Gen X confession: I went vegan way before I had a chance to try authentic Swedish meatballs. The (non-vegan) ones I knew and loved came from a microwave dinner…and they were my favorite meal of all time. I’ve tried to recreate the magic here. Light, savory balls made with tofu for chewiness and tahini for depth. The gravy is rich, creamy, and funky, just like I remembered it. And I guess I’m going to get booed out of Sweden when I say this, but if you can’t find traditional lingonberry jam, cranberry sauce is fantastic too. Serve over pasta or mashed potatoes.

These are adapted from my favorite tofu balls in the cookbook Tofu Cookery! The dried porcini mushrooms give the sauce serious depth, it really makes the meal. But regular mushroom gravy would be yummy too. (Porcini powder is cheaper but doesn’t pack the same punch.)

White pepper is also a flavor MVP! It gives a nice perfume and spice that feels a bit more special than black pepper. But use black pepper if you got to. Now go forth and enjoy this pure comort without the microwave or the trip to IKEA.

Swedish Tofu Balls

Isa Chandra

Meatballs but make them Swedish and vegan!

No ratings yet

Notes

~If you don’t have a highspeed blender, you can boil the cashews for 10 minutes, then cool and blend or soak them ahead of time for at least 2 hours.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course Main Course

Servings servings

Ingredients

For the sauce:

3 cups broth
1 cup whole unroasted cashews
1/4 cup dried porcinis
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper

For the balls:

14 oz extra firm tofu
1 small very finely chopped onion
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons tahini
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/3 cup all-purpose flour

Olive oil to pan-fry

Chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Instructions

Make the sauce:

Combine all ingredients in a high-speed blender. Blend until very smooth, scraping down the sides with a rubber spatula occasionally.
Transfer to a small pot and gently heat until thick and bubbly. Cover and set aside.

Make the balls:

In a medium mixing bowl, use your hands or an avocado masher to mash up the tofu until it resembles ricotta. Mix in the onion, soy sauce, tahini and breadcrumbs until they are firm and hold together easily.
Pour the flour in a wide shallow bowl or a rimmed dinner plate. Roll mixture into golf ball sized balls. Roll each ball in flour.
Preheat a large skillet (cast iron, preferably) over medium heat. Pour a thin layer of olive oil into skillet. Drop a little flour in and if it bubbles quickly, the oil is ready.
Fry each ball until browned on all sides. Do it in two batches if you need, so as not to crowd the pan.
Serve over mashed potatoes or buttered noodles, smothered in sauce, sprinkled with parsley and with dollops of lingonberry jam or cranberry sauce.