How many times have you been to a barbecue and been severely disappointed by the selection of store bought burgers and hot dogs with a bare minimum of condiments? It happens to me all the time.
Since it’s 4th of July week, I’ve been thinking about barbecuing all week. Even though I love grilled vegetables, I wanted to grill something with protein. Store bought veggie burgers and soy hot dogs were not an option. They always taste bland to me.
Vegan meatballs sounded good. I looked up several recipes on the internet. I didn’t find anything with the ingredients I had on hand and the flavors I was craving. So, I decided to stick to what I know, lentils and rice, and make up my own recipe in the style of a kofta.
I think they came out great. Let me know what you think!
| Grilled Vegan “Meatballs” (Kofta) |
- 1/2 cup red lentils (masoor dal)
- 1/4 cup mung dal – Just use 3/4 cup red lentils if you don’t have any mung dal
- 1/4 cup rice
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 3 garlic cloves, grated on a microplane or finely minced
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, grated
- 1/4 medium sized onion, grated or finely minced
- 1/2 jalapeno, chopped
- 1 cup cauliflower, steamed or boiled
- 2 small carrots, steamed or boiled
- 1 tsp garam masala
- 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1/4 cup roughly ground nuts – walnuts, cashews, peanuts…anything goes
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
- 1/2 tsp salt
- Bring 2 1/4 cups of water to boil and add the lentils and rice. Return to boil. Cover and cook for 15 minutes on low heat.
- Squeeze as much water out of the cooked cauliflower and carrots as possible and toss into a large mixing bowl.
- Add all the other ingredients and the rice and lentil mix.
- Mix well.
- Form into little “meatballs”. I used a 1/8 cup measure so that they would all be the same size, you can eyeball it if you prefer.
- Refrigerate until ready to cook.
- These can be grilled, sauteed or baked.
- Serve lined into a hot dog bun with cilantro chutney and pickled onions. Or just plain with ketchup.
- To Grill:
- Preheat grill. Brush with oil to prevent sticking.
- Cook “meatballs” with the top closed on medium heat for 10-15 minutes turning mid way.
To Bake:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Bake on a greased baking sheet for about 20 minutes.  Until golden brown.
To Sautee:
Heat a tablespoon of oil on a nonstick pan.
Sautee meatballs on medium high heat for about 10-12 minutes, until evenly golden brown on the outside.
lovely!
omg lovely! cant wait to try 🙂
Sounds very good! Are the carrots and cauliflower grated?