White Bean Vegan Meatballs with Zoodles
Put your hands together for white bean vegan meatballs with zoodles! Two things that are practically made for each other, so put them together with some spicy tomato sauce and you’ve got a most delicious and healthy, meat-free dinner sure to make everyone in the house a happy, happy camper.
So about these so-called, “meat” balls. Well, obvs there’s no meat in sight but what else…
- savoury
- high in protein
- high in fibre
- low in fat
- easy to make
- flavourful
- crispy on the outside, soft on the inside
- perfect for topping pasta or salad
- easy to customize with different spices
- dairy-free
- egg-free
- gluten-free option
- hold together
- delicious the next day
What’s not to love! I did the right thing and added mine to a nice big bowl of zucchini noodles with spicy tomato sauce and it was the perfect comforting bowl of yum after a long day. (Not sayin’ a meatball sub would be a bad idea…next time…)
A Tip for Better Zoodles
Zucchini has a very high water content and you may have noticed that your zoodles dishes tend to come out watery. To prevent soggy zoodles, add your spiralized zucchini to a colander, sprinkle with sea salt, shaking to distribute and let them sit for at least 10 minutes.
Lay a large dish towel flat on the counter, take your zoodles, shaking first to remove any excess water, and place them in the centre of the towel. Wrap the towel up around the zoodles and squeeze and twist the towel to remove excess water. Now they’re ready for use!
You can eat spiralized zucchini noodles raw or cooked, I like both, it just depends on what you’re making. If you’re cooking them, careful not to overcook. You want them to be tender but still have a bit of crunch to them.
Zoodles and Vegan Meatballs
K, it’s time! Vegan White Bean Meatballs, dress ’em up with a fancy pasta or toss ’em in a healthy salad, or dream up an epic vegan meatball sub. The choice is yours!
For more zoodle recipes, try my roasted garlic and red pepper zoodles, Low Fat Vegan Pesto Zoodles with Broccoli or raw zucchini noodles with hemp seed pesto.
Print
White Bean Vegan Meatballs with Zoodles
-
Prep Time: 10 mins -
Cook Time: 25 mins
-
Total Time: 35 minutes
-
Yield: 10 balls 1x
-
Category: Main Dish
-
Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Prep Time:
Yield:
Category:
Cuisine:These vegan meatballs make a perfect addition to a big bowl of healthy, low carb zucchini noodles and spicy tomato sauce! They’re high in fibre and protein, low in fat, full of flavour and won’t fall apart. Gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free.
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeIngredients
- 5–6 zucchinis (1500 g), sliced into noodles with a spiralizer
- 1 jar of tomato-based pasta sauce of choice
- For the White Bean Meatballs:
- 1 x 19 oz can of white kidney beans, rinsed and well-drained
- 1 flax egg (1 tbsp ground flax + 2 tbsp water, mix and let sit for 5 min)
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1/2 cup oats
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp basil
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1/2 tsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp gluten-free all purpose flour
- 1/2 a small red onion, minced
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley, minced
Instructions
- Place your zucchini noodles in a colander, sprinkle with sea salt and set aside to “sweat.”
- Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.
- Make the white bean balls by placing all the ingredients except the onion and parsley in a food processor. Process until smooth, a few chunky bits is ok but it should be fairly fine.
- Add the red onion and parsley and pulse to combine.
- Using your hands, roll into 10 balls and place on a baking tray prepared with non-stick cooking spray.
- Bake 25 minutes until browned.
- Drain the zucchini noodles then place on a flat dish towel, wrapping up and squeezing to remove excess water. Add to a sauce pan with your pasta sauce, cooking for about 5-10 minutes until tender and everything is heated through.
- Serve the zucchini pasta topped with the white bean balls and dig in!
Notes
I’m including the nutrition facts for 1 meatball below rather than the whole dish, since that will vary based on the sauce used. I would suggest a serving size of 2-3 meatballs.
If you use the suggested 1500 grams of zucchini, it comes out to 11C/0.5F/4P for 1/4 of the recipe. The sauce I used added 10C/4F/3P. Either way, it’s not much!
Looking for a spiralizer? Try the Mueller or Paderno options on Amazon. Both are great choices.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 meatball
- Calories: 81
- Fat: 1
- Carbohydrates: 14
- Fiber: 3.4
- Protein: 4.5
Keywords: vegan meatballs, zoodles with meatballs
The meatball dough was too watery and didn’t make balls at all. Had to add garbanzo bean flour and breadcrumbs. Not sure why . The dough was really delicious though.
★★★
The recipe sounds delicious! My husband and I recently began eating vegan/vegetarian food and can always use more recipes. Thanks for sharing!
You’re very welcome, hope you enjoy it!
THESE WERE INCREDIBLE! Only recipe I’ve ever found that’s healthy, low fat, and HOLDS TOGTHER!!!
Yay! That’s awesome, Megan. I’m so glad you enjoyed them. Thanks for your comment!
Could you sub regslar kidney beans or pintos?
Ya, I think that should be fine. The taste will be different though. Thanks 🙂
Would it be possible to make this without nutritional yeast? Living abroad and don’t have quick access to that ingredient.
Would it be possible to make this without the nutritional yeast? I’m living abroad at the moment and don’t have quick access to that ingredient.
LOVE this idea so so much! I’d probably end up eating ten meatballs with tons of zoodles–but it’ll be worth it! I love zucchini so much!
Looks amazing! I’m going to try this weekend;)
They’re really good! Just snuck one out of my lunch, lol. They held together really well too, which is awesome!