Herby Vegan Vegballs

These herby vegballs are tasty and quick to make. You can serve them by themselves or with a tomato sauce and pasta.

INGREDIENTS

• 3/4 cup dried green lentils
• 1 medium-sized onion, finely chopped
• 4 cloves of garlic cloves, crushed
• 1 cup soft oats
• 2 tbsps thick tomato sauce
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tbsps red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon chilli powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
• salt and pepper

METHOD

1. Wash the green lentils thoroughly under running water and then cook in boiling water for 20 minutes until soft.
2. Rinse the cooked lentils in cold water and leave to drain.
3. Meanwhile, gently fry the onion in olive oil until soft.
4. Add the garlic and fry for another couple of minutes.
5. Add all of the ingredients to a food processor and pulse 3 or 4 times. You want the mixture to come together and to have a bit of texture.
6. Wet your hands and form the mixture into about 14 balls, flattening them slightly to form patties.
7. Heat some sunflower oil in a large frying pan.
8. Put the vegballs into the pan in a single layer and fry on a moderate heat for about 6 minutes.
9. Turn over and fry for a further 6 minutes or so until they are golden brown on both sides.

NOTES

When I made these, I rolled them into balls the size of golf balls and then flattened them gently to form small patties but they can also be made into larger burger and cooked in a frying pan or on the barbecue and served in burger buns.