Vegan lentil bolognese

Beluga lentils are the secret to the rich texture and colour of this vegan bolognese. Lentils are a good source of protein but lack the amino acids methionine and cysteine, making them an incomplete protein. There are 9 essential amino acids that we must consume in order ensure our body can heal and repair, maintain integrity and structure and neurotransmitters and hormones. Thankfully we can do this with a vegan diet by consuming different protein sources together, for example rice (in this case it is rice pasta) is a rich source of methionine and cysteine. This sauce also contains a whole punnet of mushrooms, which is of itself a whole protein sauce, if you will pardon the pun!!

This vegan bolognese replaced our meat version many moons ago, it freezes well and has the same comforting appeal of any good bolognese. This is an easy mid-week meal swap for a more plant based diet that carnivores and vegans alike can enjoy.

Print Recipe

Vegan bolognese

Prep Time30 minutes mins

Cook Time45 minutes mins

Servings: 8

Ingredients

• 300 g Beluga Lentils Soaked for an hour in cold water
• 4 large Carrots Peeled and blended to leave some texture
• 1 punnet chestnut mushrooms washed and blended to leave texture
• 3 sticks celery washed and blended to leave texture
• 5 cloves garlic crushed
• 1 white onion finely chopped
• 2 whole bay leaves
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp rosemary
• 1 tbsp bouillion powder
• 15 cl red wine optional
• 1/2 tsp thyme
• 1/2 tsp basil
• 500 ml passata

Notes

Fry the onion, blended carrots and celery sticks until softened, add in the garlic for a couple of minutes. Then the mushrooms until combined. Add the herbs and the splash of red wine, let that simmer for a couple of minutes. 

Add the lentils, passata and 300ml hot water to cover the sauce, keep adding hot water during the process if the sauce is looking dry to ensure the lentils cook through. The lentils usually take 40-45 minutes to cook. You can check if they are cooked by pushing them with the back of a spoon. They should be smooth inside but retain their external texture.