This Savory Vegan Loaf was the main course of our Christmas dinner this year.
We enjoyed it with my Easy Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Mashed Potato Bake with Mozzarella.
The loaf was such a hit, we’re planning to have the same meal for New Year’s dinner.
Savory Vegan Loaf Components
The individual components of this vegan loaf all come together to form one delicious whole: the brown rice and breadcrumbs not only add a nice textural bite, they also act as binders. They’re the reason why this loaf can be vegan. The cashew pieces add a slight crunch, while the potatoes, thyme, and rosemary add a traditional comfort food element. And the Bragg Liquid Aminos bring a hint of smokiness.
This vegan loaf is the perfect holiday meal, but it really makes a great meal any day of the week. One of my favorite things to do with leftovers is make a sandwich. I look forward to a slice of this loaf with some Vegenaise, lettuce, tomato and cheddar between two pieces of toasted sourdough just as much as I look forward to the meal I originally make the loaf for.
Make my Savory Vegan Loaf for your next holiday gathering. Or enjoy it any night of the week that you’re craving a filling and delicious plant-based meal.
A Few Things!
This recipe makes an 8×4 inch loaf. If you don’t have an 8×4 inch loaf pan, here is the brand I use on Amazon [aff. link]. This is my favorite loaf pan size. I use it for all my quick bread recipes as well, including my Banana Graham Cracker Bread, Zucchini Breakfast Cake, and Lemon Poppyseed Loaf.
If you’re unfamiliar with Bragg Liquid Aminos, think of it as similar to a smoky soy sauce alternative, with a more nuanced flavor and less sodium. You can find Bragg Liquid Aminos in most grocery stores today, but here it is on Amazon [aff. link].
And if you haven’t cooked with nutritional yeast before, here’s my favorite brand on Amazon [aff. link], though I also seen it in Trader Joe’s these days. With its cheesy, nutty taste, nutritional yeast often acts as a vegan cheese alternative. Even better, nutritional yeast is packed with protein, with 8 grams per 1/4 cup.
Savory Vegan Loaf
Ingredients
For the onion and garlic:
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 red onion, minced
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
For the potatoes and herbs:
- 1 pound potatoes, diced to 3/4 inch cubes
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp rosemary
- 1 tsp thyme
Everything else:
- 1 cup cashews, processed to medium-sized chunks
- 2 cups breadcrumbs, homemade, finely processed
- 2 cups brown rice, cooked
- 1 cup almond milk
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp pepper
- ½ tsp onion salt
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 2 Tbsp Bragg Liquid Aminos
Instructions
Cook the onion and garlic
- Add the oil, onion, and salt to a skillet, preferably non-stick. Cook over medium heat for 4 minutes, then turn the heat down to medium-low, and cook an additional 6 minutes.
- Keeping the heat on medium-low, add the garlic to the skillet, and cook for an additional 4 minutes.
- Transfer the cooked onion and garlic mixture to a large mixing bowl.
Make the breadcrumbs, cashews, and brown rice
- While the onion cooks, it’s a good time to prepare the breadcrumbs, cashews, and cook the brown rice, if you haven’t already.
For the breadcrumbs
- Add a few slices of bread to your food processor/blending apparatus, and process the bread until fine crumbs form. I generally use a whole wheat or seven grain bread for this recipe, but whatever you’ve got will work. For me, 2-3 slices of bread gets me the 2 cups of breadcrumbs this recipe requires. (Don’t use store-bought breadcrumbs here, see my note below for details.)
For the cashews
- Transfer the breadcrumbs to a small bowl, and now add 1 cup of cashews to your blending apparatus. Process the cashews until medium-size chunks form. You don’t want them to be too finely processed.
- Transfer the cashews to a small bowl.
Cook the potatoes
- Now cook the potatoes in the same skillet you cooked the onion and garlic in. Add the olive oil, potatoes, and salt to the skillet, and cook over medium heat for 8 minutes, stirring frequently to keep the potatoes from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
- Now add the rosemary and thyme to the skillet, and cook everything for an additional 5 minutes.
- The herbs and potatoes are done. Transfer them to the mixing bowl with the onion and garlic.
Mix it all together
- To the mixing bowl with the potatoes and onion, now add the cashews, breadcrumbs, brown rice, almond milk, nutritional yeast, sea salt, pepper, onion salt, garlic powder, and Bragg Aminos.
- Stir everything together until one, cohesive mixture forms.
Bake the loaf
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Oil an 8x4 inch loaf pan, and evenly spread the loaf mixture into the pan.
- Cover the top of the loaf with foil, and bake covered at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.
- Take the loaf out of the oven, remove the foil, and bake the loaf uncovered for an additional 30 minutes.
Let the loaf cool
- Remove the loaf from the oven, and let cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing. The longer the loaf cools, the better each slice will retain its shape.
Serve and enjoy!
- Serve this Savory Vegan Loaf with my Easy Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Mashed Potato Bake.
- Leftovers make a great sandwich.
8 Responses
This looks delicious and something a vegan could sink their teeth into. I sometimes get tired of mushy foods. I like something that slices.
Haha I know what you mean Judee! This loaf is the perfect solution. 😋
I’ve never had anything like this! I think you’re right that you could have this for just about any kind of meal, and I love that it’s good leftover. That’s always a plus for me.
I am so with you Jeff! There’s an extra degree of satisfaction that comes from a meal that makes good leftovers.
What a fun recipe idea! It’s basically a vegan meatloaf, and it sounds quite delicious. 🙂 And your idea of putting leftover slices of this one between bread? I need to do that! The fact that you wanted to make this again for New Year’s tells me all I need to know, too.
Haha thanks David! This is definitely a meal worth repeating!
I just came across your website and I am looking forward to making your recipes! Do you have a suggestion to substitute the cashews for a seed as I have a nut intolerance. Thank you. This meat loaf looks amazing and excited to make it!
Hi Debra, I’m so happy you found my site! I’m generally a fan of substituting sunflower seeds for cashews. Though I must disclaim that I’ve never tried substituting sunflower seeds for the cashews in this recipe, I imagine it would be delicious. If you try it, I’d recommend toasting the sunflower seeds first (just in a frying pan over medium heat for about 3-5 minutes). And I wouldn’t grind/process the sunflower seeds down at all. I do this for the cashews in the recipe, but sunflower seeds are naturally a really good size for this loaf. I could also see 3/4 cup sunflower seeds being enough, rather than a full cup. Thanks for commenting Debra, hope you enjoy the vegan loaf!