and light meatballs are spiced with All-spice and nutmeg creating a wonderful flavor reminiscent of winter

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Ingredients

MeatBalls

1 15oz Firm Tofu Frozen then thawed
¼ cup Flat Leaf Parsley chopped
1 cup Yellow Onion minced fine
4 Garlic Cloves microplane grated
½ tsp Nutmeg ground
½ tsp All Spice ground
2 tsp Kosher Salt
3 Tbsp Garbanzo Bean Flour
1 ½ Tbsp All Purpose Flour
2 Tbsp Extra virgin Olive oil
1 Tbsp Maple Syrup
1 Tbsp Tomato Paste
1 cup Panko Bread Crumbs
1 cup All Purpose Flour for coating meatballs
4 Tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil for pan frying

Creamy Spiced Gravy

1 cup Cashews soaked
¼ cup All Purpose Flour
3 Tbsp Vegan Butter
1 Tbsp Molasses
3 cups Vegetable Broth
¼ tsp All Spice ground
¼ tsp Nutmeg ground
Zest of 1 Lemon
1 tsp Kosher Salt

Instructions

Meatball Method:

Place one package of tofu in the freezer the night before, honestly, I always have a pack in the freezer at all times you never know when you will need it. After fully frozen, defrost the tofu in the refrigerator overnight. Place the thawed tofu in a tofu press and start to press the water out, the tofu will release more than you expect so working near the sink is a good idea. Continue to tighten the press extracting more liquid. This should not take more than 30 minutes.
Heat a pan over medium heat, add enough Extra Virgin Olive Oil to just cover the bottom of the pan, add the onions, and using your microplane grater, grate the garlic right into the onions, stir to combine. Reduce the heat to low, cook the onions until translucent, there should be coloring of the onions cooking for about 5-8 minutes. Turn the heat off and allow to cool in the pan.
Remove the tofu from the press and place in a large bowl. Add the nutmeg, all spice, salt and tomato paste. Using your hands to break up the tofu into small pieces and mix the seasoning into the tofu.
Add the cooked onions and garlic to the bowl, followed by the parsley, garbanzo bean flour, all purpose flour, the panko bread crumbs, maple syrup and the Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
Using your hands, start to knead the mixture. The mixture should start to hold its shape, and start to become a little sticky. Place in refrigerator for 30 minute to hydrate.
Using your hands to press and form into small meatballs, after forming all of the balls, place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Place the baking sheet in the fridge for a minimum of 20- 30 minutes. This allows the the dry ingredient to hydrate more and firm up.
Heat a heavy sauté pan over high heat, add a generous amount of Extra Virgin Olive Oil to the pan. There should be enough oil to pan fry the meatballs. Gently roll the meatballs in the flour and tap the excess off, place the meatball in the hot oil and repeat with the remaining meatballs. Cook the meatballs until gold brown on all sides, place the cooked meatballs on the baking sheet with parchment paper. Keep the meatballs warm in the oven set at 250 degrees until ready to eat.

Gravy Method:

Heat a sauce pan over medium heat, melt the vegan butter. Whisk the all purpose flour until combined. Cook for 2 minutes.
Add the vegetable broth, the molasses, cashews, nutmeg, all spice and kosher salt, stir to just mix a little. Reduce heat to low, cooking for 30-40 minutes, make sure to stir as it starts to thicken.
Puree gravy until it the smoothest gravy ever, preferably using a high speed blender. Place back into the pan. Zest the lemon into the sauce, adjust the seasoning and adjust the thickness with plant milk.

Notes

Nutritional values are an estimate.

Nutrition