This is the best vegan Swedish meatballs recipe – These no-meat balls “Koettbullar” are incredibly delicious, rich in plant-based protein from lentils, meaty in texture and can be made soy-free and gluten-free. They are coated in a simple creamy vegan gravy, making it to the perfect comfort food for vegans and non-vegans alike!
I love trying new recipes from countries all over the world! I’ve already shared my vegan cinnamon rolls with you, which originate from Scandinavia. So I thought it’s about time to share a hearty lunch or dinner recipe from northern Europe! Anyway, today’s vegan Swedish meatballs recipe is inspired by the popular “Koettbullar” which is a classic Swedish dish, that is also served at Ikea and anyone loves it! So if you love it, too but went vegan or vegetarian, this meat-less version is what you need!
The Best Healthy Vegan Meatballs recipe
What I love about this recipe is that it is so healthy, satisfying, and rich in nutrients! I made my vegan Swedish meatballs with lentils as I did in this lentil meatballs with Indian curry sauce recipe but adjusted the flavors and tossed the no-meat balls in a simple cream sauce. Thanks to the lentils, the meatballs are packed with vegan protein, keeping you full for several hours. Along with the wholesome oats, they contain also a lot of fiber which is important for your digestive system. Is there anything better than enjoying a delicious meal, that is even nourishing and healthy? I don’t think so!
Serving Suggestions
I served my vegan Swedish meatballs in a simple gravy over Fussili here, but you can use any pasta of your choice or serve them with homemade spaetzle. However, they’re also delicious over mashed potatoes or sweet potatoes, rice or quinoa which are all great gluten-free options. And if you follow a low-carb diet, simply serve this recipe as a main dish with vegetables on the side or over protein pasta like chickpea, lentil or pea noodles.
How to store, freeze & make-ahead
This recipe makes not only a great lunch or dinner to enjoy at home, but it is also perfect for meal prep to take to work. You can store leftovers in the fridge for a few days or freeze the uncooked balls for longer storage. Just be sure to store the vegan Swedish Meatballs and the gravy separately! Otherwise, the meatballs will get soft and mushy. When ready to serve, simply reheat in the microwave or in the oven for a crispier result.
How to make Vegan Swedish meatballs
This recipe is pretty easy to make in just a few steps, requiring simple pantry ingredients! However, I highly recommend watching the recipe video too!
Step 1: Prep the vegan meatball mixture
Start by making the Meatballs: Cook the lentils in 1 ½ cup of water for 20 minutes, or according to the package instructions. In the meantime, heat the oil in a pan and sauté the onion until translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute, until fragrant. Then add the chopped mushrooms and cumin and continue sautéing until the mushrooms are tender.
Next, place the oats in a blender or food processor and process them into flour. Then add in the cooked lentils, sautéed onions, garlic, mushrooms and the other ingredients for the Meatballs (see recipe card below). Pulse until combined, but not puréed, to get the perfect texture! Adjust salt and pepper to taste. Then set the no-meat lentil balls mixture aside for 10 minutes or refrigerate overnight, if you want to continue with the recipe the next day.
Step 2: Form the balls and bake
When ready to form the balls, preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Form the lentil mixture into balls with wet hands. (This will prevent the lentil-mass from sticking to your skin.) Then place them on the prepared baking sheet and brush or spray them with a little oil. Bake for 25-30 minutes, turning them halfway through.
Step 3: Make the vegan gravy
To make the gravy add all the ingredients as written in the recipe card below (except the cornstarch and water) to a pot or saucepan and bring to a boil. In a smaller bowl or cup whisk together the cornstarch and 2-3 tablespoons of water to dissolve. Then whisk it into the gravy and bring it to a boil again, stirring occasionally. Simmer for a few minutes, until the gravy is nice and thick. Serve the gravy with these best vegan Swedish meatballs over pasta or mashed potatoes!
A little note: If you love mushrooms, feel free to serve these vegan meatballs with my mushroom gravy or mushroom stroganoff.
These Vegan Swedish Meatballs (Koettbullar) are:
- Meat-less
- Egg-less
- Dairy-free
- Healthy
- Can be made soy-free and gluten-free
- Hearty
- Easy to make
- Tossed in a creamy gravy
- Perfect for lunch, dinner, or meal prep
- Incredibly delicious!
Looking for more dishes with vegan meatballs, be sure to check out the following recipes:
- Lentil meatballs in Indian Curry Sauce
- No-Meat balls with Vegan Gravy over Mashed Potatoes
- Vegan Meatballs with Spaghetti and Tomato Sauce
- Vegan sweet potato falafel
- Or how about Vegan Lasagna or Mexican One-pot Taco Pasta?
- Also, my Lentil Bolognese and the classic Vegan Spaghetti Bolognese are incredibly delicious!
Anyway, if you try this recipe for Vegan Swedish Meatballs (Koettbullar), please leave a comment and rating! And if you take a photo of your delicious no-meat balls and share it on Instagram, please make sure to tag me @biancazapatka and use the hashtag #biancazapatka because I love seeing your remakes! Happy cooking!
Vegan Swedish Meatballs
Author:Ingredients
Vegan Meatballs
- ½ cup (100 g) dry lentils green or brown
- 1 ½ cup (360 ml) water
- 1 tbsp oil + more for brushing
- 1 onion diced
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 1 cup (150 g) mushrooms roughly chopped
- 2 tsp cumin
- ¾ cup (70 g) rolled oats gluten-free if needed
- 3 tbsp fresh parsley chopped (or sub 1 tbsp dried herbs)
- 2-3 tbsp soy sauce or tamari sauce (if gluten-free)
- ⅓ tsp salt or to taste
- ½ tsp black pepper or to taste
Gravy
- 1 cup (240 ml) vegetable broth
- 1 14 oz can (400 ml) light coconut milk or other non-dairy milk
- 2 tbsp soy sauce or tamari (if gluten-free)
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp cornstarch or arrowroot flour
To serve (optional)
- pasta of your choice
Instructions
Vegan Meatballs
- Cook the lentils in a pot with 1 ½ cups of water for 20 minutes, or according to the package instructions.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a pan and sauté the onion for 3 minutes, until translucent. Add the garlic and sauté for another minute, until fragrant. Then add the chopped mushrooms and cumin and continue sautéing for about 3 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender (*see step-by-step photos and recipe video above).
- Place the oats in a blender or food processor and process them into flour. Then add in the cooked lentils, sautéed onions, garlic, mushrooms, parsley, soy sauce, salt, and pepper. Pulse until combined, but not puréed, leaving a little texture. Taste and adjust salt and pepper if needed. Then set the mixture aside for 10 minutes (or refrigerate overnight if you want to continue the next day).
- Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Form the mixture into balls with wet hands and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Brush or spray the balls with a little oil and bake for 25-30 minutes, turning them halfway through.
Gravy
- Add all ingredients (except the cornstarch and water) to a pot or saucepan and bring to a boil.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch and 2-3 tablespoons of water to dissolve. Then, whisk it into the gravy and bring to a boil again, stirring constantly. Simmer for a few minutes, until the gravy is thick and creamy.
- Place the vegan meatballs in the gravy and serve over pasta, spaetzle or mashed potatoes!
- Enjoy!
Notes
- Storage: Store leftover sauce and vegan meatballs separately in the refrigerator or the balls will get mushy. Reheat leftover meatballs gently in the microwave or in the oven for a crispier result.
- Sauce: You can also serve these vegan meatballs with mushroom gravy or mushroom stroganoff.
- Please read my blog post for further information about this recipe!
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These were amazing! Very flavourful.. we made them on toasted buns and it was delish!
That’s great! Thank you! 🙂
I followed this recipe to a tee and as other comments have pointed out the meatballs are very mushy and the gravy was super watery and never thickened. I had to make some changes. I’m sorry but I really didn’t enjoy this.
When you overcook the lentils in too much water, your vegan meatballs may turn out mushy. Therefore make sure to cook the lentils until just tender. Otherwise, you can also add more oat flour if the lentil meatball mixture is too soft. If the gravy is still too liquid, you can thicken it with more cornstarch or cook it longer until desired consistency. Also make sure to use a new spoon when tasting the graving as saliva contain enzymes that break down starch so it won’t thicken.
I’ve made meatless balls before, with much more ingredients, and well to say the least, all the extra ingredients are necessary. These balls was complete mush even after cooking it for 40+ minutes (recipe calls for 25-30 mins). Also i noticed in the video there were waaayyy more than 1 cup of mushrooms used and waayyyy less than 1 whole onion. Idk if that could have played a factor in texture but this recipe was definitely missing a firming ingredient. I almost knew it would be mushy by the ingredient list but I still gave it a try. Oh well
I highly recommend measuring the ingredients in grams and ml to be sure you have the correct amounts.
This is one of my favorite recipes! Super easy to throw together on a busy weeknight and to make it even easier I use Beyond meatballs. The gravy tastes just like the savory Swedish meatball sauce you’re hoping for. Yum!!
Awesome! I’m very glad that you liked it! 🙂
Thank you so much for your great feedback! 💓
These were so easy to make and amazing to eat; yum. I served them with mash potatoes some pickled cucumbers and of course some lingonberries. Thank you; I got many compliments from the family.
Awesome! Thank you so much for your great feedback! ❤️
This is the second time I have made this recipe but this time I substituted the mushrooms for a plant-based mince and it tasted amazing! Really happy with how this turned out. Thanks for sharing this recipe🙂
That’s great! 🙂
Glad you love this recipe so much!
Many thanks,
Bianca ♡
I’ve made these three times in less than a month. They are so easy and so delicious.
That’s great! Thank you! 🙂
This was my first attempt to cook a vegan version of traditionally non-vegan food, I am a vegetarian for 7 years now. Words can not describe enough how excited me and my partner was after tasting the meatballs. This recipe is for sure one that we will add to our monthly food plan at least twice per month. I read the comments and added a pinch of nutmeg and dried coriander as well as some dried oregano. Thank you!!!
Hi Katerina,
thanks for your feedback!
So glad you love this dish!
Greetings,
Bianca 🙂
My meatballs came out really soft but were still delicious. Should I have baked them longer?
Hey Patty!
Maybe you’ve had a little too much liquids in there. But baking them a little longer would have helped as well, I guess. 🙂
I am disappointed in this recipe , I think the lentils would need more than 20 minutes to cook therefor having to add more liquid , I was out of water and they were still hard . The texture is very thick and kind of pasty lack of moisture in the mixe . I can feel the lentils not quite done , 1 table spoon of Bragg in the mixe is enough 2 would be so salty even with one it’s kind of salty for me . I am a very good cook , I cook every day I can always salvage a recipe when it’s not quite to my liking but this one I do t know what I can do to repurpose those ingredients . Thank you I will stick to vital wheat gluten meatballs they truly give this chewiness to the meatballs .
Thank you for your feedback. For me the given amount of water is enough to cook the lentils. I can only guess that you used too much heat so the water evaporated.
I only made the sauce but it was super delicious! I also had to add a little more cornstarch (I ended up using 3 tbsp total) but I thought the taste was amazing. Thank you for this!
Hey Caitlin! I’m glad you enjoyed the sauce. 🙂
This turned out better than I expected! Some vegan recipes taste nothing like the real thing but this was very similar.
Awesome, I really love to hear that. Thank you so much, Madeleine! 🙂
Has anyone used a tomato sauce with these veganballs?
Hi Sueheg!
These vegan meatballs can be served with tomato sauce as well. Give it a try! 🙂
Bianca, this recipe is packed full of flavour. It’s really good. I tried it and recommend it. I had them with potato vegan air fried chips. Thank you so much for sharing.
I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks a lot, Clara! <3
Silly question, but you do drain the lentils when cooked, right? I did and added them to the blender for quick pulses but the balls were dense and heavy. Next time I’ll pulse less.
Hi Kath,
I do not drain the lentils because they absorb all the liquid during cooking.
Greetings,
Bianca
It took me way more than 1 tablespoon of cornstarch to thicken the gravy up, but it was still very good! Can’t comment on the meatballs as I just used premade from trader joes.
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for your feedback! 🙂
Delicious, I served these meatballs and gravy with mashed potatoes. Will definitely make over and over again. I did use the cumin the recipe called for, but next time will swap it for the cardamom and nutmeg for a more Ikea-y taste. This was such a great stand in for the Ikea meatballs my kids miss since going meatless. Thanks for the recipe!
That’s awesome! 🙂
I am glad you love these! ♡
Many thanks, Bianca!
Love! I make a couple substitutions based on what I have on hand, but this is a favorite comfort food recipe for sure.
First, I buy the frozen plant based meatballs from IKEA because I’m lazy lol. I use a vegan beef-flavored bouillon instead of the vegetable broth, oat milk in place of the coconut milk because my husband isn’t a fan of coconut milk, and I add in mushrooms for extra meaty flavor/texture. My husband isn’t plant based but totally approves of this recipe.
So glad you love this recipe, though you went the easier way! 😀
Thanks for your lovely feedback! ❤
The meatballs and sauce turned out perfect for me! I made a few substitutions based on an old non vegan Swedish meatball recipe. I used caraway seeds instead of cumin, and added a splash of whisky to the sauce. And used fresh lemon thyme instead of parsley, as it was all I had to hand. I used a tin of cooked green lentils.
Served with some sautéed celeriac with more lemon thyme, and I mixed some brown basmati rice with the celeriac and added some fresh spinach.
When my husband tried it, his eyes lit up and he asked “Have we got leftovers for tomorrow?” Always a sign of approval, and thankfully the answer was yes!
Thanks for the great recipe, I’ll be adding this to my permanent repertoire, and I shared it with my parents as I know they’ll love it too!
That’s awesome! I am glad you loved this recipe! ♡
Thanks for sharing your feedback! 🙂
I only made the gravy from this recipe (I used IKEA vegan meatballs), and although the taste was fine, the texture was very disappointing. I followed the directions to a tee, but the gravy was more like watery sauce. I added a little more cornstarch, but that did not help.
Hi Kristin,
so sorry for that. Did you use canned coconut milk? It’s creamier than other milks.
Also, be sure to use pure soy sauce or tamari because it has a more intense flavor (check the ingredient label).
Kind regards,
Bianca
I had a similar issue when I first made the sauce (I used unsweetened oat drink) so I let it sit and cool for about 20 mins while the meatballs finished cooking then reheated it, and it had thickened up nicely. Just a tip in case you choose to make it again.
I am glad you enjoyed this recipe! ♡
Thanks for sharing your feedback! 🙂
These look great! Do you think it would be possible to omit the mushrooms or substitute something else?
Yes, sure! 😉
Hello – im yet to make this but can i use cooked tinned lentils(for quickness) rather than cook them from dry? Thanks
Yes, sure! Simply skip the first step! 🙂
This sauce is SO good. It brought me right back to being a kid in IKEA. The only “issue” I ran into is that I had way too many meatballs. For the amount of sauce this recipe makes, I only formed balls using half of the mixture and it was plenty. Highly recommend if you’ve been craving swedish meatballs 🙂
So glad you love this recipe! ❤️
Thank you so much! 🙂
Thanks for the recipe, pretty good flavour from these, though I had to quadruple the recipe to make enough to not quite cover two 2 large oven trays. A note of warning- if, like me, you prefer red lentils, don’t do what I did and follow the same lentil to water ratio mentioned in this recipe. I ended up with extremely watery lentils, so the mixture wasn’t nearly solid enough. I had to add more flour to balance it out. Due to the oats absorbing water, these dried out a lot over time, and in fact the final result was a little too dry, so it might be best to prepare the mixture ahead of time, too wet, and then wait for the oats to absorb until it gets to a more handleable consistency.
I am so glad you could balance out the texture and you enjoyed these vegan meatballs!
I hope you’ll try it with other lentils, too! So excited to hear your feedback on which version you like more! 😉
Thanks for the feedback! 🙂
Can’t wait to make this!
Hope you’ll enjoy it! 🙂
These meatballs were amazing! I switched out the Cumin for a mix of Cardamom and Nutmeg like I saw on most other recipes, and made a couple more changes: used about 2/3 cup of yellow Lentils, 1 + 1/2 cup mushrooms (just to finish up what I had left) and only 2/3 cup Oats. I stopped the food processor on the oats a little before they were completely powdered, so the oats were more “shredded” than “flour”.
Overall they turned out SO WELL! I was especially impressed by how they held together. I’ve made a ton of veggie burgers in the past, but they’ve all been super delicate. I think I might just switch over to using lentils for meatballs now on!
So glad you love these vegan meatballs!
You can definitely get creative with this recipe.
Thank you so much for your amazing feedback! 🙂
Love the flavors and taste of the meatballs and how the gravy enhances it. Will definitely make this again, like later today! Thanks for sharing this really delicious recipe.
So glad you love these vegan meatballs! 🙂
Thank you for your feedback on this recipe! <3
i don’t know what I did wrong but my mix is too wet and won’t form stable balls 🙁 what can I add to firm them up?
Sorry but I don’t know what you did wrong.
If you follow the recipe exactly as instructed it will work perfectly.
I recommend adding more oat flour. Maybe this will help.
I tried the vegan meatball recipe for a Persian sour cherry rice recipe and it worked fantastic. The texture was perfect and didn’t changed when added to the cherry sauce. Thank you so much for the inspiration 💗
So glad you love this recipe!
Thank you so much for your amazing feedback! 🙂
Loved this recipe!! I always loved creamy sauces before going vegan, so I’m always happy to have animal free dishes!
Also really loved the Lentil balls. I am a huge fan of legumes and lentils were a good bean for this dish. I ate these with potatoes last night and will be using the leftovers with some brown rice today 🙂
So glad you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you so much for your amazing feedback! ❤️
Delicious, great recipe! I made mine with the mushroom gravy and it was lovely, thank you!❤
Sounds amazing! Thank you 🙂
Die besten Rezepte gibt es immer bei Bianca 💗es war heute einfach hervorragend kann ich nur weiter empfehlen 💜
Das freut mich sehr! Ich danke dir! 😊
Great recipe, very tasty. I highly recommend adding a dash or two of liquid smoke to the (non-)meatball mixture for some added savouriness.
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for the tip! 😉
I made these last week with some mashed potatoes. Super easy and delicious! Thank you!!
Thank you so much! ❤️
Loved these, I made the balls with vegan beef and followed the gravy recipe as is. So amazing – thanks so much for the idea and the recipe <3
So glad you love this recipe! Thank you so much! 😊❤️
Very yummy Bianca, thanks, it is probably your third recipe That I made 😉 will keep going!
So glad you love my recipes! Thank you so much for your amazing feedback! ❤️
Recipe made yesterday for dinner: I found the taste of Swedish dumplings that I ate as a child at Ikea .. Thank you for sharing!
So glad you love this recipe!
Thank you ❤️