These easy vegan TVP meatballs have an authentic meaty taste and texture that will blow you away!  They’re quick and easy to make with shelf-stable ingredients and best of all they have a truly meaty flavor without chickpeas, beans, or lentils.  If you miss meatballs, you will love this recipe!

Vegan spaghetti and meatballs on a white plate.

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I’ve tried many types of vegan meatballs over the past 20 years of eating vegan.  Most recipes use some type of bean or lentils.  They taste good, but they don’t really have a meaty texture or taste of an actual meatball.  This meatball recipe uses TVP (textured vegetable protein) to give them a truly meaty texture.

They hold up to baking, frying, or being cooked in a sauce and they can be used on spaghetti, meatball sandwiches, vegan sweet and sour meatballs, or sweet and spicy meatballs.

Why make this recipe

These TVP meatballs are quick and easy to make and since they’re not made with mushy beans or lentils, they have an authentic meaty texture.

A veggie meatball sandwich on a white plate.

Ingredients and substitutions

  • TVP – this stands for textured vegetable protein.  This is similar to dehydrated tofu.  It will soak up the flavor of any broth that you rehydrate it in and has a meaty taste and texture.  You can find it in the bulk section of natural food stores or in the Bob’s Red Mill section of most major grocery stores.  You can also use Butler Soy Curl crumbles instead of TVP. If you want to learn more about it check out my full guide to cooking with TVP.
  • Water – for the base of the broth.
  • Soy Sauce or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos – for saltiness and a beefy flavor.  For gluten-free meatballs use Liquid Aminos or Tamari.
  • Liquid Smoke – for a smoky meaty flavor.  This is optional and you can omit it if you don’t have any.  You can also use smoked paprika instead if you would like.
  • Olive Oil – for moisture and richness. You can omit it for oil-free.
  • Italian Seasoning – for flavor.
  • Garlic Powder – for flavor.
  • Onion Powder – for flavor.
  • Flax Meal – to hold the balls together.  This acts as an egg would in a traditional meatball recipe.
  • Oats or Oat Flour – to hold the meatballs together.  You can use whole oats and grind them in your blender or buy oat flour.
  • Breadcrumbs – for texture and flavor. Any vegan breadcrumbs will work.  You can also crush up vegan croutons or use a vegan stuffing mix like Pepperidge Farm’s cornbread stuffing instead of traditional breadcrumbs. Use gluten-free breadcrumbs for gluten-free vegan meatballs.

How to make meatballs from TVP

Step 1 – Make the broth by heating the water, soy sauce, olive oil, liquid smoke, Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and onion powder in a saucepan.

Step 2 – Once it boils, turn off the heat, add the TVP, and give it a stir.

Step 3 – Add 2 tbsp flax meal and give it a stir again.

Step 4 – Toss 1/3 cup oats in your blender and blend for about 30 seconds then add to the TVP mixture. (If you have oat flour, you can use 1/4 cup instead of whole oats).

A collage of 4 pictures showing the process steps for making a vegan broth, rehydrating TVP, adding flax meal, and adding oat flour to make vegan meatballs.

Step 5 – Add breadcrumbs to the mixture.

Step 6 – Give it all a good stir and let it sit for about 5 minutes to cool enough to be able to hold the mixture in your hands.

Step 7 – Use your hands to roll the mixture into walnut-sized meatballs.

Step 8 – Place on a cookie sheet, brush with some olive oil, and bake at 375°F for 15-20 minutes.

A collage of 4 pictures that show the process steps of adding breadcrumbs to the TVP mixture, stirring it, and forming it into meatballs that are put on a cookie sheet to be baked.

Alternative cooking methods

Cook in sauce – You can also cook your meatballs directly in your spaghetti sauce.  Simply heat the sauce in a shallow pan and simmer for 15 minutes in the sauce.  They will absorb some of the sauce flavors this way.  Just be careful not to stir the sauce too vigorously or the meatballs may break.

Panfry the meatballs – If you don’t want to wait 20 minutes for them to cook or you want them crispier, you can pan-fry them in a few tablespoons of oil.  Cook them over medium heat for about 5-6 minutes rolling them around in the pan frequently so they don’t burn.

Flavor variations

For spicy sausage-style meatballs – add a dash of cayenne pepper, 1 tsp of oregano, and 1/2 tsp of fennel seeds along with the other spices in the broth.

Onion Meatballs – Saute a finely diced small onion in the olive oil until it’s translucent, then add the water and spices and follow the remaining steps of the recipe.

Mushroom Meatballs – Saute 3/4 cup finely diced mushrooms in the olive oil until the juices release, then add the water and spices and follow the remaining steps of the recipe.

Vegan “Honey” Sriracha Meatball – check out this recipe for the best vegan meatball sauce ever.

A castiron skillet filled with spaghetti sauce and vegan meatballs with chopped parsley on top.

Serving suggestions

Sprinkle your spaghetti and meatballs with some homemade vegan parmesan for additional flavor.

How to make them gluten-free

To make these meatballs, gluten-free as well be sure to use Tamari or Bragg’s Liquid Aminos instead of regular soy sauce. Also, swap out the bread crumbs for gluten-free bread crumbs. You can also toast a piece of gluten-free bread to dry it out and break it into crumbs.

A Parmesan cheese shaker filled with vegan Parmesan in front of a plate of spaghetti and meatballs.

Storing and reheating

Refrigerator – These vegan meatballs will keep well in the refrigerator for about 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

Freezer – You can make up a double or triple batch of these and keep them in the freezer ready to heat and serve.   To freeze, bake the meatballs as directed, then keep them on the cookie sheet so none are touching each other, and place them in the freezer for about 3 hours until they are frozen.  Take the frozen meatballs off the cookie sheet and place them into a freezer bag, squeeze out as much air as possible, and then freeze in the bag for up to 3 months.

Reheating – Warm the cooked TVP meatballs by reheating on a cookie sheet for about 5-7 min in the oven at 375° F.  You can reheat from frozen by heating for an additional 8-10 minutes.

Three veggie meatballs on a bed of vegan spaghetti.

Serve your spaghetti and meatballs with some homemade vegan focaccia bread for a full meal that will impress your guests!

More TVP recipes

I love TVP and use it in tons of recipes. Be sure to check out my guide to TVP. You may also like my guide to using Butler soy curls which are similar to TVP.

Vegan meatballs on a bed of spaghetti with marinara sauce.
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4.93 from 13 rating

Vegan Meatballs

Yield: 8
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Author: Monica Davis
Easy to make "meaty" vegan meatballs made with TVP.
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Ingredients

For the broth:

  • 1 cup Water
  • 2 tablespoons Soy Sauce, or Bragg's Liquid Aminos or Tamari for GF
  • 1 teaspoon Liquid Smoke, hickory flavored
  • 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
  • 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
  • 1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon Onion Powder

For the "meat"

  • 1 1/4 cup TVP
  • 2 tablespoon Flax Meal
  • 1/3 cup Oats , or 1/4 cup Oat Flour
  • 1/3 cup Breadcrumbs

Instructions
 

  • Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

Make the broth

  • Make the broth by heating 1 cup of water, 2 tbsp soy sauce, 1 tsp liquid smoke, 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 tsp Italian seasoning, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder in a saucepan.

Make the balls

  • Once it boils, turn off the heat, add the 1 1/4 cup TVP, and give it a stir.
  • Add 2 tbsp flax meal and give it a stir again.
  • Toss 1/3 cup oats in your blender and blend for about 30 seconds then add to the TVP mixture. (If you have oat flour, you can use 1/4 cup instead of whole oats).
  • Add 1/3 cup of breadcrumbs to the mixture.
  • Give it all a good stir and let it sit for about 5 minutes to cool enough to be able to hold the mixture in your hands.
  • Use your hands to roll the mixture into walnut-sized meatballs.

Cook the meatballs

  • Place on a cookie sheet, brush with some olive oil, and bake at 375°F (190°C) for 15-20 minutes. (You can also pan-fry the meatballs or simmer them in spaghetti sauce.)

Notes

Alternative cooking methods
Cook in sauce – You can also cook your meatballs directly in your spaghetti sauce.  Simply heat the sauce in a shallow pan and simmer them for 15 minutes in the sauce.  They will absorb some of the sauce flavors this way.  Just be careful not to stir the sauce too vigorously or the meatballs may break.
Panfry the meatballs – If you don’t want to wait 20 minutes for them to cook or you want them crispier, you can pan-fry them in a few tablespoons of oil.  Cook them over medium heat for about 5-6 minutes rolling them around in the pan frequently so they don’t burn.
Serving: 3balls, Calories: 107kcal, Carbohydrates: 10g, Protein: 7g, Fat: 4g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 289mg, Potassium: 37mg, Fiber: 3g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin A: 9IU, Calcium: 56mg, Iron: 2mg
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