Mushroom Meatballs
20+ Kid-Friendly Dinner Recipes Ready in 20 Minutes!
January 9, 2019
Cinnamon Sweet Potato Bites
January 23, 2019Looking for a fun new way to enjoy mushrooms? Try these Mushroom meatballs packed with flavor and texture. Serve them as an appetizer or on top of your favorite pasta for dinner!
True story. I hated mushrooms until I was 27 and pregnant with my son. When I was a child and even adult I would pick them out of dishes, and never ever cooked with them. For me it was a texture thing, too slimy! My husband on the other hand has always been a mushroom fan, but didn’t complain that I never cooked with them. Everything changed when I was pregnant with my son and I had this very unusual (for me anyways) craving for mushrooms. And since I have been hooked and will eat just about anything with mushrooms in it. And luckily my son has also become a fan.
My inspiration for these Mushroom Meatballs came from a dish at a local restaurant, Clover, that sells meatless meatballs, made with you guessed it mushrooms. Mushrooms are packed with Umami which a our 5th taste that corresponds to glutamate, an animo acid in food. This flavor gives food a savory or “meaty” flavor. That’s why mushrooms make a great flavor substitute for meat.
For my Mushroom Meatballs I decided to add in some of my favorite Italian flavors like parsley, garlic, parmesan and mozzarella. For an extra crispy texture I made the mushrooms by sautéing them in olive oil on the stove before serving and they came out perfect! I served them up with some Banza pasta, a chickpea pasta, for added protein and marinara sauce for moisture and flavor. They would also be great served as an appetizer with your favorite tomato sauce.
My son is still learning to like meatballs (literally either eats 5 or not at all!) even though I told him these were made with mushrooms ( a food he likes) he didn’t touch them. Typical toddler! My husband on the other hand who always questions where the meat is, loved them! I will definitely be making these again 🙂
What are your favorite and unique ways to enjoy Mushrooms?!
- 2 tablespoon olive oil, divided
- 1 pound mushrooms (16 ounces), diced
- 1 small onion, diced ( about ½ cup)
- 4 large garlic cloves, diced
- ½ cup quick oats
- ¼ cup panko bread crumbs
- ¼ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup grated parmesan
- ½ cup chopped parsley
- 1 egg
- pinch cayenne
- salt/pepper
- In a large saute pan on medium heat add 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Add in mushrooms, cook for 5 minutes. Add in 1 tablespoon of olive oil, onions and garlic. Saute for another 3 minutes until onions are translucent and all the liquid from the mushrooms is cooked off. Take off heat and let cool for 10 minutes.
- While mushrooms are cooling to a large bowl add oats, bread crumbs, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, parsley, egg, cayenne pepper, salt and pepper. Mix to combine. Add in cooled mushroom mixture and mix to evenly combine.
- Place mixture in fridge to cool for at least 1 hour. Best results and flavor when left in fridge overnight.
- When ready to cook shape mushroom mixture into 1-inch balls using a spoon or cookie scoop. To a large saute pan with a lid on medium heat add 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Place mushroom meatballs into pan cook for 2 minutes and flip, covering with lid in between. Flip at least 3-4 times or until cooked on all sides.
- Serve with pasta sauce as an appetizer or on top of your favorite pasta and sauce.