Vegan Meatballs in a Creamy Mushroom Sauce

A top closeup of a white bowl of creamy mushroom gravy with vegan meatballs and parsley sprinkled on top

5 from 8 votes

Vegan Meatballs in a Creamy Mushroom Sauce

Food should always be as comforting as these vegan Meatballs in a Creamy Mushroom Sauce. The silky and decadent sauce flecked with rosemary and garlic envelopes the meatballs -- and your tastebuds -- with warm, savory flavor. A vegan, soy-free recipe that can be gluten-free.

Prep Time15

Cook Time30

Total Time45

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Diet: Gluten Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Servings:

Calories: 309kcal

Author: Vaishali · Holy Cow Vegan

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

1 cup shiitake mushrooms (dry)
15 oz kidney beans
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 teaspoon sage (or rosemary, dry)
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
½ to 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
1 tablespoon liquid aminos
1 tablespoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
Salt to taste

For the sauce :

½ cup raw cashews
2 teaspoon avocado oil or any neutral oil
1 medium onion
4 cloves garlic
16 oz crimini mushrooms (finely chopped)
2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
4 tablespoon unbleached all purpose flour
2 teaspoon rosemary
6 cups vegetable stock
2 tablespoon liquid aminos (or soy sauce or tamari)
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoon parsley (minced, for garnish)

Instructions

Make the meatballs:

Pour a cup of boiling water over the dry shiitake mushrooms in a bowl and let them steep for 20 minutes. Drain the mushrooms and squeeze out as much water from them as possible. Reserve the stock for use in the gravy.
Place the mushrooms in a food processor and pulse five or six times until they are broken down into small bits. Add the rest of the ingredients, except the oil, to the food processor and pulse a few times until they are thoroughly mixed and the mixture holds together when you form a ball.
Shape into 20 meatballs. Heat the oil in a large skillet and fry the meatballs, turning them to brown all over. Remove the meatballs to a bowl large enough to hold the sauce.

Make the gravy:

Blend the cashews with ½ cup water into a very thick cream. Set aside.
Heat oil in a large saucepan. Add the onions and garlic along with some salt and pepper and saute for five to six minutes over medium heat. The onions should brown nicely so your sauce has great flavor, but don't let the garlic burn. Stir frequently.
Add the mushrooms to the pan along with the apple cider vinegar. Saute until the mushrooms have expressed most of their water and it has evaporated, another five to six minutes over medium-high heat. Now add the flour and stir until it gets absorbed into the mushrooms.
Stir in the rosemary, then pour the vegetable stock in, stirring constantly, so the flour dissolves in it. Bring the stock to a boil. It will look very soupy at this stage, but don't worry -- you need to let the stock reduce to about four cups, which will take about 10-15 minutes over high heat. Stir occasionally to ensure nothing sticks to the bottom.
Once the sauce has reduced and is quite thick, season with salt and pepper. Wait until the sauce has cooled a little or, if doing this while the sauce is still hot, very carefully strain it into a large bowl.
Pour the sauce back into the saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-low heat. Stir in the liquid aminos or soy sauce and cashew cream. Turn off the heat and pour over the meatballs. Garnish with parsley and serve hot or warm.

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