Incredible vegan mushroom meatballs with a Thai inspired peanut sauce. Easy weeknight dinner that is hearty and loaded with protein. Deliciously satisfying plant-based meal that is vegan and gluten free.

My husband loves Panang curry flavours and peanut based sauces. Why not try making mushroom based meatballs for a delicious plant-based alternative and combining the flavour of curry.

Because we try to live a healthy lifestyle and exercise 7 days a week, I always try to find ways to expose our diet to a variety of healthy foods, healthy fats, lean protein and a healthy amount of veggies. I’ve certainly exposed my husband to new foods he wouldn’t think twice about cooking or have the patience to make. The best part about changing your eating habits is that you generally feel better, you have more energy and less cravings for unhealthy snacks or processed foods.

Here at the Communal Feast you hope to inspire you to live a healthy balanced life. Eating healthy doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice flavor or taste. Instead get inspired and try new things!

Most of our recipes are sustainable, they won’t break the bank and they aren’t to intimidating in the kitchen. In order to achieve a healthy lifestyle it has to be approached and flexible. We eat to fuel our bodies but also for the pleasure and experiences that food brings.

Since we are so active it’s important for us to include protein as much as we can. Seeing as this recipe is plant-based we combined mushrooms with oats and nuts which adds heartiness to the dish and a good source of protein.

These savory mushroom meatballs are made entirely of whole foods, infused with herbs & spices and a tiny splash of liquid smoke. The liquid smoke adds a great depth of flavour to the meatballs. The body of the meatballs are made os sautéed mushrooms, onions, soy sauce, balsamic, rolled oats, toasted pecans, and ground chia seeds. They’re seriously savoury and so filling. The Thai-inspired creamy sauce really knocks this dish out of the park.

A few tips before you get cooking:

• You could use walnut halves if you don’t have pecans.
• Liquid smoke adds that extra depth of flavour, if you don’t have some in your pantry you can use ½ teaspoon of smoked paprika instead.
• Feel free to add extra veggies using what you have left over like spinach or kale

We paired this dish with garlic bread for dipping and to help soak up some of that delicious sauce. If you are gluten free and can find gluten free baguette go ahead and make the bread if not you can pair the meatballs with rice, cauliflower rice, or some kind of veggie noodle to help soak up the sauce. If you’re a fan of Thai food or peanut-butter, I know you’re going to love them!

@thecommunalfeast

Print Recipe

THAI VEGAN MUSHROOM MEATBALLS

Incredible vegan mushroom meatballs with a Thai inspired peanut sauce. Easy weeknight dinner that is hearty and loaded with protein. Deliciously satisfying plant-based meal that is vegan and gluten free.

Prep Time15 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Total Time55 minutes mins

Course: Weeknight Dinners

Servings: 4

Author: the communal feast

Ingredients

• MEATBALLS
• 1 tablespoon ground chia or flax seeds
• 3 tablespoons filtered water
• 1 cup pecan halves toasted
• ¾ cup rolled oats certified gluten-free if necessary
• 2 teaspoons olive oil plus extra
• 1 small yellow onion small dice (about ¾ cup diced onion)
• ½ cup gluten free breadcrumbs or almond flour
• 8 oz 226 grams button or cremini mushrooms, stems removed and caps sliced
• 3 cloves garlic minced
• 2 teaspoon grated ginger
• sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar
• 1 teaspoon gluten-free soy sauce
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon liquid smoke
• ⅓ cup flat leaf parsley leaves finely chopped, plus extra
• SAUCE INGREDIENTS
• 1/4 cup 60 ml peanut butter, at room temperature or warmed through slightly
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp onion powder
• 1 tbsp of ground cumin
• 1 tbsp of ground coriander/cilantro
• ½ tbsp of chilli flakes
• 1 small can 4 oz/115 g vegan Panang red curry paste*. Add to taste, but 3/4 to a full can should be a good amount. (*many traditional versions contain shrimp paste so check the packaging, if that is an issue for you)
• 6 kaffir lime leaves crushed and pounded (optional, but recommended to enhance flavour)
• 1 can 400 ml organic unsweetened coconut milk, full-fat preferably
• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1/2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp grated ginger
• Garnish
• Chopped salted peanuts lime wedges and a little chopped basil and fresh parsley or cilantro to serve
• GARLIC BREAD –optional not gluten free
• 1 ciabatta baguette
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic finely minced (preferably grated)
• sea salt to taste
• chili flakes to taste (optional)
• ¼ cup flat leaf parsley leaves finely chopped

Instructions

• 1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
• 2. Make the meatballs: In a small bowl, stir together the chia seeds and water. Let it gel for a few minutes.
• 3. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the toasted pecan halves and oats. Pulse the mixture until you have a coarse meal. Transfer the pecan and oat mixture to a medium mixing bowl and place the food processor bowl back on the base.
• 4. Heat a sauté pan over medium heat. Add the 2 teaspoons of oil to the pan. Add the onions and stir. Sauté the onions until soft and translucent, about 4-5 minutes. Add the sliced mushrooms and stir. Season with pepper. Stir and sauté until mushrooms are tender and start to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and stir until very fragrant, about 1 minute. Season the mixture with salt and stir once more. Turn off the heat and transfer the mushroom mixture to the food processor. Let it cool slightly. Then, pulse until you have a chunky consistency that’s almost a paste. It should stick together, but you should still see little pieces of mushroom. Transfer the minced up mushroom mixture to the mixing bowl with the pecans and oats.
• 5. To the mushroom and pecan mixture, add the grated ginger, balsamic vinegar, soy sauce, red pepper flakes, onion powder, liquid smoke, parsley, gluten free breadcrumbs and a good amount of salt and pepper. Add the chia gel into the mixing bowl as well. Using a rubber spatula, thoroughly mix everything until you have a sticky and slightly chunky paste. Give it a taste to check for seasoning and adjust if necessary. You may need to adjust the texture of your meatballs depending on the moisture. You can add almond flour or extra breadcrumbs to ensure the meatballs help stick together.
• 
  6. Divide the mixture into equal portions and roll into balls. Place mushroom meatballs on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush the surface of the balls with olive oil. Slide the baking sheet into the oven and bake for 25 minutes, or until balls are firm on the outside and browned on the bottom.
• 7. While the vegan mushroom meatballs are baking, make your sauce. Add all the sauce ingredients to a mixing bowl and whisk
  together to combine. Set to the side.
• 8. When the meatballs are done. Remove the kaffir lime leaves from the sauce (or keep them in for extra flavour and remove when serving).
• 9. Pour 1/3 of the sauce into an oven proof skillet. Transfer the cooked meatballs into the skillet and pour over the remaining sauce. Pop the skillet onto the center rack of your oven. Bake for about 10 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and thickening. Optional to set the oven to broil and broil the meatballs for 1-2 minutes for a nice golden brown finish.
• 10. To make the garlic bread: Slice the ciabatta baguette in half as if you were making a big sandwich. In a small saucepan, gently heat the olive oil over medium low. Add the finely minced garlic to the oil, along with the salt and chili flakes (if using). The garlic should simmer ever so slightly. Let it cook for about a minute, stirring constantly. Take the garlic oil off the heat and stir in the parsley.
• 11. Preheat the broiler of your oven. Place the halved ciabatta on a baking sheet, cut side up (cut the halves in half to fit on the baking sheet if necessary). Brush the ciabatta with the garlic olive oil mixture all the way to the edges. Slide the baking sheet into the oven under the broiler. Broil until the edges of the ciabatta are quite brown and toasted, about 2-3 minutes. Keep an eye on it though! Remove the garlic bread from the oven and cut into smaller pieces.
•        
  To Serve the meatballs : Top with a sprinkle of chopped peanuts, some fresh chopped basil and fresh parsley or cilantro and lime wedges.
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