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    Home > Recipes > Main Dishes

    Vegan Meatballs

    Published: Sep 4, 2022 · Modified: Oct 9, 2022 by Iosune · This post may contain affiliate links · 42 Comments

    Jump to Recipe
    A photo of a shallow dish of vegan meatballs with some chopped parsley on top
    Side picture of a shallow white dish with vegan meatballs garnished with some chopped parsley with a heading

    Vegan meatballs, made with 8 ingredients and a delicious homemade marinara sauce. They're gluten-free and so easy to make.

    Side picture of a shallow white dish with vegan meatballs garnished with some chopped parsley

    These vegan meatballs will blow your mind. They're SO good! Super flavorful and rich, this recipe sure is a keeper. Besides, they only require 8 ingredients and go so well with the marinara sauce.

    It is a pretty simple way of making meatballs and you can incorporate any veggies, spices, herbs, or ingredients you want. Hope you like them!

    Contents hide
    1. Ingredient tips
    2. Dietary variations
    3. Pro tips
    4. How to make vegan meatballs
    5. How to store vegan meatballs
    6. Are vegan meatballs healthy?
    7. Serving suggestions
    8. Looking for more vegan meat recipes?
    9. Did you make this vegan meatball recipe?
    10. Vegan Meatballs
    Photo of the ingredients needed to make vegan meatballs

    Ingredient tips

    • Oats: I used quick oats, but any kind will do.
    • Black beans: feel free to use canned black beans or cook them from scratch. Any other beans are also okay.
    • Nutritional yeast: if you can’t find it, you could also use brewer’s yeast. However, nutritional yeast is the best choice.
    • Flax egg: it’s an egg replacer made with flaxseeds and water. It’s so easy to make and ready in 5 minutes.
    • Vegetable stock or water: I prefer vegetable broth because it enhances the flavor of this dish. However, water is okay too. I do suggest you make your own vegetable stock at home, but store-bought will also work.

    Dietary variations

    • Make it gluten-free: use gluten-free oats.
    • Make it oil-free: feel free to sautée the meatballs with no oil if you use a non-stick skillet. You could also add a little bit of vegetable stock or water instead.

    Pro tips

    • Feel free to customize your vegan meatball recipe with your favorite spices or herbs, such as dried oregano, fresh basil, or thyme.
    • Marinara sauce goes really well with meatballs, but any other sauce will do.
    • You could also incorporate ingredients like onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, or even panko breadcrumbs.
    Step-by-step photos of how to make vegan meatballs

    How to make vegan meatballs

    • Add the oats to a regular blender and pulse until they are ground into a powder-like consistency. Set aside.
    • Add all the meatball ingredients to a food processor and blend until well combined. If you don’t have a food processor, add them to a large mixing bowl and mash with a potato masher, a fork, or use an immersion blender.
    • Get the mixture and make balls with your hands (I made 30). Add to a plate and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
    • Heat a little bit of oil in a large skillet or frying pan and sautée the meatballs over medium-high heat until golden brown.
    • Incorporate the marinara sauce and the vegetable stock, stir, and bring to a boil.
    • Cook the meatballs in the sauce over medium-high heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
    • Serve your vegan meatballs immediately.

    How to store vegan meatballs

    • Fridge: store the leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 5-7 days.
    • Freezer: keep them in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 1 month. Thaw in the fridge overnight.
    • Reheat: reheat in the microwave or in the oven at 375ºF or 190ºC until warmed through.

    Are vegan meatballs healthy?

    As always, it depends on the ingredients used. This recipe, though, is healthy and nutritious!

    Serving suggestions

    Feel free to serve your vegan meatballs with pasta like spaghetti and top it with vegan Parmesan cheese.

    Looking for more vegan meat recipes?

    • Vegan Meatloaf
    • Vegan Chicken Nuggets
    • Soyrizo
    • Chipotle Sofritas
    • Lentil Loaf
    A close-up photo of the inside of a vegan meatball

    Did you make this vegan meatball recipe?

    Please leave a comment and rate it below. We’d love to hear from you!

    This post contains affiliate links so you can easily find some of the products that we used to make this recipe. If you buy any of them through the links provided (without any extra cost for you), we'll get a commission. We're so grateful for your support!

     

    Square picture of a shallow white dish with vegan meatballs garnished with some chopped parsley

    Vegan Meatballs

    Vegan meatballs, made with 8 ingredients and a delicious homemade marinara sauce. They're gluten-free and so easy to make.
    4.46 from 11 votes
    PRINT PIN RATE
    Course: Main Dish
    Cuisine: Italian
    Diet: Vegan
    Prep Time: 30 minutes
    Cook Time: 35 minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
    Servings: 30 meatballs
    Author: Iosune


    Ingredients 

    US Customary - Metric

    For the vegan meatballs:

    • 2 15-ounce cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
    • 1 cup breadcrumbs, you can use gluten-free or oat flour instead
    • ½ cup nutritional yeast
    • 2 cloves of garlic, minced
    • 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • â…› teaspoon ground black pepper
    • 1 flax egg

    For the sauce:

    • 2 batches (about 4 cups) of marinara sauce
    • 3 cups of vegetable stock or water
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Add all the meatball ingredients to a food processor and blend until well combined. If you don’t have a food processor, add them to a large mixing bowl and mash with a potato masher, or a fork, or use an immersion blender.
    • Make balls with your hands (I made 16). Add to a plate and refrigerate for 15 minutes.
    • Heat a little bit of oil (I used 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil) in a skillet or frying pan and sautée the meatballs over medium-high heat until golden brown. If you don’t consume oil, bake them at 350ºF or 180ºC until golden brown. Set aside.
    • Add the marinara sauce and the vegetable stock to the skillet or frying pan, stir and bring to a boil.
    • Cook the meatballs in the sauce over medium-high heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
    • Serve your vegan meatballs immediately (I added some chopped fresh parsley on top), and store the leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 5-7 days, or in the freezer for 1 month. Thaw overnight in the fridge. 

    Notes

    • Add your favorite fresh or dried herbs and spices.
    • Marinara sauce goes really well with meatballs, but any other sauce will do.
    • You could only use the marinara sauce instead of a combination of vegetable stock and marinara sauce, but I prefer my sauce not to be too thick, so I’m in love with this combo.
    • Nutritional info has been calculated by using 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil to cook the meatballs.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 5meatballs | Calories: 355kcal | Carbohydrates: 53.4g | Protein: 21.2g | Fat: 8.6g | Saturated Fat: 1.7g | Sodium: 1259mg | Fiber: 15.6g | Sugar: 6.4g

    Update Notes: This post was originally published in December of 2018, but was republished with new photos, step-by-step instructions, and tips in September of 2022.

    More Vegan Main Dish Recipes

    • Beer-Battered Vegan Fish
    • Creamy Vegan Mushroom Soup
    • Jackfruit Carnitas
    • Tofu Steak
    1.4K shares

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Linda says

      September 05, 2022 at 1:12 am

      Hi! Do you think a can of fat free refried beans would work? Also, I have a flax/chia blend. Both get gummy! Do you think that would work to hold the m'eat balls together?

      Reply
      • Iosune Robles says

        September 05, 2022 at 11:27 am

        Hi Linda! Feel free to use a can of fat-free refried beans 🙂 Also, I think it is possible to use a flax/chia blend.

        Reply
    2. Amelia says

      December 29, 2021 at 5:42 pm

      Do you think the flavor profile of these veggie meatballs would go with bbq sauce as well as the marinara?

      Reply
      • Iosune Robles says

        January 04, 2022 at 11:19 am

        Hi Amelia! I think it could work 🙂

        Reply
    3. Lea says

      November 04, 2020 at 5:27 pm

      5 stars
      This has become a staple in our vegan/omnivore mix household! I add 2 rsp of liquid smoke to the meatball mixture and mushroom stock to the marinara which kicks it up a notch for me. I prefer this dish to traditional meatball for sure! Thank you!

      Reply
      • Iosune Robles says

        November 05, 2020 at 7:20 am

        Hi! Sounds so good 🙂 I'm glad you liked it!

        Reply
    4. Querino de-Freitas. says

      October 24, 2020 at 4:12 pm

      I like the looks of your meat-balls, I have a can of black-beans in the pantry, so I will use that .....I will take a photo of the finished dish and sent to you..do let me know how I can do this as I am new to this sort of thing...Thanks....Querino

      Reply
      • Iosune Robles says

        November 04, 2020 at 1:33 pm

        Hi! Have you got Instagram? Feel free to send the photo by DM (direct message) 🙂

        Reply
    5. Mandy says

      June 29, 2020 at 11:07 pm

      This looks great! I’m not trying to be dumb, but the oats go in the meatballs right? It just says to set them aside but not what to do with them! Looking forward to trying this!

      Reply
      • Iosune Robles says

        June 30, 2020 at 1:32 pm

        Hi Mandy! You have to add it to the food processor with the rest of the ingredients 🙂 Hope I have helped you and hope you like it!

        Reply
    6. Elissa says

      June 25, 2020 at 8:48 am

      5 stars
      Love them so delicious

      Reply
      • Iosune Robles says

        June 25, 2020 at 10:24 am

        Hi Elissa! Thanks for your comment 🙂 So glad you loved our vegan meatballs! Have a nice day!

        Reply
    7. Kristin Mc Laughlin says

      June 17, 2020 at 7:06 pm

      5 stars
      I just made these with 50% chickpeas and 50% black beans because it all I had. LOVING them! Eating them as I type this! Thank you for being such a reliable blog for my dinners!

      Reply
      • Iosune Robles says

        June 19, 2020 at 11:27 am

        Wow, Kristin! Thank you for your kind words 🙂 So glad you liked our meatballs and our blog!

        Reply
    8. Bev says

      March 30, 2020 at 3:16 am

      4 stars
      I made this very nutritious and easy recipe tonight. Not sure what I did wrong, but they were a bit gooey. So I chopped them up like a 'mince' and it was delicious. I cheated and used ready made sauce. Still delicious.

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        April 01, 2020 at 4:30 pm

        HI Bev! Try to add more oats next time 🙂

        Reply
    9. debbie renae lisle says

      February 26, 2020 at 3:32 am

      4 stars
      wanted to let you know I thought this recipe was fantastic, didn't have nutritional yeast or flax but worked out fine, was a bit dry just added liquid. Even my husband (who is a meat lover) said they were well edible. Can't wait to try again, maybe with extra veg. I think if you like mushrooms they would go well.

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        March 09, 2020 at 3:43 pm

        Hi Debbie! Thank you so much for your comment 🙂

        Reply
    10. Barbara says

      November 19, 2019 at 12:23 pm

      Hi, I'm going to try these but my question is: Can they be frozen and if so before cooking??
      Cheers 🙂

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        November 23, 2019 at 7:36 am

        Hi Barbara! Yes they can, but I think it's better to freeze them after cooking 🙂

        Reply
    11. Betsy Pileggi says

      October 20, 2019 at 6:39 pm

      5 stars
      I made these for a person recovering from cancer who is following a plant based diet. They are easy to make and delicious. So tasty that they disappeared long before my turkey meatballs! Thank you for sharing your recipes!!

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        October 29, 2019 at 12:48 pm

        Hi Betsy! You're so welcome 🙂 Hope he/she gets better really soon!

        Reply
    12. Kristina Myronova says

      October 19, 2019 at 6:14 pm

      4 stars
      It's a very tasty recipe and it turned out great. But I don't understand I could only make 12 meatballs of that even though they were small. Otherwise perfect texture and taste. Thank you 🙂

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        October 29, 2019 at 9:24 am

        Hi Kristina! I'm so glad you enjoyed them 🙂

        Reply
    13. Jeff says

      October 06, 2019 at 11:33 pm

      2 stars
      Hmm, this didn't quite work out for us. My daughter liked them though asked for them to be smaller. She didn't quite care for the gummy texture. Neither my son nor I cared for the texture or taste. My wife also commented about the texture. She said the taste was strong, but not unpleasant. SO, I'm going to try them again but this time I'm going to do them in a bowl and mash the beans with a fork and then mix everything together. Any thoughts on how to fix the gummy texture? I'm thinking it's the beans being blended in the food processor.

      I'm also going to check out your two other meatball recipes, too.

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        October 29, 2019 at 9:00 am

        Hi Jeff! My meatballs weren't gummy, so I'm not sure. Maybe you could add more oats, or mash the beans, it could be a good idea. Hope it works!

        Reply
      • Laura says

        December 15, 2020 at 1:35 am

        Adding some chopped walnuts helps with the texture Jeff

        Reply
    14. Helen Pugh says

      May 29, 2019 at 1:43 pm

      5 stars
      I made this last night and they are fab! Really yummy and so easy to make.

      Thank you

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        May 30, 2019 at 8:44 am

        Hi Helen! So glad you enjoyed them 🙂

        Reply
    15. Hayley says

      February 16, 2019 at 2:59 pm

      Is the flavour of nutritional yeast powerful? I might try this recipe this weekend with pinto beans (got a can to use up) and use 4 tbsp nutritional yeast and 4 tbsp breadcrumbs...

      Reply
      • Hayley says

        February 17, 2019 at 3:04 am

        2 more things:
        1 - approximately what time and temperature would you do for these meatballs to bake them?
        2 - how is your first name pronounced? It looks beautiful!

        Reply
      • Iosune says

        February 18, 2019 at 10:30 am

        Hi Hayley! A little bit, but it's delicious. I would bake them at 350ºF or 180ºC until golden brown 🙂 Thanks a lot, but I don't know how to explain it if you don't speak Spanish. It would be something like that: I = E, O = like the O in sOldier, SU = like SUbscribe, NE= like NEt. Have a nice day!

        Reply
        • Hayley Morrin says

          February 19, 2019 at 5:13 am

          5 stars
          These were fantastic. I made the recipe almost exactly as is but I did use 1/4 cup breadcrumbs & 1/4 cup nutritional yeast instead of the full 1/2 cup. These didn't even need to be chilled in the fridge - they held together right from processing and packing into balls. I baked them at 350 for 25 minutes total, turning halfway.

        • Iosune says

          February 19, 2019 at 12:19 pm

          So glad you enjoyed them 🙂

    16. Mary Leary says

      January 19, 2019 at 5:34 pm

      I’ve been using a frozen brand of meatballs but I am going to make this recipe. I like the fact that it is made with ingredients that I always have on hand.
      I really appreciate the fact that you always include the nutritional information with your recipes. Yours are the consistently easiest, most universally appealing and most delicious vegan recipes on the internet. Thank you so much!

      simple, and

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        January 21, 2019 at 8:37 am

        Hi Mary! Thank YOU so much for your kind words 🙂 Have a nice day!

        Reply
    17. Sue Kimzey says

      January 18, 2019 at 2:01 am

      Loved this recipe, I have not made anything from your site that I haven't thoroughly enjoyed! You are so cute too:) Love your videos. Great work!! I would be lost without you:)

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        January 18, 2019 at 10:00 am

        Hi Sue! Thanks a lot 🙂 So glad you liked the meatballs. Have a great day!

        Reply
    18. Francisco Cabral says

      January 09, 2019 at 1:45 pm

      Isn't that a bit too much sodium? it's 50% of the daily recommended value in one serving!
      Any substitute for the salt maybe?

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        January 10, 2019 at 8:11 am

        Hi Francisco! Just use ingredients with no added salt (beans, marinara sauce and vegetable stock) 🙂

        Reply
    19. donna says

      December 31, 2018 at 9:15 pm

      I wish vegetarian and vegan recipes would give the cup measurement for oat flour as well as the oats. I make my own oat flour and don't like to make more when recipes call for it when I have some in the cupboard. Thanks

      Reply
      • Iosune says

        January 01, 2019 at 10:04 am

        Hi Donna! I will include it in the next recipe 🙂 Happy New Year!!!

        Reply

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