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Home » Recipes » Vegan Dinners

Beet Balls (vegan beetroot meatballs)

Published: Jan 16, 2018 · Modified: Apr 6, 2021 by Kate Hackworthy · 15 Comments

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Table with plate of beetballs with text: Easy vegan beet balls.
Plates of dinner on a wooden table with text: Vegan Beet Balls.
Plate of spiralized zucchini and beetroot balls with text: Beetroot Meatballs.

Beet Balls are a quick and easy vegan meatball alternative made from scratch, with beetroot! They're beautifully purple, delicious and packed with flavour from the toasted walnuts and herbs.

Plate of zoodles topped with vegan meatballs made from beets.

These beet balls are not only a vibrant pinky purple colour, but they taste amazing!

The beets give them a sweetly earthy flavour, that works beautifully with the spices and ground walnuts.

They're perfect on pesto zoodles (courgetti) for an all-vegetable meal!

Reader Reviews

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "I made these last night, they were amazing! Loved the vibrant colour. Made courgetti mixed with spinach, peas and pesto. Delicious! Will definitely be serving it at my little home veggie and vegan restaurant in France." - Louise

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Yum! I'm always on the lookout for a great vegetarian meatball recipe and I'm so glad I found these! They're easy to make and yummy. We'll be making them again" - Lucy

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "This was so good! The whole family loved it and it was delicious and super healthy!" - Safi

Why you'll love this recipe

A tasty way to get loads of veggies into a meal.

They're quick and easy to whiz up and cook.

Beetballs are a beautiful purple color.

These Beet Balls are a tasty blend of kidney beans, beetroot, walnuts, herbs and spices.

Not only are beetroot balls easy, but they have a wonderful flavor.

You can make the beet balls ahead of time and heat them through before serving.

The recipe also makes quite a few beet balls, so you can freeze them for another meal.

Table with ingredients.

Ingredients

  • Beets - they add bulk, nutrients and that incredible purple color.
  • Walnuts - they also bulk up the beet balls and add a lovely texture.
  • Kidney beans - make them protein-packed.
  • Breadcrumbs - you can swap to gluten-free if required.
  • Red onion - for a flavor intensity.
  • Dried oregan and thyme - tasty Italian herb flavors.

Spiralizing

One day I’ll rip courgettes (zucchini) from my own garden, wash them off and spiralize them right onto my plate. One day.

I’m definitely a fan of spiralizing. There’s good reason that this trend for turning vegetables into spaghetti-like ribbons is still raging on.

It means you can have a lighter meal with less carbs, get more vegetables into your diet and use up vegetables.

You can spiralise anything from beetroot and squash, to apples and carrots. It’s a nice way of adding texture and veg to salads.

Courgetti can be eaten raw or lightly cooked. Spiralized courgetti only needs to be boiled or steamed for a minute or two to warm it without turning it to mush, or you could heat it in a frying pan.

It's perfect as a pasta alternative and a bed for these tasty beet balls.

Try these other spiralizer reicpes.

A plate of noodles and beet meatballs.

Reduce Food Waste

If you still have some zucchini and beets to use up, try it in these ways to reduce food waste.

  • Courgette / Zucchini  is fantastic baked into a courgette cake, particularly with chunks of dark chocolate.
  • Courgette can be sliced, blanched and frozen.
  • Slice courgettes zucchini thinly and use in lasagne in place of all or some pasta sheets.
  • Beetroot is lovely grated raw with apples into a salad
  • Beetroot also pairs well with chocolate, so try them together in a cake.
  • Don’t bin the beet stems, they’re lovely quick-pickled in vinegar or snipped into a salad
  • Beetroot greens are perfect for pesto, salad, or sauteed with oil and garlic as a quick side dish
Courgetti and Beet Balls. How to make beet balls - roll the mixture into balls and bake.

Vegan Dinner Recipes

I hope you enjoy beet balls as a vegan dinner recipe. Be sure to try these other plant-based meals too!

If you're looking for other vegan pasta dishes for the family, try my broccoli and mushroom vegan One Pot Pasta, or Mushroom Pasta with butternut squash and sage.

Go for a healthy curry with Lentil Dahl, Kidney Bean Curry, Vegan Butter Chicken (cauliflower) or Chickpea Curry.

They're all great midweek meals the whole family will enjoy.

Table with a plate of zucchini noodles and meatballs made from beetroot.

Beet Recipes

If you still have beetroot to use up after making beetroot balls, you can use them up in these tasty recipes!

Apple Beet Salad
Beet Pizza (beets in the purple crust!)
Beetroot Chocolate Cake
Chocolate Beet Muffins
Rosolli - Finnish Beetroot Salad
Beetroot Hummus
Beet Burgers

Collage of quick vegan dinner recipes.

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Get the recipe

If you make this courgetti and beetroot balls recipe, please tag it with #veggiedesserts on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook. I LOVE seeing your recreations of my recipes!

📖 Recipe

A close up of a plate of zoodles and meatballs.

Easy Beet Balls

Kate Hackworthy | Veggie Desserts
Beet Balls are a quick and easy vegan meatball alternative made from scratch, with beetroot! They're beautifully purple, delicious and packed with flavour from the toasted walnuts and herbs.
4.95 from 20 votes
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Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 30 minutes mins
Total Time 45 minutes mins
Course Main Meals
Cuisine Italian
Servings 4
Calories 301 kcal

Equipment

  • food processor
  • Frying pan
  • mixing bowl
  • Oven

Ingredients
 

For the beet balls

  • 2 raw beets washed (approx 300g)
  • ½ cup (50g) walnuts
  • 15 oz (400g) can red kidney beans (15oz can) drained and rinsed
  • ⅓ cup (30g) breadcrumbs
  • ½ red onion finely diced
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • Salt and pepper

To serve:

  • 3-4 zucchini / courgette
  • 3-4 teaspoons green pesto look out for vegetarian or vegan if required

Instructions
 

  • Heat oven to 400°F/200°C and grease a baking tray with oil.
  • Peel the beetroots and slice into chunks. Whiz in a food processor or mini chopper until fine. Transfer to a large bowl and set aside.
  • In a dry frying pan, toast the walnuts for a few minutes until lightly golden.
  • Add the walnuts and kidney beans to the food processor (no need to clean after the beets) and pulse once or twice until crumbly.
  • Add the walnut bean mixture, bread crumbs, chopped onion, oregano, thyme, salt and pepper to the bowl of beetroot and combine well, you’ll need to use your hands. Squish the mixture well so that it sticks together. Roll into balls and place onto the baking tray.
  • Bake the beet balls for 25-30 minutes, turning halfway through.

For the courgetti (zoodles):

  • Courgetti can be eaten raw or cooked. Spiralise the courgettes (zucchini) in a hand-held or freestanding spiraliser. If cooking, blanch the courgetti for a minute or so in a pan of boiling water until hot, then drain. Gently toss the courgetti in the pesto then divide onto plates and top with the beet balls. Serve immediately.

Nutrition

Calories: 301kcalCarbohydrates: 40gProtein: 14gFat: 11gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 136mgPotassium: 1009mgFiber: 11gSugar: 8gVitamin A: 385IUVitamin C: 30.5mgCalcium: 98mgIron: 4.8mg

The nutritional information provided is approximate and can vary depending on several factors, so is not guaranteed to be accurate. Please see a registered dietician for special diet advice.

Tried this recipe?Mention @kateveggiedesserts or tag #veggiedesserts! I love seeing your recreations.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

    4.95 from 20 votes (5 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Rosa

    March 19, 2024 at 12:44 am

    5 stars
    These were the best! Definitely going to be a regular.

    Reply
  2. Agatha

    November 10, 2020 at 12:30 pm

    5 stars
    They were incredible! I adore red food and totally love all things beets 🙂

    Reply
  3. Jenny

    June 06, 2020 at 7:52 pm

    5 stars
    What a lovely colourful dish - thank you!

    Reply
  4. nadia

    April 29, 2020 at 11:46 am

    5 stars
    Wow, the beet balls were vibrant and so gorgeous! I would like to be able to grow my own fruit and veg one day, but it seems like a distant dream at the moment if I'm being honest 😛

    Reply
  5. Jemma

    May 17, 2019 at 5:42 pm

    5 stars
    I love courgetti and these beet balls were a tasty addition to make them more exciting!

    Reply
  6. Dr.Amrita Basu

    August 18, 2018 at 4:26 pm

    5 stars
    This was outstanding. It's pretty and healthy.

    Reply
  7. Louise Elsom

    January 20, 2017 at 4:14 pm

    5 stars
    I made these last night, they were amazing! Loved the vibrant colour. Made courghetti mixed with spinach, peas and pesto. Delicious! Will definitely be serving it at my little home veggie and vegan restaurant in France.
    Thanks so much for your inspiing recipes! 🙂

    Reply
  8. Lucy

    November 17, 2016 at 11:51 am

    5 stars
    Yum! I'm always on the lookout for a great vegetarian meatball recipe and I'm so glad I found these! They're easy to make and yummy. We'll be making them again 🙂

    Reply
  9. Safi

    October 17, 2016 at 1:01 pm

    5 stars
    This was so good! The whole family loved it and it was delicious and super healthy!

    Reply
  10. Jac -Tinned Tomatoes (@tinnedtoms)

    August 17, 2016 at 2:15 pm

    Oh nice flavours and loving the pink! Srumbled, yummed, tweeted & pinned

    Reply
  11. Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche

    August 17, 2016 at 12:26 pm

    I didn't know you used to live on a boat, that's so cool! These look awesome, such a stunning colour!

    Reply
  12. kellie@foodtoglow

    August 17, 2016 at 11:54 am

    So, so beautiful! And you have been clever and amped up the colour with kidney beans. Delish, and such a fun way to get the family to eat more veggies. Anything that looks like meatballs and goes on noodles/zoodles has to be tried. If it is any consolation, although last year my crops were very giving, my zucchinis are just rubbish this year. But at least they didn't have to contend with swans... 🙂

    Reply
  13. Ali @ Home & Plate

    August 17, 2016 at 11:38 am

    Wow...what a great dish. I have never made beet balls but healthier they must be than anything made otherwise.. The ingredients sound delicious and the perfect place on top of a bowl of zoodles!

    Reply
    • Lin

      April 28, 2022 at 10:38 pm

      4 stars
      Hi Kate, I love your recipes. They are so easy to follow and super yummy. I would like to comment on some of your pop up ads, some of them are gross and repulsive....especially when you’re hungry and browsing to try a new recipe. 😝
      If you have control over it, please drop them. Your website does not deserve a spot among your beautiful pictures and healthy recipes. Sorry if you don’t agree with me.
      Keep up the good work.

      Reply
  14. Angela

    August 16, 2016 at 6:55 pm

    This looks so yummy and healthy. I am going to add this to my Yum and pinterest! We have to try it out!

    Reply

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Hi, I'm Kate, a journalist, author and multi-award-winning food blogger. Here you'll find vegetarian recipes and vegan recipes celebrating vegetables, from dinner to dessert! If you love vegetables, you've come to the right place. About Me

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