This vegan gumbo is packed with juicy tomatoes, Cajun spices and hearty red bean andouille meatballs! Serve it with rice for hearty and flavor-packed vegan meal!
Should I apologize for the onslaught of soup and stew recipes coming from this site lately. Truth be told, there are more to come. Hey, it’s been cold!
Last week I had a bunch of non-soup or stew recipes lined up but I just couldn’t bring myself to make them. The bomb cyclone had temperatures in the single digits and as someone known for wearing sweaters even in July, I was a wee bit cranky. Soups and stews were about all I could handle.
I’d had vegan gumbo on my to-make list for a while and I just happened to have some okra in the fridge. I never just happen to have okra in the fridge, but I spotted some in the produce department at my supermarket the other day and bought it on a whim. Perfect.
I posted a sweet potato gumbo recipe a few years ago (and it’s delicious), but that recipe came from a cookbook and I wanted to take a crack at developing my own. Plus, that one doesn’t have okra in it, so I was still itching for a chance to work with this new-to-me veggie.
So this new recipe ended up being perfect bomb cyclone food for several reasons.
First, and most obvious, you can’t beat a piping hot bowl of stew when it’s ridiculously freezing out.
Second, gumbo is spicy! Does spicy food warm you guys up when it’s cold out? It does for me. The more cayenne pepper, the better.
Third, this gumbo has vegan meatballs (beanballs if you prefer). Why’s that awesome? Aside from making the stew extra hearty, you get to turn on the oven. Turning on the oven is one of my favorite things to do when it’s cold outside.
Okay, so traditional gumbo doesn’t have meatballs, but we’re rule-breakers around here. Some versions of traditional gumbo do have andouille sausage, but sausage is a bit tougher to replicate than meatballs, so I decided not to attempt it. I made my balls with red beans and a bunch of the same spices you’d find in andouille sausage. How perfect is that?
The meatballs do make this soup a bit more labor intensive, so if it’s not a snow day and you’re in a rush to get dinner on the table, feel free to just throw in a can of red beans or some extra veggies. You could even use store-bought vegan meatballs or chopped up vegan sausage links if you’re into that. It’ll still be super delicious.
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Vegan Gumbo with Andouille Red Bean Meatballs
This vegan gumbo is packed with juicy tomatoes, Cajun spices and hearty red bean andouille meatballs! Serve it with rice for hearty and flavor-packed vegan meal!
Ingredients
For the Vegan Gumbo
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/4 cup wheat flour (whole wheat or all-purpose)
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 green bell pepper, diced
- 2 celery stalks, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1 (14 ounce) can fire roasted tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen and thawed okra, tails and caps removed, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 2 teaspoons paprika
- 2 teaspoons dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- Cayenne pepper to taste
- Salt and pepper to taste
For the Anduille Red Bean Meatballs
- 1 (14 ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 1/2 cups panko breadcrumbs
- 1 small onion, coarsely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- Olive oil, for brushing or spraying
For Serving
- Cooked rice
- Chopped scallions and parsley
Instructions
To Make the Gumbo
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Coat the bottom of a large pot with the olive oil and place it over medium heat. Whisk in the flour. Cook the flour, whisking constantly, until it darkens in color a bit and begins to smell nutty, about 5 minutes.
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Stir in the onion, pepper and celery and sauté for about 5 minutes, until the veggies begin to soften. Add the garlic and sauté about 1 minute more, until very fragrant.
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Stir in the broth, tomatoes, okra, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, thyme, pepper, oregano, and cayenne. Raise the heat and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and allow to simmer, stirring occasionally, until the broth is thick and the veggies are tender, about 30 minutes.
To Make the Meatballs
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While the gumbo simmers, preheat the oven to 400° and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
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Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped and well mixed, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
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Roll the mixture into 1-inch balls (about 24) and arrange them on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Lightly brush or spray with olive oil.
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Bake the meatballs for about 30 minutes, or until lightly browned, flipping once halfway through.
To Serve
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Divide the meatballs into bowls and ladle the gumbo overtop. Serve with rice and top with scallions or parsley.
Recipe Notes
If you have any leftovers, store the meatballs separate from the stew so they don't get soggy.
Nutrition information does not include rice.
This will be in my belly tonight!!!
It’s a rainy, gray, cold, windy, yucky day here on San Francisco Bay, and I’ve been wanting gumbo for awhile now. This one sounds amazing (the meatballs in specific)!
This is definitely a dish for a cold and rainy day! I hope you enjoy it!
This looks so warm and comforting. I’ve made okra twice in my life as I like the sounds of it, but both times it’s turned out to be a gluey globby unappealing mess. Yours doesn’t look that way at all. Do you think this recipe is fool-proof for a fool like me ;)
The stickiness of the okra actually thickens the stew, and in the end the orka itself isn’t slimy at all! I hope you enjoy this!!
Watch the soy sauce as it does contain fish product. Use vegan brands.
I’ve never heard of a soy sauce that contains fish. What brand are you using?
I LOVE gumbo! Thank you for posting this. Have you ever been to the Gumbo Pages site? http://www.gumbopages.com/food/ I love browsing that site, and the ideas given for vegetarianizing dishes. It’s a great resource.
I’d never been there, but thank you! I LOVE veganizing Cajun food so I’ll probably be adapting a few of their dishes too. :)
I made this last night, it turned out very well. Thanks for the recipe.
I’m glad you enjoyed it!
ITs snowing outside and I am eating this delicious meal 😋
I’m so glad you’re enjoying it! Perfect for a snowy day. :)
yum! this looks delicious and perfect for the snowy weather we’re having here in michigan.
This is definitely snowy day food! Thanks Kristin!!
This. Is. Amazing! It has that TASTE that savory yummy authentic wonderful New Orleans taste. Between the ingredients and that roux (worth every minute of whisking)!! It was delicious last night, but oh my the next day! I’m eating it for lunch and had to comment.
I had a Connoisseurus Veg weekend – both my Saturday and Sunday meals were your recipes :)
YAY!! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!! Thanks so much Jacqueline!
OMG! Made this on Fat Tuesday on a whim. WOW! Now one of my favorite vegan meals. Next time, I will double so I can freeze some.
Yay!! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Thanks Stacy!
So maybe this me and maybe I’ve had a half a bottle of wine but this is absolutely delicious. Boyfriend is sick and needed to make him gumbo before he buys the cambel can and this was amazing. Well done. Maybe this will solve the last fight we had about his dirty socks on the nightstand?
Seriously though, pick up your shit.
This sounds really good but I might try making it with fieldroast vegan sausage instead of the red bean meatballs.
I think that would be delicious!
Adding the red kidney bean meatball takes the recipe to a new level!
I’m glad you think so!!
Do you think the meatballs will freeze well? I would like to make a huge batch to save for the future
They should freeze up just fine! Enjoy!
Super Tasty! Thank you. :)
I’m glad you think so!! :)
Looking forward to giving this a try :)
Enjoy!!
loved the Gumbo. Anyone else have the meatballs a bit dry. Yummy but I will probably tweek the meatballs.
Glad you enjoyed it!
That’s one beautiful vegan gumbo! I just made one too and I loved it so much that I started looking for other vegan versions of it. I kind of want to make these meatballs even if I don’t use them for the gumbo – but they look delicious. They look like they would be great in bolognese.
Thanks Kat! I think the meatballs would be good in bolognese!
What can i use in place of tomatoes in this. Ulcers i have dont like tomoto’ss☺
Cajun Gumbo does not contain any tomatoes, so you can just omit them. I only make cajun Gumbo and it is the best. My #1 favorite food.
Hey guy, i wanted to warn you guys that Worcestershire sauce is not vegan or vegetarian.
my bad it says it’s the version vegan. lol sorry.
No problem! :)
This recipe is fantastic! I rarely take the time to write reviews, but I just finished my first bowl and can’t get over how delicious that was! I used Bob Red Mills GF flour, added more moisture to my beanballs so they would hold form better (equal parts soy sauce and liquid smoke), and added in some beyond sausage. Holy freaking wow. Definitely making this one again! Thanks for sharing!!
Yay! I’m so happy to hear that! Thank you so much for your review!
This recipe has been on my “to do” pile for a very long time. I just made it and love, love, love it. The only thing I added was corn because I just like corn. Perfectly spiced and will definately make this again and again. Alissa you nailed getting all the tastes of traditional gumbo into a Vegan dish like you ALWAYS do. I can always count on you. Thank you!!
I’ve never had gumbo so this was my introduction to it and I LOVED it! I didn’t make the meatballs, but it was plenty filling without them. Thank you so much for sharing!
I’ve never been to Louisiana or even USA, but this meal is exactly how I picture stick-to-your-ribs Cajun soul food. I doubled the recipe, added a big carrot, 2tbs tomato paste, an extra tablespoon of Cajun spice mix and a tin of kidney beans. So rich, flavourful and satisfying. Meatballs came out great too. Wife loved it, I loved it, will definitely make again. Thanks for this glorious recipe.
What can you substitute for the okra?
Green beans or zucchini would probably work.