Homemade no-meat meatballs have become one of the go-to substitutes that I like to adapt to different cuisines – aubergine can be a great base for Italian and Asian dishes; chickpeas and lentils can be a base to Swedish meatballs etc.
To be honest, I wasn’t super into meatballs originally, but I love the fact that I can make a tasty and interesting meat substitute without any fillers or random chemicals in premade meats you find in the store all by throwing a bunch of ingredients into my trusty food processor!
This is a Vietnamese twist on classic spaghetti and meatballs, made from aubergine, tofu, chickpeas and lemongrass served atop a pile of refreshing and tangy chilled rice noodles! A great summer alternative to the meaty and warm Italian classic!
vietnamese spaghetti & meatballs
Equipment
- food processor
Ingredients
Meatballs
- 500 grams aubergine a.k.a eggplant
- 240 grams chickpeas 1 can drained
- 280 grams tofu
- 2-3 lemongrass stalks
- 8 grams garlic minced
- 1 small red chillis minced
- 40 grams green onions chopped
- 20 grams fresh coriander
- 20 grams chickpea flour or all purpose flour
- 15 ml soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
Noodle Salad
- 200 grams rice noodles
- 200 grams carrot spiralised
- 1/2 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
- 30 ml soy sauce
- 15 ml vegan fish sauce
- 1 teaspoon lime juice
Instructions
Meatballs
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200 °C) and lay a pan with baking paper.
- Cut aubergines into thick slices and arrange them on baking tray, spray with olive oil and bake for 30 minutes until soft. You can peal the aubergine if you do not like the texture/taste of the roasted skins, I quite like the consistency in the meatballs but use your own personal opinion.
- Press the tofu for 15 minutes and then blend with chickpeas in the food processor until a very coarse uniform mixture occurs.
- Add all remaining ingredients into food processor until combined. Do not over pulse so that it gets too mushy but to a desired texture but don’t let it become babaganoush.
- Refrigerate the mixture for at least 1 hour to be able to scoop easier.
- Use a two tablespoon cookie scoop to scoop mixtures into 2 inch balls (about 20 of them) and arrange on baking sheet. Spray with oil.
- Bake for 30 minutes, turning once halfway until lightly browned.
Noodle Salad
- Cook rice noodles according to instructions on the bag.
- With two minutes left add in spiralised carrots and zucchini so that they get slightly steamed and cooked slightly but still have a bit of bite to them.
- Drain noodles and veggies and rinse with cold water so that they stop cooking and don’t stick together.
- Add in sauce ingredients and toss. Let cool in the fridge for 10 minutes0 or so to let the salad observe the sauce.
- Serve noodle salad cool with warm meatballs on top with a side of sweet chilli sauce.
