Vegan Meatball Soup

by Shalveena Rohde,

In our family, there are a good many soup lovers and initially we were quite uncertain if we could make vegan soups which taste as good as those made with meat. Thankfully, we discovered a great way to make healthy, delicious vegetable stock which we found to be a great starting point for making soups. This simple soup is based on this stock and also features soy chunks as great meatball replacements. Enjoy!

Name Vegan Meatball Soup
Serves 4-6
Dr. Greger Points 5
Costs US$ 25
Cooking time 70 mins (first time)/70 min (repeats)
Difficulty Absolute Beginner

Ingredients

  • 4 carrots, chopped into small pieces
  • 4 celery stalks, chopped into small pieces
  • 2 teaspoons of olive oil
  • 3 red chillies
  • 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powser
  • 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 red onion, finely chopped
  • 1 1/2 cups of soy chunks
  • 6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • 3 small red potatoes, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
  • 6 cups of vegetable stock
  • 2-3 cups of water
  • 1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning blend
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons of dried thyme
  • 3 bay leaves
  • 2 heads of Broccoli, cut into pieces
  • 2 1/2 cups of whole-grain Penne
  • 1 bunch of parsley, chopped
  • 1 teaspoon of Maggi seasoning
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon pepper

Preparation

  • Heat the olive oil in a large pot on low-medium heat
  • Add onion and fry until done
  • Add garlic and chilli and fry until garlic is done
  • Add Cayenne Pepper
  • Add bay leaves
  • Increase to medium heat and add carrots and fry for 2 min
  • Add celery and fry for 2 min
  • Add potatoes and fry for 2 min
  • Add vegetable stock and bring to the boil
  • Add Italian seasoning blend, onion powder, garlic powder and thyme
  • Cover the pot and let it simmer on low-medium heat for 20 minutes
  • While the soup is cooking, start preparing the soy chunks. For this, take a medium sized pot and bring water to the boil. Add the soy chunks once the water is boiling and boil them for around 5 minutes. Take out the soy chunks and wash them with cold water. Once the chunks are cooled down, take each one and squeeze out the water.
  • After the soup has been cooking for 20 minutes, add the soy chunks and a cup or two of water. Increase to medium heat and wait until the soup boils again.
  • Once the soup boils again, add the Penne. Let it cook for around 2 min.
  • Then add the broccoli and cook for another 8 min.
  • Lastly, add the parsley, pepper, salt and Maggi to taste and the soup is ready!!
Categories: recipes