This Lentil Bolognese Recipe is healthy and delicious, and perfect over pasta and in lasagna!
I love this recipe so much, I find myself making it weekly. And it takes just under 1 hour… my family’s “Sunday Sauce” takes 4 hours!! It’s a great way to get an Italian meal on the table faster.
I added wine to this recipe to add depth to the recipe. You can skip it, or use non-alcoholic wine. But if you are just looking to cut costs you can add more vegetable broth in its place.
Lentil Bolognese Recipe
- Ingredients in Bolognese Lentil Recipes
- How to Make Lentils Bolognese
- Lentil Bolognese Recipe
- Nutrition in Bolognese Lentils
Ingredients in Bolognese Lentil Recipes
You can swap out the walnuts for pecans or cashews.
And if you can’t have nuts at all, chopped mushrooms will work well in their place.
Vegan Bolognese Shopping List:
- Olive oil spray
- 1 onion
- 1 carrot
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
- ½ cup red wine (or more broth)
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup red lentils
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can of crushed tomatoes
How to Make Lentils Bolognese
One important step in this recipe is soaking the lentils. Make sure to start here before you start chopping anything.
Then by the time you are done chopping, grating, and mincing ingredients, and start cooking the onions, 30 minutes will have passed and it will still be a quick recipe.
How to Make Vegan Bolognese:
- In a large bowl, add the lentils and 2 cups of cold water. Set aside to soak for 30 minutes while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
- Heat a sauce pot over medium-high heat. Spray with olive oil and add the onions, cook until lightly browned. Stirring often to avoid burning.
- Add in the carrots, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Cook until fragrant, abut 1 minute.
- Stir in the tomato paste and cook (sitting often) until it is a dark red color (about 3 minutes).
- Pour in the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan to deglaze. Cook for 3 minutes until thickened a little.
- Pour in the broth and mix well with the tomato pasta and wine.
- Add the lentils, and walnuts and stir to incorporate. Heat until the mixture comes to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer (sitting often) for 20 minutes.
- Add the crushed tomatoes and continue to simmer (sitting often) for 15 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.
- Serve over pasta, or add to a vegan lasagna.
Lentil Bolognese Recipe
I love that this recipe is easy and rich, and I was really blown away the first time I made lasagna with the recipe.
Serve this over pasta, protein pasta (like Banza Chickpea Pasta), in a lasagna, over a baked potato. It’s even amazing in a vegan baked ziti, or in stuffed peppers!
More Vegan Recipes to Try:
EASY Lentil Bolognese
Ingredients
- Olive oil spray
- 1 onion diced
- 1 carrot shredded with a box grater
- 4 garlic cloves minced
- 2 teaspoons Italian Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
- ½ cup red wine
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 cup red lentils
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts
- 1 14.5-ounce can of crushed tomatoes
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add the lentils and 2 cups of cold water. Set aside to soak for 30 minutes while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
- Heat a sauce pot over medium-high heat. Spray with olive oil and add the onions, cook until lightly browned. Stirring often to avoid burning.
- Add in the carrots, garlic, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Cook until fragrant, abut 1 minute.
- Stir in the tomato paste and cook (sitting often) until it is a dark red color (about 3 minutes).
- Pour in the wine and scrape the bottom of the pan to deglaze. Cook for 3 minutes until thickened a little.
- Pour in the broth and mix well with the tomato pasta and wine.
- Add the lentils, and walnuts and stir to incorporate. Heat until the mixture comes to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer (sitting often) for 20 minutes.
- Add the crushed tomatoes and continue to simmer (sitting often) for 15 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.
- Serve over pasta, or add to a vegan lasagna.
Notes
Nutrition in Bolognese Lentils
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