Vegan Lentil Balls with Sweet and Sour Sauce
Ginny McMeans
Published:
May 12, 2018
Last Modified:
May 9, 2024
Vegan Lentil Balls Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe has so many tasty ingredients wrapped up in one appetizer. Perfect crispy little baked balls are served with a rich sauce.
Finger food is pretty fun. There are always dips but one bite wonders and just a little bit more special and everyone seems to go for them. Whether a toothpick is involved or not appetizers go down easy.
In fact, in Spain they have whole restaurants devoted to appetizers and those little plates are called tapas. Rolled Toasted Mushroom Appetizer and Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto Tortilla Rollups would be perfect at any tapas bar.
Perfect at your house for that matter.
This recipe is actually two quality recipes that have been combined.
The sweet and sour sauce can be used in many other recipes and you may also find yourself eating these little lentil balls without a sauce and that’s okay, too.
We often think of Asian food when we think of sweet and sour sauce. The truth is they’ve been used the world over for centuries.
This sweet and sour sauce recipe doesn’t have a nationality. It is just all-around good and is the perfect base to hold crisp lentil balls.
What Other Ways can I Serve Vegan Lentil Balls?
Besides as an appetizer you can serve just as is, with the sauce, for a main meal over rice.
Serve the lentil balls heated through with marinara sauce and fill up a hoagie bun.
Lentil balls would be phenomenal served with a white sauce and pasta.
BBQ sauce and lentil balls are a match made in heaven.
Air fried instead of baked in the oven and you get an even crispier ball that uses less oil.
Served over the holidays next to cranberry sauce would be a really nice change-up.
What Other Ways Can I Use This Sweet and Sour Sauce Recipe?
Perfect as a marinade for tofu cubes. Then bake and serve with more sauce – right over basmati rice.
Serve warm with air-fried vegan tortellini or ravioli, like a dip.
Toss with fresh stir fried vegetables such as snap peas, asparagus, zucchini, carrots and sweet potatoes. Always good over rice.
Brush sweet and sour sauce on vegetable kabobs for a real treat.
Make a Vietnamese sweet and sour soup with bean sprouts and cabbage.
Vegan Lentil Balls with Sweet and Sour Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 cup dried lentils, rinsed and drained
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 8 ounces white mushrooms
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1/2 cup onion – onion, white, finely diced
- 1/2 cup red bell pepper, finely diced
- 1 cup carrot, grated or one carrot
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1/4 cup white wine
- 1/2 cup vegetable stock/broth
- 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil for mini muffin tins
To make the sweet and sour sauce:
- 4 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 2/3 cup apricot preserves
- 6 tablespoons BBQ sauce
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon tabasco sauce
Instructions
- Bring the water to a boil. Add the lentils and salt and bring back to a boil.
- Cover and lower the heat to medium and cook al dente which is 10 minutes. Drain and cool the lentils.
- Add the mushroom to a food processor and ‘pulse’ until the mushrooms are coarsely chopped.
- Add the lentils to a food processor with the mushrooms and pulse a few more time to chop and incorporate the lentils.
- In a skillet heat the oil to medium high heat. Add the chopped onion and sauté for 5 minutes.
- Add the bell peppers and carrot and saute another 5 minutes.
- Turn the chopped mushrooms and lentils into the skillet along with the sauteed vegetables.
- Add the garlic powder, oregano and parsley. Cook 4 minutes.
- Add the white wine and cook 1 minute.
- Add the vegetable broth, breadcrumbs, salt and pepper. Stir and cook for 1 minute then set aside to cool.
- While the mixture is cooling – lightly oil mini muffin tins. Use a bit of a paper towel to dunk in the oil and wipe around a few of the tins. Re-dunk and wipe again. This is great in browning the balls and they will also fall right out of the tins after cooked.
- When the lentil mixture is cool enough to handle make 48 balls. Drop each ball in the prepared muffin tins. I have two tins of twelve so I cook these in two batches.
- Bake at 350° for 40 minutes turning the balls over after 20 minutes. You can use a fork to just touch and spin. They move very easily.
- When baking time is up remove from the oven and the tins and let the balls cool on a rack.
- You can freeze the balls at this point or keep in the refrigerator for 5 days or continue on with the recipe.
To make the sweet and sour sauce:
- Put all of the ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth – about 30 seconds.
- You can also freeze the sauce at this point or keep in the refrigerator for 5 days or continue on with the recipe.
- Put the sweet and sour sauce in a saucepan that will also hold the lentil balls.
- Add the balls and heat through over medium heat for about 4 minutes.
- Serve in a chafing dish or a mini slow cooker to keep warm. Serve with toothpicks.
