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    Hummusapien » Recipes » Lunch and Dinner » Vegan Meatball Subs

    ★★★★★ from 31 reviews

    Vegan Meatball Subs

    Published Mar 1, 2022 · Modified Mar 1, 2022 · by Alexis Joseph · 143 Comments

    Jump to Recipe

    The best hearty Vegan Meatball Subs you'll crave for dinner! Loaded with flavor and served on a toasty bun. Kid-friendly!

    The BEST vegan meatball sub! Loaded with beans, Italian spices, and marinara on a toasty bun. Vegan, gluten-free, and kid-friendly!

    I made you plant based meatball subs because I love you and I love anything that's a vehicle for marinara sauce atop a toasty bun.

    You know my Easy Vegan Lasagna is the best thing since sliced bread. I'm the girl that asks for a side of tomato sauce with, um, everything.

    One of my all time favorite meals in Columbus was this stupendous eggplant meatball sub from a vegetarian restaurant called Whole World that sadly closed. This is my closest attempt at replicating that glory!

    The BEST vegan meatball sub! Loaded with beans, Italian spices, and marinara on a toasty bun. Vegan, gluten-free, and kid-friendly!

    How to make oven baked vegan meatball subs

    The key to making the meatballs is pulsing the beans, walnuts, veggies, and spices plus enough breadcrumbs to help them hold together and have that hearty texture. Flax helps, too!

    1. First, make the meatballs! Make a flax egg by whisking flax and water in a bowl.
    2. Toast beans and walnuts to get all that yummy flavor.
    3. Pulse beans, walnuts, onion, garlic, and spices in the food processor.
    4. Dump in a bowl and add flax and breadcrumbs. Texture!
    5. Form into balls, bake, throw on a toasted bun with marinara sauce, and devour!

    Key ingredients and tips

    These taste like pizza in the best way. Try topping them with extra nutritional yeast or whatever mozzarella cheese you love!

    • Pinto beans: I love pinto beans as the base, but white beans, chickpeas, or black beans would all work just fine.
    • Italian breadcrumbs: Panko adds fab texture and helps the vegetarian meatballs stick together. If all you have is plain breadcrumbs, go heavier on the Italian seasoning.
    • Mushrooms: for meaty texture and extra umami flavor. White mushrooms, baby bella, and cremini all work.
    • Walnuts: Even more meatiness, toasty flavor, and textural intrigue. Yum!
    • Onion and garlic: Essential for plenty of deep flavor in our bean balls.
    • Flax: For extra binding power.
    • Nutritional yeast: For cheezy flavor.
    • Italian seasoning: So these taste like meatballs!
    • Marinara: Use your favorite jar of marinara sauce to top off these subs. I like Rao's, Silver Palate, or the Kirkland organic one from Costco.
    • Buns: You'll need nice and soft sandwich buns to finish off the subs. Regular or whole wheat buns work!

    The BEST vegan meatball sub! Loaded with beans, Italian spices, and marinara on a toasty bun. Vegan, gluten-free, and kid-friendly!

    How to store meatballs

    Store any leftover meatballs in an air-tight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. These freeze great, too! To reheat, warm meatballs in the oven at 350F for 10-15 minutes or until warmed through. You can also reheat them on a skillet in a bit of olive oil.

    More vegan Italian-inspired dinner ideas

    • Creamy Vegan Tomato Basil Pasta
    • Vegan Spaghetti and Meatballs
    • Vegan Lasagna Soup
    • Vegan Spinach and Artichoke Alfredo Pasta

    THE MORE THE MAR[INARA]-IER!

    Print
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    vegan meatball subs

    Vegan Meatball Subs Recipe

    ★★★★★ 4.7 from 31 reviews
    • Author: Alexis Joseph | Hummusapien
    • Prep Time: 15 mins
    • Cook Time: 40 mins
    • Total Time: 55 mins
    • Yield: 6 subs 1x
    • Category: Main Meal
    • Method: Oven
    • Cuisine: Italian
    • Diet: Vegan
    Print Recipe
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    Description

    The best hearty Vegan Meatball Subs! Loaded with flavor and served on a toasty bun. Kid-friendly!


    Ingredients

    Units Scale
    • 1 batch vegan meatballs
    • 1 ½ cups marinara sauce (about 1 jar, plus more if desired)
    • 1 package sandwich rolls or hot dog buns

    Instructions

    1. Make vegan meatballs. Once they're in the oven, warm sauce in a saucepan over the stove.
    2. Once meatballs are done, keep oven on and toast buns for about 10 minutes.
    3. Put 3 meatballs in each bun and top with plenty of sauce. Enjoy!

    Keywords: vegan meatball subs

    Did you make this recipe?

    Tag @hummusapien on Instagram. I love sharing what you make!

    About Alexis Joseph

    Oh HEY there! I'm Alexis Joseph, food writer, blogger, Registered Dietitian Nutritionist (RDN), new mama, and co-founder of local restaurant group, Alchemy. I use my passion for cooking and wellness as fuel to help others ignite a more freeing and happy relationship with food. Learn more about Alexis!

    5 Secrets to Delish, Healthy Lunches

    Reader Interactions

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      Recipe rating ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆ ★☆

    1. Dylan says

      March 01, 2022 at 2:42 pm

      Yum! Such a fun idea!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Alexis Joseph says

        March 03, 2022 at 12:37 pm

        Right!!

        Reply
    2. Sara says

      February 24, 2021 at 9:02 pm

      Im allergic to mushrooms
      What can I substitute?
      Thank you

      Reply
      • Alexis Joseph says

        February 24, 2021 at 9:46 pm

        I have not tried these without mushrooms so I'm not sure! They provide meaty texture and flavor. I'd Google some other bean ball recipes to see what alternatives could look like. Enjoy!

        Reply
    3. Shelley says

      December 12, 2020 at 7:39 am

      These look and sound amazing! Hubby has been craving meatball subs, so I am going to make these for him. However, even halving the recipe, there would be far more than we would be able to cope with, do you know if they suitable for freezing? If so, before or after cooking? Would you freeze with or without sauce if they needed to be frozen after cooking?

      Reply
      • Alexis Joseph says

        December 12, 2020 at 11:56 pm

        They freeze great!! You could also cut the recipe in half. I'd freeze after cooking and add sauce right before you eat it.

        Reply
    4. Allie says

      October 19, 2020 at 12:02 am

      Obsessed with these!

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Alexis Joseph says

        October 19, 2020 at 11:41 am

        Thank you tons, Allie!

        Reply
    5. Bailey says

      February 16, 2020 at 2:29 am

      These are sooooo good.

      The 'meat' balls store very well and taste just as good as leftovers.

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Alexis Joseph says

        February 17, 2020 at 4:04 am

        Yayyy!! Such a fabulous weeknight meal. Thanks for rating the recipe, Bailey!

        Reply
    6. Miriam Kearney says

      February 08, 2020 at 3:28 pm

      These look very good and I plan to make them. Do you think they would freeze well? in these days of meal planning and meal prep it would great if you would indicate which recipes would freeze well. Thanks.

      Reply
      • Alexis Joseph says

        February 09, 2020 at 2:41 pm

        Yes, they freeze well! Enjoy.

        Reply
    7. Erin says

      February 01, 2020 at 9:37 pm

      I’ve made these several times. My favorite veggie meatballs and freeze great

      ★★★★★

      Reply
      • Alexis Joseph says

        February 04, 2020 at 2:09 pm

        Thanks so much, Erin! Love that they freeze well.

        Reply
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