These lentil meatballs are perfectly tender on the inside, firm on the outside, and loaded with so much flavor! Enjoy these easy vegan meatballs with a big bowl of spaghetti for the ultimate comfort food meal!
These lentil meatballs have so much flavor and they have the best texture! The inside is perfectly tender and moist but the outside is firm but not dry. Instead of meat, breadcrumbs, parmesan cheese, and eggs, vegan meatballs are made with a hearty combo of legumes, oats, nutritional yeast, a vegan egg to hold everything together, veggies, and lots of seasonings for flavor!
These delicious meatballs won't fall apart on you and they have the perfect consistency. Serve the meatballs with your favorite noodles and tomato sauce for the ultimate vegan comfort food dinner!
Ingredients & Substitutions
- French Lentils - You can use brown or green lentils, just not red. You can use (1) 14 oz can of drained lentils in place of the cooked lentils if necessary.
- Quinoa
- Oats
- Raw Hulled Sunflower Seeds - Walnuts can be used instead of sunflower seeds.
- Cremini Mushrooms - Button or portobello mushrooms can also be used.
- Tomato Paste (This is my favorite brand because it's in a glass jar, it's organic, and has no added salt.)
- Vegan Worcestershire Sauce
- Nutritional Yeast - This adds a tangy, cheesy flavor.
- Flax Egg - This helps to hold it all together.
- Dried Seasonings - The seasonings add so much flavor! Fresh basil can be used instead of dried.
How to Make Vegan Meatballs
Step #1 - Start by cooking the lentils and quinoa together in 1 pot.
Step #2 - Make the flax egg.
Step #3 - Pour the lentils and quinoa into a large food processor. Add the mushrooms, onion, oats, sunflower seeds, tomato paste, vegan Worcestershire sauce, nutritional yeast, dried seasonings, garlic cloves, and the flax egg.
Step #4 - Pulse the filling on high for 1-2 minutes or until all the ingredients are broken down into small chunks and combined. The mixture will be sticky but that's normal.
Step #5 - Use a large spoon to scoop the filling out of the food processor into your hand and then use your palms to roll the filling into golf ball-sized vegan meatballs. The filling will make 14-15 large vegan meatballs.
Step #6 - Bake the meatballs. Serve with tomato sauce and a sprinkle of nutritional yeast (or vegan parm) over pasta.
Serving Suggestions
I usually serve the vegan meatballs over spaghetti or zucchini noodles and serve it with a side of roasted broccoli, garlic balsamic brussels sprouts, or avocado arugula tomato salad.
If you have leftover meatballs and are tired of spaghetti, you can use the leftovers to make a vegan meatball sub or you could toss the meatballs in BBQ sauce for an easy vegan appetizer!
Frequently Asked Questions
Try to roll the filling into golf ball-sized meatballs that are 1 ½ inches wide by 1 ½ inches high.
I've found it at most regular grocery stores lately, but if you can't find it locally you can buy vegan Worcestershire sauce, here.
The filling is so versatile! You can also use it to make veggie burgers or vegan meatloaf.
Success Tips
- Use ground flaxseed (not whole flaxseeds) to make the flax egg.
- Give the flax egg enough time to thicken before adding it to the mixture. I usually put it in the fridge to help it along while I'm making the rest of the recipe.
- The blended mixture may seem wet, but that's good! A wet batter makes moist meatballs. If it were too dry, then the meatballs would be dry after you baked them.
- If you accidentally blend the meatball filling too much and it's totally turned to mush, just add more oats to the mixture until you can shape it into solid balls.
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Vegan Lentil Quinoa MeatBalls
Equipment
- Food Processor
- Medium-Sized Pot
- Large Baking Tray
Ingredients
- 3 cups water
- ¼ cup uncooked quinoa rinsed & drained
- ¾ cup uncooked french lentils rinsed & drained
- 5 oz cremini mushrooms (about 5 large mushrooms)
- 1 cup red onion diced (one small onion)
- 1 cup gluten-free old fashioned oats (or gluten-free bread crumbs)
- 1 tbsp ground flaxseed
- 3 tbsp water
- ¼ cup sunflower seeds or walnuts
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp vegan worcestershire sauce
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 garlic cloves minced (or 1 tsp garlic powder)
- 1 tbsp Italian seasonings
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- ½ tsp sea salt add more to taste
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Start by boiling 3 cups of water in a medium-sized pot. When the water boils, season it with salt and add ¾ cup of rinsed and drained uncooked french lentils. Reduce the heat to medium and set a timer for 24 minutes.
- When there are 12 minutes left on the timer, add ¼ cup of uncooked quinoa to the pan with the lentils and give it a stir to combine. Let the lentils and quinoa continue cooking together until there is no water left in the pot. It should take a total of 23-24 minutes to cook the lentils and quinoa.
- Let the cooked lentil quinoa mixture cool for a few minutes. While it’s cooling, add 1 tbsp of ground flaxseed and 3 tbsp of water to a small bowl. Mix it together and put it in the fridge to thicken for 10 minutes.
- Pour the lentils and quinoa into a large food processor. Add the roughly chopped cremini mushrooms, diced red onion, oats, sunflower seeds, tomato paste, vegan Worcestershire sauce, nutritional yeast, Italian seasonings, garlic powder, dried basil, dried parsley, salt, pepper, and the flax egg.
- Pulse the filling on high for 1-2 minutes or until all the ingredients are combined and broken down into small chunks. The mixture will be sticky but that’s normal.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- While the oven is heating up, line a large baking tray with parchment paper. Use a large spoon to scoop the filling out of the food processor into your hand and then use your palms to roll the filling into golf ball sized meatballs. The filling will make 14-15 large vegan meatballs.
- Arrange the meatballs on the tray and bake them for 15-18 minutes or until browned on the outside. Serve with tomato sauce and a sprinkle of nutritional yeast (or vegan parm) over your favorite pasta.
Notes
- Store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days or you can freeze them for a future meal.
Hello!
I have cooked green lentils and quinoa in the fridge from another recipe. Could you give a ballpark of how much cooked lentils and quinoa your measurements would give? Generally, "ball" recipes are forgiving enough on the quantities.
Thank you 🙂
Hi Stephanie! The recipe calls for 3/4 cup of dry green lentils and 1/4 cup of dry quinoa. I would guess that roughly equals about 1 1/2 cups cooked lentils and 1/2 cup of cooked quinoa. Enjoy the "meatballs"!
Do you have the nutrition facts for these by any chance?
Hi, Tatiana! I'm sorry, I don't have the nutrition facts for this recipe.
how can this be gluten free with breadcrumbs, or are you usuing gluten free bread?
Hi, Cat! Yes, I used gluten-free breadcrumbs. If you can't find them at the store, you can definitely make your own.
Can I use canned lentils instead? If so, does a 15 oz can replace 1 cup of cooked lentils? Thank you in advanced! Will be making these tonight!
Hi Bia! I think that would be fine as long as the lentils are mashable. Let me know how it turns out, enjoy! =)
I tried them and the taste was very good but I also had trouble making them into balls. We ended up just making a mash out of them.
Hello! I'm so sorry to hear that, I hope you enjoyed the mash =) I can't seem to figure out why some people have trouble keeping the lentils balls shape. I'm going to play around with the recipe and see what's going on. I'll update the recipe soon, thank you for your comments!
Hi Candida, I'm so sorry the lentil balls weren't firm enough for you. I did state in the post that they're very delicate but they still hold together well enough to form into "meatballs."
The next time I make them, I'll try your suggestion of adding a flax egg. I'll post an update of how it turns out! Thank you for your comment, I appreciate it! =)
These look delicious to my Italian eye!
I'm wondering if you ever froze them and what the results were?
Hi Deb!
I haven't tried freezing the meatballs yet. If you do try it, please let me know what your results are! Merry Christmas!
Hi Stacey,
This looks delicious, I will try them tonight! I was wondering where I could find the recipe of the pasta that goes with them?
Thanks 🙂
Hi Marie-Eve,
I didn't make my own pasta, it's just store bought linguini but homemade would be amazing! I hope you enjoy =)
When you bake them in the oven, do you brush them with the reserved olive oil?
Do you think you can freeze these? Have you tried? Recommendation?
Hi Briget,
I haven't tried freezing them yet. I'll try freezing a few the next time I make them and I'll update the post with my results! Sorry I couldn't help more, good luck! Let me know if you try it =)
I made these today, and can't really say much for their look since they ended up all mushy, (when I put them on the plate to serve, it looked more like a mash than balls). Any idea where I went wrong and what to do to improve for next time? Thanks
It was a tasty mash though. 🙂
Hi Nonny! I'm so sorry they didn't turn out for you. The lentil balls are much more delicate than a regular meatball-- they definitely don't have the same heft that a meatball has, but we really enjoy the lighter texture.
After sautéing them, I put them in the fridge (made them for lunch at work), and then I ate them cold the following day. They were super yummy so you have nothing to be sorry about. 🙂
I actually used ground almonds instead of sunflower seeds (I didn't have the latter).
Guess next time I'll add more quinoa and almonds. Or just eat them cold at work. I do need lunches that can be eaten cold (I refuse to use a microwave) so thanks for the recipe. 🙂
Thank you for letting me know! How funny, my fiance loves to eat them cold too!
Those look really good! Our family of four consists of two vegetarians and two meat eaters. We usually go veg 6 days a week, and have a meat dish on the weekends, with lots of extra for leftovers. Quinoa is our favorite grain. Can't wait to try these.
I love that meal schedule, Tarat! I've been trying to work more veg meals into the schedule but it's hard when 50% of your household wants meat! I usually just end up making extra veggies for me to have during the week.
These look awesome! I've always wanted to try quinoa. Looks like a great place to start!
Quinoa is the best! You'll love it, Felehsa! Thanks!
These look so good!! Thanks for sharing 🙂
Thanks, Kristina!
These look delicious! And I love how lentils and other grains can be made to "mimic" meat without a lot of extra effort. So tasty, and beautiful pictures, too!
Thanks, Dee Dee! Easy meals are my fav!
This is a great Meatless Monday dish!
Or any meatless day! Thanks, Ashley!
These look delicious! My husband would love if I made these for him!
Thanks, Sabrina! My fiance LOVES them too, and he's a very picky meatless eater!
These look delicious! And beautiful!
Thank you so much, Elena! They're so yummy!
Wow, Stacey! These look and sound AH-mazing! I am a big lentil fan too and love how versatile they are. What an awesome idea to make meatballs out of them! My family loves Italian food so I can see these in our near future! Can't wait! 🙂
Thank you, Joscelyn! I was so shocked and happy when Travis said he LOVED these, he never says that about vegetarian meals I make lol He always wants meat but he really liked these!
What a great vegetarian take on spaghetti and meatballs. Very innovative.
Thanks, Michelle! I try to do meatless meals a few nights a week so I have to think of ways to transform our favorite meals!
What could I use instead of smashed sunflower seeds? I could try it , wondering if I could use something I have already ..
Hi, Gina! I haven't tried using other seeds but maybe pumpkin seeds would work?
I tried them with pumpkin seeds and they turned out just fine 🙂
I'm so happy to hear that, Kirsten! Thank you for letting me know!!