It's been decades since I've had Swedish meatballs. My husband, aka the Breakfast King and I became vegetarians in our early twenties, and haven't eaten beef or pork since, so meatballs were out of the question, until now. The secret.....
WHAT ARE SOY CURLS AND WHY DO THEY MAKE GREAT MEATBALLS
Have you tried cooking with soy curls? We hadn't until I heard about them in a blogging group that we belong to. Of course, I immediately jumped onto Amazon and ordered several bags. I'm so glad I did because they're perfect for vegan Swedish meatballs!
What Are They?
Soy curls are whole soy beans that are soaked in water and then dried at a low temperature until they're dehydrated.
We bought Butler Foods Soy Curls because they're Non GMO and grown without pesticides.
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Okay, we know that there are a lot of rumors floating around the internet about how soy is bad for you. If you've been following us for a while, you know that we're incredibly health conscious and won't touch foods that are legitimately unhealthy.
Soy is not one of those foods. Instead of going into the science behind it in this post, we're sharing this well researched article from our friend, Scotty of Plant Based Scotty. If you're questioning whether or not you should consume soy, this should help you figure it out.
Why Are Soy Curls A Great Meat Substitute?
Full disclosure, I was sooooo skeptical when I opened that first bag of soy curls. They looked like pork rinds, and I couldn't imagine how I could transform them into a delicious plant-based recipe.
Well my friend, I'm here to tell you that those strange looking dehydrated soy beans make some incredibly awesome meatballs.
I pulsed them in my food processor until they looked like crumbles, then I soaked them to re-hydrate them, added some other ingredients, and voilà, I was digging my fork into a tender and meaty Swedish meatball that didn't have a bit of real meat.
My husband ate most of the pan and was thrilled when I had to test the recipe a few more times. 😉
HOW TO MAKE THESE MEATBALLS
STEP ONE
- Pulse one bag of soy curls in the food processor until they look like crumbles.
STEP TWO
2. Soak the soy curls in no-beef broth. We use Better Than Bouillon No Beef Base. It's the best, most authentic brand we've found.
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STEP THREE
3. While the soy curls are soaking, make the flax egg. Now, drain (reserve the broth) the soy curls and press the excess liquid out of the curls with a clean towel. Preferably one that wasn't washed/dried with scented products.
STEP FOUR
4. Put the soy curls in a large mixing bowl and add the remaining ingredients and use your hands to knead the mixture into a large ball. Then scoop out a tablespoon or two (depends on how large you want them to be) and roll into individual balls.
STEP FIVE
5. Brown the soy balls in vegan butter in a large skillet then remove from the pan.
STEP SIX
6. Make the roux and then the gravy.
STEP SEVEN
7. Add the meatballs to the pan and cover in the gravy and serve hot. You can sprinkle some chopped parsley over the top to add color.
HOW TO STORE VEGAN SWEDISH MEATBALLS
You can store them covered in the refrigerator for up to four days or freeze them in a freezer safe container for up to one month. Slowly warm them in a skillet on medium-low heat until they're heated all the way through.
WHERE DO SWEDISH MEATBALLS COME FROM?
Ready to have your mind blown?
Swedish meatballs are not Swedish, they actually originated in Turkey!
King Charles the XII brought the recipe back to Sweden in the early 18th Century. He used the food to try and improve the relationship between the two countries. Read more about the subject here.
NOTE: SCANDINAVIAN FOOD IS TYPICALLY VERY BLAND.
I tried to stay true to the flavor of authentic Swedish meatballs. If you prefer a lot of spice, feel free to play around with the spice measurements.
A GREAT PARTY FOOD
Our vegan meatball recipe is a great party food. Make the meatballs smaller and serve them with cocktail toothpicks and your guests will love you for it.
Make this Vegan Swedish Meatball recipe and let us know what you think. We love to hear from you! And, don’t forget to take a picture of your gorgeous creation and tag us @veganosity on Instagram.
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Vegan Swedish Meatballs
Ingredients
- 2 cups whole soy curls pulse in food processor until it looks like a mixture of sand and small pebbles.
- 1 ½ tablespoon Better Than Bouillon No Beef Broth plus 4 cups boiling water
- 2 tablespoon ground flax seed plus 5 tablespoon water
- 1 small onion finely diced
- ½ cup breadcrumbs
- ½ cup cornmeal
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon allspice
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 2 teaspoon dried parsley
- ½ tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 3 tablespoon vegan butter
For the Gravy
- 2 tablespoon vegan butter
- ⅓ cup flour
- Reserved beef broth
- 1 cup soy creamer
Topping
- Fresh parsley chopped
Instructions
SEE NOTE BELOW REGARDING FLAVOR
- Pulse the soy curls in your food processor until they look like crumbles.
- Stir the boiling water into the bouillon until it’s dark brown in color and add to the pulsed soy curls. Let soak for 10 minutes
- Stir the flax seed and water together in a small dish until it’s thick. Let sit
- Drain (reserve the broth in a small bowl) and press the excess liquid out. Put the soy curls into a large mixing bowl.
- Add the breadcrumbs, cornmeal, spices, onion, Worcestershire sauce, Dijon mustard, olive oil, and flax egg to the soy curls and mix until totally combined. For best results, use your hands to knead the mixture until it's completely combined and sticks together. Roll by 1 to 2 tablespoon into balls.
- Melt 4 tablespoon butter on medium heat in a large skillet. When the butter is melted, add the meatballs and cook for a few minutes on each side until golden brown. Remove the meatballs from the pan and add the remaining 2 tablespoon of butter and melt. When the butter is melted, whisk in the flour and continue to whisk until it’s a golden brown.
- Add the reserved beef broth and whisk until it’s smooth and creamy. Approximately 3 minutes. Add the cream and whisk well. Add the meatballs back into the pan and serve.
- Sprinkle with chopped parsley.
Notes
Nutrition
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Carrie says
This turned out great! We aren't vegan, so I substituted 2 eggs for the flax. I doubled all the seasoning and also added some paprika, grill seasoning, and onion powder. Even the meat eaters liked the meal and don't miss the meat! The gravy was really good, too!
Thanks for the yummy recipe!
Linda Meyer says
Thank you so much, Carrie! We're so happy you all enjoyed the recipe. 🙂
Daisy says
I made these today and overall they were okay. I was very hopeful and followed the recipe exactly as wrote, but the flavor seemed kind of bland and my meatballs came out rather dry. I wasn’t sure if you meant 2 cups of soy curls measured before they were blended or after, so I’m thinking I used to many because I measured after they were crushed. My teenage son told me the meatballs were edible, but tasted like bread with creamy gravy. I’ll plan to freeze the rest for now and add them to a creamy potato soup where they can soak up a bit more moisture. Thanks for sharing the recipe . I’ll probably try them again at some point with less soy curl crumbles.
Linda Meyer says
Hi Daisy, thank you for your comment. Swedish food is not overly flavorful. These are spiced the way that my Swedish friends in Wisconsin made them, with just a bit of nutmeg and allspice. I actually added a bit more spice to make them more flavorful, while trying to keep the recipe as authentic as possible.
The recipe calls for 2 cups of the soy curls pulsed in the food processor. Reading it with fresh eyes, I can see where it may be a bit confusing. I will add a note to the recipe card now.
All the best,
Linda
Meowmeow says
I have a package of soy curls that are just sitting there unused and probably going stale. I think I will have to remedy that with this recipe! I'll likely tweak the gravy a bit (I've always used a bit of sour cream in mine, and Kite Hill makes a WONDERFUL vegan sour cream) and serve it over noodles - fettuccine, broken into thirds works wonderfully in place of egg noodles - and have it with a side of asparagus.
Yes, that sounds like just the thing for this weekend!
Linda Meyer says
Oh, we love the addition of vegan sour cream. We'll have to try that! This sounds like a great weekend meal. Enjoy!!
Rebecca says
do you measure 2 tablespoons of flax when it has been ground or before? Either way it sounds yum
Linda Meyer says
Hi Rebecca, that would be 2 tbsp of ground flax seed. 🙂
Danyel says
How are these vegan if you are using beef broth?
Linda Meyer says
Hi Danyel, we used no-beef broth. It has the flavor of beef without the actual cow. 😉
carol shaw says
These are wonderful. I made them for a vegan Christmas option and everyone loved them. The second time I made them I smashed them in a bag with my old, unused meat pounder. It was easier to control the texture.
Off to try your beanballs next!
carol shaw says
Oops. I meant I smashed the dried soy curls, not the meatballs!
Alex Meyer, MA says
Hey Carol, No worries! Smashing the soy curls is such a great idea!
Alex Meyer, MA says
Hey Carol, Thanks so much! We love hearing that the recipe turned out well : ) Serving them as a vegan Christmas option is such a great idea! We love making them over the holidays too. Let us know how the beanballs turn out!
Christine @ Run Plant Based says
Yum, these look good and it's been too long since I've used soy curls, gotta change that. Thanks!
Linda Meyer says
Thank you! I'm loving soy curls, they're so good.
Anne says
Since you crumble the curls, wonder if you could you texturized soy protein?
Linda Meyer says
Hi Anne, We haven't tried that. Great idea! I'm going to experiment and will keep you updated.