Cooking From Cookbooks: Tempeh Meatballs

These are the easiest, most delicious, baked tempeh meatballs. Just 35 minutes from start to finish!

In the realm of traditional-to-vegan recipe conversions, meatballs are one of the most head-scratch-inducing (right up there with mac and cheese). Between textural missteps and out-of-left-field ingredient additions like quinoa (why?), a truly satisfying vegan meatball is hard to come by. Luckily for us, Lisa Dawn Angerame was up for the challenge.

Lisa’s book, Wait, That’s Vegan?! (out today!), is a handy collection of creative vegan versions of classic comfort foods – from pancakes, to lasagna and burgers, to strawberry shortcakes, and everything in between. I got intimately acquainted with both Lisa and her brilliant first cookbook last summer, when I had the privilege of photographing the recipes in her home in NYC. During a seven-day marathon, we shot all 75 recipes for the book.

As a long-time vegan, Lisa has a great sensibility for achieving the perfect texture and maximizing the flavor of any dish. Her tempeh meatballs were one of the best things I tasted during the shoot and I’m so psyched they made the cover!

These tempeh meatballs are one of the meatiest-tasting vegan foods I’ve tried. They’ve got a chewy, toothsome interior and a satisfying caramelized crust on the outside, just like a traditional meatball. The combo of miso, tomato paste, and nutritional yeast lends a rich salty-savory flavor, and plenty of parsley gives them an earthy freshness. Even Rene, a certified tempeh-hater, loved these meatballs. It’s safe to say we’ll be adding them to our dinner rotation.

The Technique

You start the recipe by crumbling up a package of tempeh into a pot and quickly simmering it with soy sauce and water. This step softens the tempeh, seasons it throughout, and tones down its inherent slight bitterness. Next, you mix the steamed tempeh with the flavorings, as well as some breadcrumbs, which act as a binder.

Finally, you divvy up the mixture into little balls and bake them until they’re nicely caramelized.

How to Sear Tempeh Meatballs in the Oven

The recipe in the book instructs to first bake the ‘balls to cook them through and then finish them in a skillet to get the caramelization. I simplified this step by baking the meatballs at a higher temperature in a generous amount of oil (a technique we highlighted in The Complete Vegan Cookbook). During baking, I shake the sheet tray every five minutes to rotate the balls and re-coat them hot oil; the resulting sear is just as effective as cooking the ‘balls on the stove.

Serving Suggestions

Besides the obvious, these tempeh meatballs are great over creamy polenta, roasted spaghetti squash in the winter, or zucchini noodles in the summer. You can also tuck them into a meatball sub!

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