meatless wild rice and mushroom “meatballs”

A long-time quest for the perfect veggie burger or vegetarian meatball recipe led me to vegetarian Swedish meatballs by Pinch of Yum.

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meatballs

2 cups cooked wild rice
1 heaping cup finely chopped mushrooms
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 eggs
3/4 cup breadcrumbs
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt (can omit salt, since most packaged breadcrumbs are salted – I added around 1/4 t salt and it was still too salty)

The recipe came accompanied with a Swedish meatball sauce. I tried it, and found it really bland. I recommend adding some herbs, which I included here in this adaptation:

2-3 tablespoons salted butter
1/2 teaspoon onion powder and/or garlic powder
2-3 tablespoons flour
enough vegetable broth or chicken stock to thin, ~1 cup
~1/4 – 1/2 c plain yogurt or sour cream, to taste
salt and black pepper to taste
1/8 t sage
1/8 t thyme

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recipe by a pinch of yum and adapted by friedsig

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The gravy is bland – sorry, Sweden! – so kick it up with some herbs or spices if you decide to make it. Otherwise, you might want to serve this with some gravy that has some actual flavor. (Even a decent vegan gravy has more flavor than an unseasoned white gravy!)

My favorite vegan meatballs? I think the winner is still these white bean based vegetarian buffalo “meatballs”. These wild rice “meatballs” have a kind of a meaty bite, since wild rice and mushrooms have a bit of chew to them. However, the buffalo meatballs’ white bean base make them more filling. If you want something that holds together, looks kinda funky, and has a nice chew, you can try these wild rice meatballs. Otherwise, check out buffalo “meatballs”.

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