You dont need obscure ingredients or hours of time to make bangin Swedish meatballs at home.
The texture was dense and bouncy, much closer to uncased sausages than tender, fluffy Italian-American meatballs.
As for the gravy, it seemed like a standard roux-thickened meat stock.
This makes creating a vegan version difficult.
You cant just swap vegetables in for meat and expect an even vaguely similar result.
Making up the difference usually calls for specialty ingredients that are expensive, hard to find, or both.
I wouldnt be surprised if either or both figure heavily into IKEAs grand vegan meatball plan.
For several reasons, I took a different path.
I would never ask anyone to steam dozens of tiny meatballs and then pan-fry them in multiple batches.
Also, whats the average person going to do with a mostly-full package of vital wheat gluten?
Make more steamed-then-fried meatballs?
To accomplish this, I turned to some reliable vegetable buddies: eggplant and white button mushrooms.
Both of them soak up oil like nobodys business, which is exactly what you want in this case.
Panko, added at the very end, holds the whole mess together.
Once theyre rolled out, the balls go straight into the ovenno chilling or waiting around.
Best of all, they hold their shape perfectly, even when doused in gravy.
Lets talk about the gravy, which, along with the lingonberry jam, basically carries the IKEA meatballs.
Most Swedish meatball recipes use sour cream gravy, but I couldnt detect any dairy in the IKEA version.
Still, I figured that a little extra richness couldnt hurt, especially when boxed vegetable stock is involved.
Why wait for IKEAs version when this one is so good?
Vegan Swedish-style meatballs
Im all about flexible ingredients lists, but cashews arethenut for this recipe.
They easily puree with just an hour of soaking and add bulk without screaming Hey!
Check out all these cashews!
Freeze leftover balls on a sheet pan until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag for long-term storage.
They reheat well in the microwave or oven.
(Skip this step if youre using sour cream.)
For the gravy, heat two tablespoons of olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high.
Add the onions and cook until theyre soft and dark brown at the edges, about five minutes.
Add the flour, reduce heat to medium-low, and stir constantly for two or three minutes.
If the pan looks dry, add a little bit more oil.
Cover the pot and let it simmer while you make the balls.
Heat two more tablespoons of olive oil in your biggest skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the eggplant cubes, sliced garlic, and the water.
Add the soy sauce and sugar, taste, and adjust the seasoning.
You wont need a ton of water; start with a few tablespoons and add more if needed.
When everything is nicely dissolved, scrape the contents of the skillet into the gravy and stir to combine.
Season to taste with powdered vegetable bouillon,MSG, or mushroom seasoning.
Finally, add the panko to the food processor and pulse a few times, until just barely combined.
You should have a deeply unappealing grey-brown paste.
Now for the messy part.
Heat your oven to 350oF, line a sheet pan with parchment, and get your hands wet.
Roll the mixture into balls roughly 1 inch in diameter, transferring them to the pan as you go.
Periodically rinse the sticky buildup off your hands to keep things moving along.
Bake the rolled balls on the top rack of your oven until nicely browned, 20-30 minutes.
Meanwhile, finish off the gravy.
I used a stick blender for both steps, but a regular blender works just as well.
Season the gravy to taste with lemon juice, salt, and pepper.
