Spicy Meatballs (using tofu and borlotti beans)
1 box of firm tofu
2 cups borlotti beans
minced garlic to taste (lots!!)
minced chili to taste (lots!!)
approx 3 cups of seasoned flour
1 large Spanish onion
olive oil
herbs - parsley, basil, oregano, marjoram, sage (for seasoning the flour)
2-3 teaspoons of nutritional yeast
sea salt and black pepper
I was just away with my folks for the weekend and my mum cooked linguini with tomato sauce with optional meatballs for the meateaters (they've always been amazingly good with my dietary habits - hope they're this understanding when I come out!) and watching those balls of beef sizzling in the pot I wondered if I could make a suitable substitute for meatballs to have with pasta. So I whipped this up tonight, found it delicious and decided to share.
1. Prepare the barlotti beans. If you've soaked them over night, simmer them for about a half an hour. If not, simmer them for about an hour on medium heat until they're super tender.
2. Drain the tofu, add it and the beans to a blender, and blend them all together into a big mush!!
3. Transfer this mixture to a big bowl.
4. Chop the onion finely and add it to the beans & tofu mixture. At this point also add the garlic and chili. Mix really thoroughly.
5. Season your flour by grinding the salt and pepper into it, then add the herbs. I use pre-dried, ground herbs obviously.
6. Add about two-thirds of the flour to the meatball mixture and mix it all up reeeeeeaaaallll good. Get your hands into it and mix it all up with your fingers. Those of you who were once meat-eaters will notice how much more pleasant this is than doing it with minced beef. You can lick the raw mix off your fingers afterwards without worrying as well!
7. Heat the oil in a frying pan, then begin shaping the mixture into little balls. The larger the balls, the more quickly they fall apart, I noticed. Also, roll them in the remains of the flour before adding them to the pan.
8. Cook until nice brown on both sides, then serve with pasta of your choice and a rich, tomato pasta sauce!
Yummy!
SO HOW'D IT GO?
I didn't like these. They were too mushy for my taste and sorta bland, and I used a lot of spices. They did smell delicious as I was frying them though! I really wanted to like these because I would like to avoid TVP, but I guess it's back to TVP for me.
Thank you Sisse I'm glad you didn't get hurt by my straightforwardness. We're all different, also in the kitchen! ;D Happy cooking!
Jenny: No, no you didn't hurt anyone - well, at least not me ;) It's just a difference of opnions thats all. The reason I asked was because I didn't want to waste food on a dish that might come out all wrong.
I like the straight forward way - just say what you mean, I like it :)
Sisse
Woah, there, Jenny--issues?? Cool down, it's a legitimate question.
no no you misunderstand me. im sorry if thats the impression you get from my post. i lived in london for 3 years and often experienced how english speaker find the finnish way of being truthful and direct often hurts people. for no good reason in my opinion but then again our culture and the way we talk is very different to how you express yourself in english. im very sorry if i hurt anyone.
i still dont think you ever need too exact measurements when cooking ;)
Woah, there, Jenny--issues?? Cool down, it's a legitimate question. A lot of people do cook freestyle but if you need to know about how much you're actually going to end up with, a measurement (be it cups, oz or grammes) is a help. Especially if they name a brand that isn't available where you live. That's not the case here, but it is true that an approximate idea of how much tofu came in your particular box is a help, especially if the person is learning to cook! We've all got to start where we are, you know? Sisse isn't attacking the poster of this recipe but asking for a little clarification to make it easier on the road to success.
Here we go again! How much is a "box" of tofu? I really like this site, but its very annoying when people don't specify the measurements. >:( A box of tofu can be 10 different sizes in 10 different places on earth! Hope to get an answer soon, cause these meatballs look delicious! :P
i like this site too but what i think is annoying is when people ask for exact measurements. that's all fine if it's a baking recipe as you really must be 100% exakt with measurements when baking. the beauty of cooking however is that you dont necessarily have to be so exakt. it's the experimenting part that makes cooking fun. that's why im a good cook and a rubbish baker. also, if you have actually made your own meals for a while you wouldn't need to ask questions like this. you just whip stuff up and add a splash of this and that and if it doesnt come out the way you want it you learn for the next time you make it. making mistakes in life is a good way to learn.
I like these but I think the texture might have been better if I used seasoned bread crumbs in place of the seasoned flour. Also, this made about 4 dozen meatballs - which is far more than 4 servings - so you can put some away for later. Um, also, I didn't know what Borlotti beans were and I didn't know what cranberry beans were - so I used canned Dun peas in place - they are also called Kapucijners here in Holland. So the total time of cooking for me was about 1 hour. I would make these again but with bread crumbs probably. I made photos and will post later. ;)
Here we go again! How much is a "box" of tofu? I really like this site, but its very annoying when people don't specify the measurements. >:( A box of tofu can be 10 different sizes in 10 different places on earth! Hope to get an answer soon, cause these meatballs look delicious! :P