Tempeh Walnut Vietnamese "Meatless" balls

In an effort to reduce our consumption of meat during the week, I was experimenting with meatless alternatives such as Tempeh and came across this recipe for Tempeh Walnut balls. Although I thought they were pretty decent, my family was put off by the strong fermented aftertaste of the Tempeh. I thought maybe a Vietnamese type meatball may be better suited to the southeast asian fermented soybean. But, I was searching high and low for a Veggie Vietnamese "meatless" ball recipe and came up empty. 

So the recipe below is a mash up of recipes that I thought had the best shot at combining the 2. These can be made ahead of time and frozen until you want to eat them. Great for veggie Vietnamese Sandwiches or Bun Chay (Vietnamese Noodle Salad) or Lettuce cups - (as pictured above)


Tempeh - 2 Packages 8oz Organic Lightlife Tempeh with Flax
Prep - Steam for 15- 20 minutes and allow to cool for handling while preparing walnut/herb past.


Walnut/Herb Paste (For best results use Food processor/Immersion Blender
1/4 cup Fresh thai basil
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 green onions
2 tablespoon Fresh Ginger (grated)
1 tablespoon fish sauce (such as nam pla or nuoc nam) I use Viet Huong 3 Crabs
1 teaspoon hot chili sauce (such as sriracha)
1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons tapioca starch
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1/4 cup of ground flax seed
1 cup of walnuts
(if paste is too thick, add 1/2 teaspoon of water to ease blending)

Prepare:
1. Pulse Walnut/Herb ingredients to a thick paste 
2. Cut cooled Tempeh blocks into 1/2 x 1/2 inch cubes
3. Further break down tempeh cubes by hand to large crumb texture
4. Mix in Walnut Herb Paste into Tempeh and form into firm balls
5. Spray with sunflower oil in pan and heat to medium/low fry balls in non stick or cast iron pan until browned on exterior. 
6. Serve warm in place of traditional pork meatballs in your favorite vietnamese recipe.
7. If storing for future use, Allow finished balls to cool on wire rack.


BONUS RECIPE!

Asian Cabbage Slaw

1 Small Red Cabbage (Cole slaw cut)
3 Medium Carrots (Shredded)
1 TBSP Sweet Ginger Chili Sauce
3 TBSP Sesame Soy Dressing1 Bunch of Mint (Finely chopped right before serving)

Combine 1st 4 ingredients until cabbage is coated and softened.

Add chopped mint as finishing garnish.

Optional add-ins to make a complete salad meal: 

Bean sprouts, chopped peanuts, soba noodles, tofu