Vegan Meatballs in White Sauce
These vegan meatballs are made from textured soy protein and served in a creamy, dairy-free cashew sauce with a side of fluffy mashed potatoes. The taste and the bite land surprisingly close to classic meatballs, thanks to the TSP granules that give real texture, while the whole plate stays fully plant-based. It is a satisfying, comforting dinner that works for a weeknight or for feeding guests who are skeptical about meatless food.
This recipe is amazing, and I am not modest about it at all. These vegan meatballs turned out excellent — the taste is just like regular meatballs, and even the texture is on point thanks to TSP (textured soy protein) granules. The full plate (meatballs, sauce, and mashed potatoes) takes about an hour, but it is so worth it.
What makes these vegan meatballs work
The base is textured soy protein granules, rehydrated in hot water until soft. TSP is a good choice here because it soaks up seasoning and holds a meaty, slightly chewy bite once fried, which is exactly what you want in a meatball. Chickpea flour and psyllium husks do the binding work: the chickpea flour adds body when it cooks, and the psyllium turns gel-like once hydrated, so the mixture holds its shape instead of crumbling in the pan. A teaspoon of cocoa powder might read as strange, but it deepens the savory color and adds a subtle roundness, the same way a touch of cocoa works in a chili or a rich stew.
Ingredient notes and swaps
The meatball seasoning I use contains cumin, black pepper, ground sweet pepper, coriander, onion powder, and garlic powder. If you do not have a pre-mixed blend, combine those spices to taste — start with the cumin and sweet pepper as your base, then adjust. The dry veggie mix adds savory depth; if yours is salty, hold back a little on the added sea salt so the meatballs do not come out over-seasoned.
For the cashew sauce, soak the cashews overnight or for at least two hours so they blend down completely. Raw cashews are important here — roasted or salted ones will throw off the flavor. The nutritional yeast is what gives the sauce its cheesy note, and the garlic is generous on purpose. I like it with a strong garlic flavor, so I use six to eight cloves, but you can absolutely dial it back if you prefer something milder.
Tips for meatballs that hold together
After you mix everything, let the composition sit for a few minutes. This rest gives the psyllium and chickpea flour time to hydrate and firm up, which makes shaping much easier. If the mixture feels too dry to roll into balls, add one or two tablespoons of water and try again. If it feels too wet and sticky, a little more chickpea flour will tighten it up.
When you fry, heat enough oil to cover the bottom of a non-stick pan evenly — you are shallow-frying, not deep-frying. Give the meatballs a good sear on all sides until they are nicely crisp, then drain them on a paper towel to pull off the excess oil. A crisp exterior is what keeps them from going soft once they sit in the sauce.
Getting the cashew sauce silky
Blend the soaked cashews, water, nutritional yeast, flour, garlic, salt, and white pepper until completely smooth. This can take around five minutes of continuous blending — keep going until you no longer feel any graininess from the cashews. A high-powered blender gets you there faster, but patience does the job in any machine.
Pour the blended sauce into a pan and cook it slowly over medium heat, stirring the whole time. The flour and cashews will thicken it as it warms; stop once it reaches the consistency of yogurt, because it will thicken further as it cools. Then fold in the fried meatballs so they soak up that creamy, cheesy sauce.
My trick for fluffy vegan mashed potatoes
Now, about my vegan mashed potatoes — I have a couple of tips and tricks for you. I recently gave up dairy completely, as I found out it was causing me allergic reactions, so no more butter for me. I always added butter to mashed potatoes and felt like they tasted bad without it, but then I had a brilliant idea of using vegan mayo instead. My mashed potato recipe not only turned out just as fluffy, but I think the taste is even better than it was when I used butter.
Peel the potatoes, cut them into cubes, and boil until tender — check with a fork after about twenty minutes. Drain almost all the water but save around a cup, then mix with a hand mixer, adding a little of that reserved water to reach the consistency you like. Finish with sea salt to taste and two tablespoons of vegan mayo, which I have found is the best replacement for butter in vegan mashed potatoes.
Make ahead, storage, and what to serve alongside
To save time, double or triple the meatball batch, shape the balls, and freeze them uncooked for later — next time the recipe comes together in half the time. Leftovers keep well in the fridge for a few days; store the meatballs in their sauce so they stay moist, and warm gently on the stovetop with a splash of water if the sauce has set too firm. The mashed potatoes are best fresh but reheat fine with a little extra liquid whisked in.
This is a hearty main on its own, but if you want to round out the meal, a bright soup ahead of it works beautifully — try my vegan red lentil soup or a warming vegan beetroot borscht. If you are cooking a full spread, my vegan Olivier salad makes a classic, comforting side. And if you love this meatball-and-sauce idea, you will probably enjoy my vegan meatball soup too.
If you try these vegan meatballs, I would love to know how the cashew sauce turned out for you and whether you went bold with the garlic like I do — please rate the recipe and come back to leave a comment telling me how it was.
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Vegan Meatballs in White Sauce
Ingredients
Vegan meatballs:
- 100 g textured soy protein granules
- 1 onion diced
- 2 Tbsp chickpea flour
- 1 Tbsp psyllium husks
- 3-4 tsp meatball seasoning mine contains cumin, black pepper, ground sweet pepper, coriander, onion powder, garlic powder
- 2 Tbsp dry veggie mix
- 1 tsp cocoa powder
- ½ tsp sea salt
- oil for frying
Cashew sauce:
- 1 handful cashews raw, soaked overnight or for at least 2 hours
- 2 cups water
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 2 Tbsp flour
- 6-8 cloves garlic I like it with a strong garlic flavor, but you can add less
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ½ tsp white pepper ground
Vegan mashed potatoes:
- 6 potatoes peeled
- 2 Tbsp vegan mayonnaise
- salt to taste
Instructions
- Vegan meatballs:
- Add the textured soy protein granules to a bowl and pour hot water over them. Let them soak. In the meantime, make the cashew sauce or the mashed potatoes.
- When they’re soft, in about 10 minutes, drain them and add the rest of the ingredients for the vegan meatballs. Mix everything well and let the mixture sit for a while.
- If the mixture is too dry and it’s hard to shape the balls, just add 1-2 Tbsp of water.
- Heat some oil in a non-stick pan, making sure it covers the bottom. You don’t have to deep fry these; just add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan evenly.
- Shape the vegan meatballs and fry them on all sides until nice and crispy.
- Place them on a paper towel to remove any excess oil.
- Cashew sauce:
- Add all the ingredients to a blender and blend until everything is super-smooth. Let it run for a couple of minutes, then check whether it still has a grainy texture from the cashews or if it’s smooth and ready to go. This takes about 5 minutes of continuous blending.
- Pour the sauce into a pan and cook slowly over medium heat, stirring continuously. You’ll notice the sauce start to thicken. Stop once it has the consistency of yogurt; it will thicken further as it cools.
- When the vegan meatballs are ready, add them to the pan of sauce.
- Vegan mashed potatoes:
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into cubes.
- Boil them until tender. Check them with a fork after 20 minutes to see if they’re soft.
- Drain almost all the water, but save about a cup.
- Using a hand mixer, start mashing the potatoes. Add a little of the reserved water to reach the desired consistency.
- Add sea salt to taste and the secret trick: 2 tablespoons of vegan mayo! I found this is the best replacement for butter in vegan mashed potatoes. Mix well and serve.
Notes
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Every component is plant-based — the meatballs use textured soy protein with chickpea flour and psyllium as binders, the creamy sauce is made from soaked cashews and nutritional yeast instead of dairy, and the mashed potatoes use vegan mayonnaise in place of butter. There are no eggs, dairy, or other animal products anywhere in the recipe.
The base is textured soy protein (TSP) granules, rehydrated in hot water until soft. They are bound with chickpea flour and psyllium husks, then flavored with diced onion, meatball seasoning, dry veggie mix, a touch of cocoa powder, and sea salt before being shallow-fried until crisp.
TSP granules are what give these meatballs their meaty texture, so they are the star ingredient here. If you cannot find them, the binding structure of chickpea flour and psyllium would need a different soaked-and-drained base to grip, so results with a swap will vary. For the closest bite, stick with TSP granules soaked as described.
A single teaspoon of cocoa powder deepens the savory color and adds a subtle roundness to the flavor, the same way a small amount of cocoa enriches a chili or a rich stew. It does not make the meatballs taste like chocolate. It simply rounds out the seasoning.
Let the mixture rest for a few minutes after mixing so the psyllium and chickpea flour can hydrate and firm up, which makes shaping easier. If the mixture is too dry to roll, add one or two tablespoons of water; if it is too wet, add a little more chickpea flour. Frying them crisp on all sides also helps them hold together in the sauce.
Yes, and it is a great time-saver. Double or triple the batch, shape the balls, and freeze them uncooked so the next time you make this recipe it comes together in about half the time. Cooked leftovers also keep in the fridge for a few days, best stored in their sauce so they stay moist.
Perfect comfort meal 🙂 My son loves it so much!!
Glad you and your son liked it!