These are not just your ordinary meatballs. These vegetarian meatballs are fully meat-free and based entirely on delicious roasted eggplant and ricotta cheese, along with the classic meatball ingredients.
Meatless Monday just got a huge upgrade.
I've made eggplant dishes several times over the last decade, but never fully fell in love with it. My most recent eggplant rollatini was a smash hit with my family, so I decided to try for these vegetarian eggplant meatballs, and I am so glad I did.
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Recipe at a Glance
- Cook Level: This one is still pretty easy, but it is good to have a good idea of how to make a meatball for this recipe.
- Taste: Other than tasting just freaking delicious, these eggplant ricotta meatballs have a meaty, flavorful, and robust Italian flavor.
- Cooking Time: You're looking at a prep time of 10-15, with cook time totaling 40, so I'd say give yourself about an hour from start to finish.
- Best For: Not only are these great as they are for an entree or main dish, add them to a crockpot with your favorite marinara or even vodka sauce, and serve it up as an appetizer for parties of any kind.
- Pairing Ideas: So many different recipes come to mind when pairing, so to start with I'd suggest making these in a homemade vodka sauce, paired with garlic bread or creamy mashed potatoes, or as an appetizer to go along with a baked spinach artichoke dip.
Tips, Tricks, and Key Reminders
- Because eggplant can retain lots of moisture, it will also absorb the olive oil that you use to pour over before it bakes. You don't really need too much oil, but enough to get the eggplant to absorb it. Also, remember to use some salt to draw out some of the water.
- Be sure to use the right amount of bread crumbs. In one of my tests a few months ago, I did not use much bread crumb, and the bread crumbs are what helps to keep the meatballs staying together when they fry.
- Use a cast iron skillet to fry the meatballs, and use enough oil to fry them. Add enough oil to the skillet to create a ½" thick wall on the sides. You want even browning and cooking, and this is how to do it.
- The variety of eggplant doesn't really matter, so if you cannot find Italian eggplant and want to use a traditional globe one, feel free to do that.
Important Ingredients
- Eggplant: Obviously, the most important ingredient would be a whole, large eggplant. We dice the eggplant and roast it so that when the eggplant is blended in a blender, the eggplant mixture resembles meatball mixture.
- Olive Oil: Olive oil is super important for both roasting the eggplant and for frying the eggplant meatballs. We need to be sure to use enough oil to fry the meatballs evenly. A good substitute for olive oil is avocado oil as it has a high smoke point and has a neutral flavor.
- Salt: The salt is needed to help draw out the moisture from the eggplant as it roasts.
- Fresh Ricotta Cheese: Whole milk ricotta cheese is the way to go for this recipe. It gives a delicious creamy flavor to the eggplant balls and makes them very tasty.
- Egg: Egg is a classic ingredient when making traditional meatballs as it acts as a binding agent along with the breadcrumbs.
- Breadcrumbs: Making classic meatballs requires a binding ingredient such as breadcrumbs to hold the meatballs together. In these eggplant meatballs, this is just as important. You could always use panko breadcrumbs instead of seasoned breadcrumbs.
- Italian Seasoning: A blend of dried parsley, dried oregano, dried basil is the perfect trio for these meatless meatballs.
- Garlic Powder: Adding garlic powder to the Italian seasoning gives these meatballs even more flavor.
Be sure to check out the recipe card at the end of this post for more information about quantities, measurements, and specific cooking instructions.
Making the Recipe
Cut the Eggplant
Place the eggplant on a cutting board and dice into small cubes, leaving the eggplant skin on.
Roast the Eggplant
Prepare a large baking sheet and preheat the oven to 400º. Pour the eggplant cubes onto the baking sheet tray into a single layer.
Drizzle the two tablespoons of olive oil all over the eggplant, then bake for 18-20 minutes until tender.
Blend the Eggplant
Once the eggplant has cooled down on the baking sheet, transfer eggplant to a food processor or blender.
Blend or pulse the eggplant until it becomes a thicker, bound consistency that resembles ground meat.
Make the Eggplant Mixture
Pour the blended eggplant into a mixing bowl, then add in the breadcrumbs, ricotta cheese, egg, Italian seasonings, and garlic powder.
Using a spatula, fold all the ingredients together in the bowl until it becomes thick and combines well.
Form the Meatballs:
Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop or a large spoon, make the meatballs and roll in between your hands to form into balls.
Place on a plate, and repeat until all the eggplant mixture has been made into balls.
Fry the Eggplant
Add 1 cup of olive oil to a frying pan or a cast iron skillet and turn on the stove to a medium heat. Gently place several meatballs into the hot oil, and fry for 3 minutes per side until each side is golden brown.
Repeat for each meatball. Once the meatball is done cooking, transfer to plate lined with paper towel to absorb any excess oil.
Toss into tomato sauce, marinara sauce, or lay atop a bed of ricotta cheese and garnish with fresh thyme or basil leaves.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I freeze these vegetarian meatballs?
Yes, you can! Be sure to add any leftover meatballs to an airtight container or a plastic food-storage bag without any air in it, and freeze for up to 1 month. If you want to simply store the remainder in the refrigerator, add the remainder to a container and store for up to 4 days. In my testing, I've warmed back up in the microwave and in a pan with a little bit more oil and some water, and both methods worked out really well. The meatballs did not fall apart and held up really well!
Do I need to peel the eggplant before dicing and roasting?
No you certainly do not need to peel the skin off of the eggplant. It's a lot more work to do so, and when roasting, the skin of the eggplant becomes soft. Plus, it'll get blended and made into a creamier texture.
Is there an option to use zucchini instead of eggplant for anyone who is unable to eat nightshades?
For those curious, nightshades are vegetables from the same family and species of vegetables that have similar vitamins and attributes. Tomatoes, potatoes, eggplants, and peppers comprise TPEP and some folks are unable to eat these types of vegetables. For more information, you can read up on nightshades.
With that said, yes you can substitute zucchini for the eggplant, but zucchini retains a lot more moisture than an eggplant does, so you might want to pat dry and let them soak in a little salt prior to roasting and adding to a food processor. You might also want to add a little more breadcrumb to the mix for zucchini meatballs.
Hungry for more?
If you loved these meatballs, you'll love these too!
Did you love this recipe? ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ If you're just as in love with this recipe as I am, please share a comment below and rate it! Better yet, share this recipe with family and friends!! Thank you!
Eggplant and Ricotta Meatballs Recipe (No Meat)
Equipment
- cast iron skillet or frying pan
- tongs
- large mixing bowl
- baking sheet
- Tablepsoon or Cookie Scoop
- Large Plate
- food processor or blender
Ingredients
For Prepping the Eggplant
- 1 large Globe Eggplant diced into cubes
- 2 tablespoon Olive oil for roasting eggplant
- 1 teaspoon Salt
For Making the Meatballs
- ½ cup Ricotta Cheese
- 1 cup Breadcrumbs
- 1 large Egg
- 1 tablespoon Italian Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 cup Olive Oil for frying the meatballs
Instructions
- Place the eggplant on a cutting board and dice into small cubes, leaving the eggplant skin on. Prepare a large baking sheet and preheat the oven to 400º. Pour the eggplant cubes onto the baking sheet tray into a single layer. Drizzle the two tablespoons of olive oil all over the eggplant, then bake for 18-20 minutes until tender.
- Once the eggplant has cooled down on the baking sheet, transfer eggplant to a food processor or blender. Blend or pulse the eggplant until it becomes a thicker, bound consistency that resembles ground meat.
- Pour the blended eggplant into a mixing bowl, then add in the breadcrumbs, ricotta cheese, egg, Italian seasonings, and garlic powder. Using a spatula, fold all the ingredients together in the bowl until it becomes thick and combines well.
- Using a 1 tablespoon cookie scoop or a large spoon, make the meatballs and roll in between your hands to form into balls. Place on a plate, and repeat until all the eggplant mixture has been made into balls.
- Add 1 cup of olive oil to a frying pan or a cast iron skillet and turn on the stove to a medium heat. Gently place several meatballs into the hot oil, and fry for 3 minutes per side until each side is golden brown.
- Repeat for each meatball. Once the meatball is done cooking, transfer to plate lined with paper towel to absorb any excess oil.
- Toss into tomato sauce, marinara sauce, or lay atop a bed of ricotta cheese and garnish with fresh thyme or basil leaves.
Nanajee Travels says
These sound absolutely amazing! 🍆🧀 Who needs meat when you have roasted eggplant and ricotta bringing all that delicious flavor and texture? Can’t wait to try these vegetarian meatballs! 😍👏
Donna D. says
I'm a vegetarian and have tried so many times to make eggplant meatballs and failed. This recipe was the exact one i was looking for!!!!! It was outrageous, so easy, and I cannot believe how quick they came together. I added them to a pot of marinara sauce, and some fell apart but I think that's cuz I didn't roll them well. Either way, they were very delicious and I will make again!