Curried Vegetarian Meatballs

Ingredients

• Lentils

  Raw

  ½ cup or 96g

• Olive oil

  Salad or cooking

  2 tbsp or 27g

• Scallions

  Spring onions or scallions (includes tops and bulb), raw

  4 tbsp chopped or 24g

• Garlic

  Raw

  1 cloves, minced or 3g

• Carrots

  Raw

  ½ cup grated or 55g

• Pecans

  Nuts

  1 oz (19 halves per oz) or 28g

• Walnuts

  Nuts, english

  1 oz (14 halves) or 28g

• Bread crumbs

  Dry, grated, plain

  4 tbsp or 27g

• Cumin

  Spices, cumin seed

  ½ tsp, ground or 2g

• Coriander seed

  Spices

  ½ tsp or 0.9g

• Salt

  Table

  ½ tsp or 3g

• Pepper

  Spices, black

  ¼ tsp or 0.5g

• Egg

  Whole, fresh eggs

  1 large or 50g

• Onions

  Raw

  4 medium or 440g

• Garlic

  Raw

  8 cloves, minced or 24g

• Ginger root

  Raw

  1 tbsp or 6g

• Peppers

  Hot chile, sun-dried

  2 pepper or 1g

• Curry powder

  Spices

  4 tsp or 8g

• Cumin

  Spices, cumin seed

  4 tsp, ground or 12g

• Turmeric

  Spices, ground

  4 tsp or 9g

• Coriander seed

  Spices

  3 tsp or 5g

• Peppercorn

  Whole peppercorns, black

  1 tsp or 2g

• Tomatoes

  Red, ripe, canned, packed in tomato juice

  2 cup or 480g

• Bay leaf

  Dried

  1 leaf or 0.2g

• Water

  Plain, clean water

  2 cup or 473g

• Lemon juice

  Raw

  1 tbsp or 15g

• Cayenne pepper

  Spices, red or cayenne

  ½ tsp or 0.9g

• Fresh cilantro

  Coriander leaves, raw

  4 tbsp or 4g

Directions

1. Rinse the lentils, cook according to package directions, and drain thoroughly; let cool slightly.
2. Warm half of the olive oil in a skillet over medium-low heat. Add scallions, the first portion of minced garlic, and grated carrots; cook, stirring, until the carrots soften, 4–6 minutes. Let cool slightly.
3. In a food processor, pulse the cooked lentils, sautéed vegetables, chopped pecans and walnuts, bread crumbs, the first portions of cumin and coriander, salt, and black pepper until combined but still textured. Add the egg and pulse just until the mixture holds together. Rest the mixture while the oven preheats to 425°F.
4. Roll into golf ball–sized meatballs and arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Lightly brush or spray with a little olive oil and bake until browned and crisp, 25–30 minutes.
5. For the sauce, heat the remaining olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions, the remaining garlic, and ginger; cook, stirring often, until the onions are translucent and starting to brown, 8–10 minutes.
6. Stir in the diced chiles, curry powder, remaining cumin and coriander, turmeric, and whole black peppercorns; cook until very fragrant, about 2 minutes.
7. Add the tomatoes and bay leaf, scraping up any browned bits. Pour in the water, bring to a boil, then reduce to a gentle simmer and cook until the flavors meld, 25–30 minutes.
8. Let the sauce cool slightly, remove and discard bay leaf, then blend until smooth. Return to the pot, stir in lemon juice and cayenne, and season to taste with additional salt if needed.
9. Return the sauce to a gentle simmer over medium heat. Add the baked lentil meatballs and warm through, 3–5 minutes. Serve hot, topped with chopped cilantro.