A classic tasting Vegan Meatloaf made with a base of chickpeas that is SO simple to make. This is NOT another mushy vegan loaf. It’s beautiful, savory, hearty and extremely comforting alongside some mashed potatoes and green beans.
*This recipe was originally posted 10/12/17. Updated 9/24/18 with more appetizing photos and slightly updated instructions.
Ah, the Vegan Meatloaf. Have you tried making one yet? You can find many different versions all over the internet, from lentil loaf to tofu loaf, and probably many more.
Some I’ve tried have been quite good, but often even if they taste good, they don’t look very appetizing. I wanted to come up with a Vegan Meatloaf recipe that had more “classic” meatloaf flavors and would also look beautiful. Chickpeas to the rescue!
The one thing you never want is a super mushy loaf. And it’s pretty hard to avoid, actually. But through some trial and error, I have come up with a non-mushy, flavorful and beautiful loaf that would be just perfect as the main dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas or any other holiday.
I remember one Thanksgiving several years ago that I was super excited to make a popular blogger’s lentil loaf recipe. I wanted to impress our guests with how good vegan cooking can be! Well, the loaf sunk in the middle and was just a complete mushy mess. Ugh. So frustrating.
HOW DO YOU MAKE VEGAN MEATLOAF?
This Vegan Meatloaf is easy to make, and most of the time spent is hands off.
First, saute the vegetables in either water or olive oil for a few minutes, until the onion is translucent. Remove from the heat and set aside.
Mash the drained/rinsed chickpeas in a large bowl (I always use a potato masher, works great!).
Then simply add the cooked vegetables and all the remaining ingredients. Stir very well!
Press the mixture into a loaf pan evenly, cover with foil and cook for 30 minutes. Remove foil, add the ketchup- Worcestershire topping and put back in the oven for 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven, let cool a few minutes, slice and serve.
I hope you all enjoy this vegan meatloaf! It’s:
Hearty
Smoky
Fiber-rich
Beautiful
& so Affordable
You can also leave off the ketchup topping and serve with this Easy Vegan Gravy instead!
Want more savory vegan dishes? Try one of these!
Inspired by this recipe.
The Best Vegan Meatloaf
Ingredients
Vegetables for Sautéing
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil OR water for oil free
- 1 small onion, diced small
- 2 small carrots, diced small
- 2 celery stalks, diced small
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
For the Rest
- (2) 15 oz cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed (3 cups)
- 1- 1 1/2 cups breadcrumbs*
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1/4 cup ketchup
- 1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke, optional, but good
For the topping
- 1/3 cup ketchup
- 1 teaspoon vegan Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and lightly spray a 9 inch loaf pan with oil, or line the bottom with parchment paper to prevent sticking.
- Saute the onion, carrots, celery and garlic in the olive oil or water over medium heat for 5 minutes, until the onions are translucent. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Add the chickpeas to a large bowl, and mash with a potato masher (or fork). You do not want them to be completely pasty or mushy, but well broken up. Alternatively, use a food processor, but be careful not to over blend them and make them totally mushy. Pulse a couple of times if using a food processor.
- Add the cooked veggies and all the remaining ingredients to the chickpeas. I have found 1 cup of breadcrumbs to be enough, but if the mixture seems really moist, add an extra 1/2 cup. Stir with a large wooden spoon until very well combined.
- Press the loaf mixture in the prepared pan, pushing down evenly with your hand. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.
- In a small bowl, stir together the ketchup and Worcestershire sauce for the topping.
- After 30 minutes, remove the foil, spread the ketchup topping evenly on top of the loaf and bake for another 15 minutes, uncovered. Remove from the oven.
- Allow to sit for at least 15 minutes before slicing if you can, it will hold up better. Sprinkle with fresh parsley if desired before serving.
Video
Notes
- You may substitute gluten-free or whole wheat breadcrumbs if desired. The amount needed depends on how moist or dry your chickpeas are. I have found this varies depending on the brand. Use 1 to 1 1/2 cups.
- Make sure to find vegan Worcestershire sauce. Most have anchovies in the ingredients. Annie's brand has a good one you can find at most natural food stores. You can also order it online.
- Find liquid smoke near barbecue sauce in most grocery stores. You can leave it out, but it adds a great "smoky" flavor. One bottle will last you a long time.
Nutrition
Terrific recipe! Love everything about it! Thanks so much!?
I made this recently, halving the recipe and dividing the mixture among mini loaf pans. It made for a great dinner but also great leftovers for lunch the next day. I like how easy it is and how it isn’t mushy like lentil loaf is. Here are a couple of ways I served it:
https://foodfordissertating.blogspot.com/2019/03/temari-rabbit-2-tier-bento-115.html
https://foodfordissertating.blogspot.com/2019/03/happy-jackson-snack-boxes-65.html
Thanks for sharing!
I was so scared making this recipe. Some vegan meatloaf are terrible but this turned out great thank you. I added some garlic powder and smoked paprika! Boom magic! Thanks for another recipe to add to my list.
I don’t have a loaf pan. Any suggestions on how I can make this using a different pan, or foil maybe?
Hi Michelle! You could probably make this on a regular sheet pan or something like that. I would grease the pan a bit, or put parchment paper down. Then shape the loaf with your hands. It may be rounder than in a loaf pan but I think it should work fine. I would definitely cover it in foil, loosely while it bakes. Thanks!
I wanted this to work because I still haven’t found “the one”. Sadly, this was a no go for me and my husband. Dry and lacked flavor. Followed recipe to the letter. We still will eat it as meat loaf sandwiches because putting together with mayo/mustard rounded out the flavors ok, but not a fan of this one, sorry.
my family and I are meat eaters and not ashamed of it, but I’ve bee looking for healthier options . My son is over weight and I need to help him . I was looking for healthier recipes and found this one.. I have gone out and bought the flax and yeast I had all the other ingredients at the house although some are not vegetarian like the Worcestershire, but I’m trying. Any way I’m making this today, it’s in the oven now. I tasted the mixture before cooking it and I’m actually surprised at how good it tastes . Now it really doesn’t taste like meatloaf, but it is a great substitute and good first stepping stone for us . Thanks for sharing this recipe and the hard work you put into coming up with it. I greatly appreciate it.
I just made this in the morning, put it in the fridge and cooked it for dinner tonight. It was excellent! Really good flavors. It’s now my new meatloaf recipe. My old recipe called for vegan beef crumbles. I never liked using so much of that stuff. This is very healthy and easily made. Thank you so much.
I’m so glad you found a new favorite loaf! I agree, occasionally I enjoy vegan meats, but I don’t like to eat them too often. 🙂
Anything I could use as a substitute for the ground flaxseed? I cannot wait to try this recipe. Thank you!
You can leave them out, I think it should be just fine. Thanks! Hope you enjoy it!
This was EXCELLENT!
I made this tonight. Delicious! So glad I found Nora’s recipe!
I made this on Christmas Eve for my Vegan grandson, and oh my goodness it was so delicious! Everyone had some, so I’m making another one for him to munch on this week while he stays here. I followed the directions as written, and honestly I wouldn’t change a thing!
Yay! I’m so glad, thank you.
Made this for Christmas tonight…. AWESOME!!! I made it exactly as written. The best vegan loag I’ve had so far. I’m do glad to have found a great recipe that doesn’t have let lentils in it.
Thank you! I’m so glad it was a success!
Made this today. Easy and delicious, highly recommend
Hi Nora! This recipe was very good, but I really need a little help.. I’m making it for Christmas to bring for my husband and I who are vegan, and of course will share with family too. I did a dry run tonight, and it came out a little crumbly. I followed all the instructions and let it sit for 15 min before slicing – it would barely hold together. However, when my husband went back for a 2nd piece (he loved it by the way!) it had sat for more time so was less crumbly and easier to slice. I used whole wheat breadcrumbs instead of panko, so I wonder if that had something to do with it. I think I’ll use panko next time, but I was wondering what you throught. Also, would some product like veganegg help it to bind better, or did I possibly not prepare it properly or push it in the pan enough? I used a potato masher and followed you instructions for consistency. Once everything was mixed and I pressed it in the loaf pan, I wonder if I pressed it enough – I did press it down, but I also didn’t want to make it mushy. Anyway, any of your help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I really want it to turn out great for Christmas. Thanks in advance!
Hi Heather! I’m glad you enjoyed the flavor of the loaf. So, a few things. Panko breadcrumbs would work better, whole wheat breadcrumbs are fine but they will make the loaf dryer and more crumbly; they are just denser and suck up more liquid than the panko ones. So use panko if you can the next time. Also, the loaf will be much easier to slice the longer you let it sit. If you want it to slice really easily and well for Christmas, try letting it sit for 30 minutes after it comes out of the oven. That should help a lot! I wouldn’t recommend using another vegan egg product, it may get too mushy and you already have ground flaxseeds in there for binding. And yes, press it down evenly and firmly, that will also help it stay together when it’s cooked. I hope that helps so you can have the best possible result on Christmas! Thank you!
Hi there. I see people mentioning “tahini” in their comments but I do not see tahini listed anywhere in the recipe. What am I missing? Thanks!
There was a tablespoon of tahini called for in the earliest version of this recipe, but I later updated the recipe and found it completely unnecessary. That is why you don’t see it there now. 🙂
Do you think this can be completely made the day before and just baked the day of? (I’m not sure if that’s what an earlier poster was asking)
Yes, that would work. It may need a little longer in the oven, since it will be going in cold.
Thanks!
Hi Nora, is this a dish I canprep today but cook tomorrow? Just tying to juggle my schedule to cook and work!
Yes, absolutely!
Thanks for the marvelous posting! I actually enjoyed reading it, you cold
bee a great author.I wiol make sure to bookmark your bkog and will often come
back someday. I want to encourage you tto ultimately continue your grea work, have a nice evening!
Thank you so much, that’s so kind!!
Made late Thanksgiving dinner for man (vegan) …needless to say he loved it. He ate half pan then wanted other half for breakfast next day. Thanks for the recipe!!!
Woo hoo! So glad it worked out so well on Thanksgiving!
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was wonderful! I didn’t use the ketchup topping because I made a mushroom gravy, but look forward to trying that in the future. This is the best vegan meatloaf I’ve found.Thank you so much!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the vegan meatloaf! I made it for Thanksgiving yesterday as well, with my gravy recipe. It’s pretty good either way (ketchup or gravy).
Growing up (omnivorous; I wasn’t vegetarian ’til I was 19 or 20), Ma always served meatloaf with gravy, so I never understood ‘the ketchup thing’ — ketchup goes on burgers, not meatloaf! So of course I really appreciate your inclusion of (and recipe for) a gravy topping option.
In my kitchen right now sits the #10 can of chickpeas that my boyfriend got at Costco yesterday. Yep, I said #10, as in about 12 cups or nearly 7 lbs of chickpeas! I see this “meatloaf” in my future (as soon as we replenish our soy sauce–that teaspoon of Bragg’s is just not enough.) as well as hummus, Chana Masala, roasted chickpea snacks, et cetera.
A question: In some of the comments above, there was mention of tahini, which must have disappeared somewhere between your original post and the revision about a year later . How much was called for originally, and why’d you remove it?
Hi there! How funny; I always had meatloaf with ketchup, not gravy growing up! But I love this chickpea loaf both ways. That is a lot of chickpeas, but I’m sure you will find ways to use them up. 🙂
I updated the recipe awhile back and took out the tahini. Only 1-2 tablespoons was called for I believe, but I found that I couldn’t tell the difference if it was there or not, so to make it easier, I removed it from the list. One less ingredient you have to buy to make it! Thanks for your comments.
This sounds delicious! I have suddenly started having stomachaches when I eat chickpeas so I guess I have developed an intolerance. Any suggestions for a substitute for the chickpeas?
Oh bummer! Cooked lentils would work, navy or pinto beans.
I am making it for the second time today. It was delusions the first time. I used the leftovers all week for sandwiches! Sooo yummy. Today I added about 1/2 of a green pepper Finley chopped to the veggies. Should be so good! Thank you for sharing the recipe.
My husband says the sandwiches are better than the loaf itself! Glad you enjoyed it.
Wow, this was good!!! And it was actually better the next day! Made mashed cauliflower and had nice ‘comfort food’ meal over the weekend!
Great recipe!
So glad you enjoyed the loaf Chris! Thanks for sharing. Sounds like a delicious, comforting meal!
Are most of the recipes from here in your new cookbook?
No, they are not though quite a few recipes from the blog are in the cookbook, but the I released the ebook about a year ago now, so many of the newer recipes are not in there.