Vegan Bolognese
This hearty vegan bolognese has a meaty texture from the lentils, walnuts, and celery! It's simple to make, family-friendly, and ready in less than 30 minutes. Scoop it onto your favorite pasta for an easy weeknight meal.
Servings: 6 people
Calories: 160kcal
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- ½ cup chopped red onion
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 2 carrots diced
- 4 celery sticks diced
- ½ cup mushrooms diced
- 2 tbsp walnuts crushed
- 1 tbsp dried Italian seasoning
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp salt more to taste
- ⅛ tsp crushed red pepper more to taste
- 2 cups crushed tomatoes
- 2 cups cooked lentils
- 1 cup water or vegetable stock
Instructions
- Cook your lentils according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
- In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the red onion and sauté.
- Add the garlic, sauté until transparent, around 4 minutes.
- Add the diced carrots, celery, mushrooms and walnuts. Sauté for 5 minutes until tender.
- Add the Italian seasoning, paprika, salt and red pepper flakes, stir to combine.
- Pour in the crushed tomatoes and stir, add ½ cup water if the sauce is a little thick, bring to a gentle simmer and cook for 5 minutes.
- Transfer the sauce to a food processor and pulse several times, making sure to keep the sauce slightly chunky.
- Return the sauce to the pan along with the cooked lentils and ½ - 1 cup water or vegetable stock.
- Bring to a simmer and cook for 5-10 minutes or until the sauce begins to thicken.
- Season to taste.
- Serve warm with your favorite pasta.
Notes
- Pre-cooking the lentils is key! That way you can control how soft your lentils become and it avoids the sauce from getting too mushy.
- For some extra veggies, you can also add spinach to the sauce. If you choose to add spinach, I recommending adding it at the same time you add the carrots/celery/etc. so that it melts into the sauce and cooks down well.
- Serve this bolognese with whole wheat, chickpea or legume based pastas to add some extra plant protein to your meal
- Don't overprocess the sauce! When you add it to the food processor, make sure to keep it a little chunky so you still get that great meaty texture.
- This recipe will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Nutrition
Calories: 160kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 514mg | Potassium: 616mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 7g