If you’ve ever been to Ikea, then you’ve likely had Swedish meatballs. However, these vegan Swedish meatballs are even more amazing than the restaurant version.
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For being a furniture store, Ikea surprisingly has a lot of really great food in their restaurant. It’s simple, usually needs salt and pepper added (okay, always needs salt and pepper), but for what it is and the price point, you can’t beat it when you are furniture shopping for 6 hours. These vegan Swedish meatballs are a spin off their version.
However, they’re better.
Yup, we said it. But seriously. You can’t even tell that these are vegan if you ask us. That means if you are looking for a recipe that you can fool a omnivore with, then this is definitely one of them.
Pairs perfectly with vegan mashed potatoes, a green side like steamed broccoli or green beans and you have an easy vegan dinner idea in minutes.
VEGAN SWEDISH MEATBALLS INGREDIENTS:
Below are notes about the ingredients before we get into the full recipe located lower in this post on how to make these the best vegetarian Swedish meatballs:
- Vegan Ground Meat – You want to use vegan ground meat that looks like ground meat, not the crumbles. This recipe won’t work with crumbles. Something like Beyond or Lightlife ground meat. Make sure it’s a brand that you enjoy the taste of.
- Flax Egg – when you combine ground flax seed and water together it becomes gelatinous and mimics that texture of egg when binding
- Panko Bread Crumbs – most breadcrumbs are not vegan, so we use panko because it is. We’ve also grown to love panko bread crumbs in vegan recipes
- Onion and Spices – for both aromatics and flavor, we’d created the perfect combination of ingredients to pack these vegan meatballs full of flavor
- Vegan Butter – helps to add richness to the dish and flavor
- Mushroom Broth – not only helps give that traditional color that you get with Ikea’s Swedish meatballs, but it also adds great flavor and depth
- Coconut Cream – non-vegan recipes use heavy cream, but that’s not easy to find. Coconut cream is the thick, fatty part at the top of canned coconut milk
SUBSTITUTIONS AND VARIATIONS:
- Vegan Ground Meat – Instead of using vegan ground meat, you could make our vegan TVP meatballs or vegan Italian Meatballs. The taste won’t quite be the same but if you are looking for a less processed version of vegan meatballs, then you’ll love this one
- Flax Egg – you could sub this with egg replacer
- Panko Bread Crumbs – if you find regular breadcrumbs without milk, then you can sub those for panko
- Vegan Butter – we do not recommend omitting the oil, but you could swap the butter for another neutral flavored oil. The taste will be altered
- Mushroom Broth – vegetable stock can be subbed
- Coconut Cream – vegan heavy cream or vegan sour cream could be subbed.
HOW TO MAKE THE BEST VEGAN SWEDISH MEATBALLS?
- Use ingredients that you love – especially the vegan ground meat and butter. If you don’t like the flavor of something you are adding then you are less likely to like the end dish.
- Follow the instructions – look we get it, you’ve been cooking for awhile, but the number one reason that people don’t love the final dish is because they didn’t follow a step or added or omitted something
HOW TO MAKE THE VEGAN SWEDISH MEATBALLS FASTER?
This dish is already pretty fast to make; however, it’s also great for meal prep so you could double the recipe and freeze half of the vegan meat mixture for later so then when you want it again it’s already prepared and just needs to thaw out.
Alternatively, you could buy store bought vegan meatballs and just make the sauce.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS:
Use gluten free panko breadcrumbs, a soy free vegan butter like Flora or Earth Balance soy free, gluten free 1:1 flour blend and finally a safe for you vegan ground meat (many have coconut oil).
Yes! They can be store in an air tight container after cooled for up 5-7 days in the fridge. Make sure they are completely cooled before storing.
Yes! Let cool completely and then store in a freezer safe bag or container for up to 3 months.
You could sub the vegan butter for more stock, but it will alter the taste and texture of the dish.
You could make our vegan TVP meatballs or vegan Italian Meatballs
Absolutely! Feel free to make halve, double or even triple the recipe for whatever you may need.
This recipe is great with pasta as shown in our photos, but you could also do vegan mashed potatoes, rice, vegetables, quinoa, and more.
What other vegan pasta ideas could I make?
- Vegan Creamy Mushroom and Asparagus Pasta
- The Best Vegan Mac and Cheese
- Vegan Pumpkin Pasta with Sundried Tomatoes and Spinach
- The Best Vegan Lasagna
- Vegan Alfredo
- Vegan Cheesy Hamburger Helper Skillet
- Spinach and Walnut Pesto Pasta
- Vegan Carbonara
- Vegan Creamy Broccoli and Chickpea Pasta
Pin these vegan Swedish meatballs for later!
🥳 Get the Full Recipe
Vegan Swedish Meatballs
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon ground flax seed
- 2 tablespoon water
- 1 lb vegan ground meat (not crumbles)
- ½ cup panko bread crumbs
- ¼ cup yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 tablespoon fresh parsley, finely chopped (sub 1 teaspoon dried parsley)
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper, more to taste
- 1 teaspoon salt, more to taste
- 6 tablespoon vegan butter, divided
- 3 tablespoon all-purpose flour (sub for GF 1:1 blend if needed)
- 2 cups mushroom broth (can sub vegetable stock)
- 1 cup coconut cream* (can sub dairy free milk)
- 1 tablespoon vegan steak sauce (can sub vegan worcestershire sauce)
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- fresh parsley, for topping
- 1 lb cooked pasta, optional
Instructions
- In a small bowl, add flax and water and stir together. Let sit for 5 minutes. (this makes a flax egg)
- In a large bowl, add all the ingredients from vegan meat to salt. Add in the flax egg. Mix until very well combined. Roll into 12-15 evenly sized meatballs.
- If making pasta, start your boiling water now and cook according to package instructions.
- Over medium heat, add 2 tablespoon vegan butter into a large skillet and let melt. Add the rolled vegan meatballs and let cook for 5-8 minutes rolling around to brown all sides. Remove to a plate.
- In the same skillet, add remaining vegan butter and let melt. Sprinkle flour over and whisk constantly until well combined.
- Slowly whisk in broth. Add coconut cream (or non-dairy milk), vegan steak sauce and dijon. Bring to a simmer for 3-5 minutes until it thickens. Taste and adjust salt and pepper if needed.
- Place meatballs into the sauce and cook until heated through about 2-3 minutes. Serve.
I needed 1/3 cup of water get the ingredients to meld in the food processor. This may have been why the lentil balls did not firm up well in the pan. In any case, I think it would be better to brown them first to get some Maillard reaction / crust. As written, the lentil balls lack firmness and mouthfeel.
Finally, I should have tried the gravy pre-coconut cream. With it, it seemed too cloying. Probably better to just brown the roux and add the stock.
Thanks for your feedback. We know everyone has different experiences and tastes.
Hi – I’m making these tonight and have a question that may or may not be answered in time 🙂
I’m using Gardein ground and I’m unsure if it should be frozen while making the balls or thawed?
The package indicates frozen but that seems unlikely! Any ideas?
Your ground substitute will need to be thawed first