Plant based eating might be the best gift to yourself and the planet right now. This entree was a feast for my senses and provided complexity of flavour.
If you’d like to ditch meat for even just this meal, I promise you’ll be full and nourished with these “meat” balls.
The secret? Eggplant! A vegetable that I don’t enjoy on its own that much but am just understanding its versatility.
You can form the balls earlier, even freeze them, and bake while you’re preparing the sauce.
Recipe:
Step 1:
1 large eggplant, cut into 1″ cubes (don’t even peel)
Place in oiled skillet with 1/4 cup water. Bring to a boil, remove lid. Let cook over medium heat for about 10 – 20 minutes until eggplant is very tender and maybe a bit browned. Set aside and cool.
Step 2:
Mix 1 T ground flax seed with 3 T water. Mix well and set aside. This will be the egg substitute.
Step 3:
In the bowl of a large food processor, mash 1 can drained and rinsed black beans. Add cooled eggplant, 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp garlic powder and salt/pepper to taste. Process just until the eggplant is lumpy. Too much action creates a “gummy” ball texture.
Form into uniform balls and place on oiled parchment paper. Balls can be frozen like this (packaged into containers after they are solid) or baked now at 400 degrees for about 15 – 20 minutes or until browned and firm.
Step 4:
Using food processor for efficiency, chop one cooking onion, 3 cloves garlic and 1 1″ piece of peeled ginger. Heat skillet over medium high heat and add 1 T coconut oil. Saute aromatic vegetables until fragrant and a little browned. Add 1 red pepper (seeded and chopped into bite sized pieces) and 2 cups broccoli (again, diced into bite sized pieces). Cover and cook for 5 minutes or until veggies are tender-crisp.
Step 5:
In the same bowl of the food processor, mix 1 cup salsa, 1/4 cup sugar or agave, 1 T chili paste (samba oelek or sriracha – go easy and add more to taste), 1/4 cup soy sauce. Blend well then add to pan. Simmer for a few minutes until sauce gets glossy and thickened. Gently tossed in cooked balls.
Step 6:
Serve over jasmine rice.
This reminded me of Korean bbq but vegan style.
Try these other healthy recipes: make vegan bacon, vegan mayonnaise, vegetarian breakfast sausage or a delicious holiday casserole.