{"slug":"greek-lentil-soutzoukakia","collection":"recipes","is_recipe":true,"visibility":"public","title":"Greek Lentil Soutzoukakia","description":"Greek vegan 'little sausages' of blended brown lentils, oats, carrot, and cumin, fried and then simmered in a spiced red-wine tomato sauce.","body_md":"\n## Ingredients\n\n### For the Soutzoukakia\n\n- 200g (7oz) brown lentils (about 1 cup), soaked overnight\n- 240ml (1 cup) oat flakes (rolled oats)\n- 2 large carrots, coarsely grated\n- 4 cloves garlic, crushed\n- 1 onion, finely chopped\n- 3 tsp ground cumin\n- 4 sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped (optional)\n- Salt and pepper\n- 120ml (½ cup) olive oil, for frying\n\n### For the Sauce\n\n- 6 tomatoes, blended or grated (or 900g–1kg / 32–35oz canned tomato sauce)\n- 360ml (1½ cups) red wine\n- 60ml (¼ cup) olive oil\n- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped\n- 10 allspice corns, or ½ tsp ground allspice\n- 1 cinnamon stick, or ¼ tsp ground cinnamon\n- 4 bay leaves\n- 1 tsp unprocessed sugar or other vegan sweetener\n- Salt and pepper\n\n## Instructions\n\n### Make the Soutzoukakia\n\n1. Soak the lentils overnight.\n2. Put the soaked lentils and all the other ingredients for the soutzoukakia, except the olive oil, in a blender (or food processor, dividing into two batches if needed) and mix well until combined. The mixture should be relatively thick so it holds its shape — if it is too moist, add more oat flakes.\n3. With slightly oiled hands, form the mixture into meatball shapes, then squeeze each lightly in your palm to get the characteristic slightly long, small-sausage shape.\n4. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the soutzoukakia and fry, turning, until cooked on all sides.\n5. Transfer to a large plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.\n\n### Make the Sauce and Finish\n\n1. In a large frying pan, combine the olive oil, allspice, and cinnamon and heat over medium heat.\n2. Once hot, sauté the garlic for about a minute, being careful not to let it turn bitter.\n3. Add the red wine, tomatoes, sugar, and bay leaves. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, then let it simmer for 5 minutes.\n4. Add the soutzoukakia to the sauce and lower the heat slightly. Simmer for 10 minutes — the soutzoukakia are then ready.\n5. If you are not in a hurry, remove the pan from the heat and let it sit for another 5 minutes so the flavors come together.\n\n## Notes\n\n- For easier shaping, chill the mixture in the refrigerator for half an hour to firm up before forming.\n- When the soutzoukakia go into the sauce, keep the heat at a gentle simmer. Don't let the sauce bubble too hard, or it may break down the soutzoukakia or cause them or the sauce to stick to the pan.\n- For a more refined presentation, shape the soutzoukakia using the quenelle technique with two tablespoons.\n\n**2026-07-30 — QC repair (claude-code):**\n\n- The sauce's `1 tsp unprocessed sugar` was listed but never used. Placed it in sauce step 3, with the wine and tomatoes — it is there to balance the acidity of the tomato and wine.\n- The sauce's `Salt and pepper` was likewise listed but never used; no sauce step seasoned anything. Sauce step 3 now seasons.\n- The canned substitute for the fresh tomatoes was wrong: six tomatoes is roughly 900g–1kg, not the 1.5kg stated, so the tinned route was making about 50% more sauce than the fresh one. Corrected to 900g–1kg (32–35oz). The fresh quantity is unchanged.\n","draft":false,"weight":10,"servings":"4","prep_time":"30 minutes","cook_time":"30 minutes","total_time":"9 hours","created_at":"2026-06-27T13:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-30T22:26:33.61729Z","categories":["Main"],"tags":["Greek","Lentils","Vegan"],"methods":["Stove-Top"],"themes":["Vegan"],"ingredients":[{"section":"For the Soutzoukakia","items":["- 200g (7oz) brown lentils (about 1 cup), soaked overnight","- 240ml (1 cup) oat flakes (rolled oats)","- 2 large carrots, coarsely grated","- 4 cloves garlic, crushed","- 1 onion, finely chopped","- 3 tsp ground cumin","- 4 sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped (optional)","- Salt and pepper","- 120ml (½ cup) olive oil, for frying"],"parsed":[{"raw":"- 200g (7oz) brown lentils (about 1 cup), soaked overnight","qty":200,"unit":"g","item":"brown lentils","prep":"soaked overnight"},{"raw":"- 240ml (1 cup) oat flakes (rolled oats)","qty":240,"unit":"ml","item":"oat flakes"},{"raw":"- 2 large carrots, coarsely grated","qty":2,"item":"large carrots","prep":"coarsely grated"},{"raw":"- 4 cloves garlic, crushed","qty":4,"unit":"clove","item":"garlic","prep":"crushed"},{"raw":"- 1 onion, finely chopped","qty":1,"item":"onion","prep":"finely chopped"},{"raw":"- 3 tsp ground cumin","qty":3,"unit":"tsp","item":"ground cumin"},{"raw":"- 4 sun-dried tomatoes, finely chopped (optional)","qty":4,"item":"sun-dried tomatoes","prep":"finely chopped"},{"raw":"- Salt and pepper","item":"Salt and pepper"},{"raw":"- 120ml (½ cup) olive oil, for frying","qty":120,"unit":"ml","item":"olive oil","prep":"for frying"}]},{"section":"For the Sauce","items":["- 6 tomatoes, blended or grated (or 900g–1kg / 32–35oz canned tomato sauce)","- 360ml (1½ cups) red wine","- 60ml (¼ cup) olive oil","- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped","- 10 allspice corns, or ½ tsp ground allspice","- 1 cinnamon stick, or ¼ tsp ground cinnamon","- 4 bay leaves","- 1 tsp unprocessed sugar or other vegan sweetener","- Salt and pepper"],"parsed":[{"raw":"- 6 tomatoes, blended or grated (or 900g–1kg / 32–35oz canned tomato sauce)","qty":6,"item":"tomatoes","prep":"blended or grated"},{"raw":"- 360ml (1½ cups) red wine","qty":360,"unit":"ml","item":"red wine"},{"raw":"- 60ml (¼ cup) olive oil","qty":60,"unit":"ml","item":"olive oil"},{"raw":"- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped","qty":2,"unit":"clove","item":"garlic","prep":"finely chopped"},{"raw":"- 10 allspice corns, or ½ tsp ground allspice","qty":10,"item":"allspice corns, or ½ tsp ground allspice"},{"raw":"- 1 cinnamon stick, or ¼ tsp ground cinnamon","qty":1,"item":"cinnamon stick, or ¼ tsp ground cinnamon"},{"raw":"- 4 bay leaves","qty":4,"item":"bay leaves"},{"raw":"- 1 tsp unprocessed sugar or other vegan sweetener","qty":1,"unit":"tsp","item":"unprocessed sugar or other vegan sweetener"},{"raw":"- Salt and pepper","item":"Salt and pepper"}]}],"servings_int":4,"qc":{"status":"passed","last_checked_at":"2026-07-30T22:26:50.919662Z","checked_by":"claude-code","standard_version":"2026-07-29","findings_count":0,"stale":false}}