Vegan Meatloaf
From Recipes
This is a classic reimagining of the Meatloaf for when the cows all die (assuming the planet doesn't die first). While this faithfully mimics the appearance (and much of the flavour!) of my original meatloaf, it is a little gluggy in the middle. I'd recommend a flatter loaf than the one in my video.
Oh, video? Yes, video! Here's a YouTube video taking you through the making of the loaf, step by step! Damo's Vegan Meatloaf
Ingredients
Loaf
- 2 medium-sized eggplants
- 300g block of firm tofu (note: do not use extra firm, it must be crumbly after its pressed... err on the side of silken before going extra firm)
- 400g (ish) can of lentils.
- 2 medium onions, sliced.
- 1 carrot, finely grated.
- 2 small (or 1 large) zucchini
- 1 cup walnuts (shelled)
- 5 mushrooms (white cup should do fine)
- 3 large garlic cloves, minced / finely diced
- Finely diced parsley (1 handful)
- 1 tsp curry powder
- 1 cup breadcrumbs
- 1 cup plain flour
- 1/2 cup soy milk
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- Olive oil
- Salt
Sauce
- 40g Copha / coconut fat
- 20 mL Liquid coconut oil
- 500 mL bottle of cheapo tomato sauce
- 200 mL water
- 1 cup dark brown sugar
- Juice of 1 lemon (or lime)
- 1 shot of espresso (or 1 tsp instant coffee)
Method
- Slice the eggplants to about 1cm thick and place on an oiled baking tray.
- Sprinkle over a generous amount of salt, drizzle over with olive oil and bake at 220°C for 20-30 minutes, flipping once and adding more salt halfway through.
- Bake the eggplant until golden brown and a little crispy then take out of the oven and allow to cool.
- Wrap the tofu in a cheesecloth (or equivalent) and place on a plate. Then stack a big pile of plates on top to get the liquid out. Leave in the improvised press for at least 20 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C and oil a baking pan.
- Drain the can of lentils and place in a large mixing bowl.
- Dice the eggplant from earlier and pop in the bowl.
- Heat up a saucepan on medium heat, add the sliced onions and caramelise until golden brown (takes about 20 minutes), add to the bowl when done.
- Add the grated carrot to the bowl.
- Cut the zucchini into 10cm lengths (removing the top and bottom) and grate until you hit seeds. Don't grate the seeds! Discard the "core".
- Squeeze the zucchini until no drips are coming off it and add to the bowl.
- Blend the mushrooms, walnuts and tofu together (crumble the tofu as you add it to the food processor / blender). I've found a food processor (like a blender, but with slicing blades), works better than the blender - less tapping and messing about. Add to the bowl.
- Add the finely diced / minced garlic and parsley to the bowl.
- Add the curry powder, 1tsp salt, breadcrumbs, flour, soy milk and soy sauce.
- Mix well by hand until everything is evenly distributed. Go on, squeeze it through your fingers and have at it!
- Shape into a loaf. It will break apart if you try to do it in the air, so go ahead and get that bench dirty.
- Carefully place the loaf in the baking pan and pop in the oven! It will bake for an hour or so, but you'll need to baste every 10-15 minutes (more frequently towards the end as it tries to burn). If burning is becoming an issue, reduce the temp of the oven.
- Make the sauce by melting the copha in a medium pot, adding the coconut oil, tomato sauce, water, brown sugar, lemon juice and coffee, then mixing well. Gently bring to the boil. Your choice whether to keep it simmering while you baste or not. If you do, consider adding more water.
- Baste the meatloaf every 10-15 minutes until it's done!
- Pull out your magnificent creation, slice and serve with rice and the sauce (from the pan as well as the pot).
Notes
- Try a flatter loaf for better cooking / less glug.
- You could probably use 100g marge instead of copha / coconut fat.
