The Very Best Vegan Bolognese

Sometimes you just want something classic. Nothing screams pasta like bolognese and I've made it my mission over the last few months to come up with a fool proof vegan bolognese that's better than the original. You read that right - "better" than the original. This bolognese has everything, salty, umami, crunchy, you name it. Believe me when I say you will not be disappointed with this recipe.

Course Main Course, Pasta

Cuisine Italian

Diet Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword easy bolognese recipe, mushroom bolognese recipe, the best bolognese recipe, the best vegan bolognese, vegan bolognese, vegan bolognese recipes

Prep Time 20 mins

Cook Time 40 mins

Total Time 1 hr

Servings

Calories 221

Ingredients

3 Medium Onions peeled and loosely chopped
2 Medium Carrots peeled and loosely chopped
2 Sticks Celery loosely chopped
2 Cloves Garlic peeled
500 g Chestnut Mushrooms loosely chopped
150 g Walnuts
3 Tablespoons Soy Sauce
100 ml Red Wine
2 Teaspoons Paprika
2 Teaspoons Dried Oregano
2 Teaspoons Sugar
1 Tablespoon Balsamic Vinegar
3 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
2 (400g) Cans Plum Tomatoes decanted and lightly crushed with your hands so no large pieces remain
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
25 g Parsley finely chopped

Instructions

Place the 3 chopped onions, 2 carrots, 2 sticks of celery and 2 cloves of garlic in a food processor and pulse until the vegetables are very finely chopped. Tip the contents into a mixing bowl and reserve until needed.
Now tip in the 150g walnuts into the food processor and pulse until it resembles a fine crumb. Remove the nuts and place into a large mixing bowl.
Next place the 500g of loosely chopped mushrooms into the food processor. Pulse until the mushrooms are shredded but not a paste. Don't be tempted to over process, you need some texture. Once shredded, add the mushrooms into the mixing bowl with the walnuts and evenly combine.
Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a deep pan over a medium-high heat. Tip in the walnut and mushroom mixture and fry for about 5-7 minutes until the mushrooms have lost most of their moisture.
Increase the heat of the pan and pour in the 3 tablespoons of soy sauce and 100 ml red wine. Fry the mixture, stirring to make sure it doesn't stick, for about 5 minutes until the red wine has completely reduced and the mushrooms are nicely caramelised. Once cooked, remove the mushrooms from the pan.
Reduce the heat of the pan to a low heat and add a further dash of olive oil. Add the onions, carrots, celery, garlic mixture. Cover the pan with a lid and sweat the vegetables for about 5 minutes until they are nice and soft. Make sure they don't catch, if they are starting to brown you have the pan temperature too high.
Now add the 2 teaspoons of paprika, 2 teaspoons of dried oregano, 2 teaspoons of sugar, 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar and 3 tablespoons of tomato paste into the pan. Stir to combine the spices evenly throughout the vegetable mixture and fry for a further 30 seconds or so.
Tip in the caramelised mushrooms and stir into the cooked vegetables. Then pour over the 2 cans of plum tomatoes, stir to combine. Cover and simmer for 40 minutes. Once simmered your sauce should be nice and rich, season to taste with a good helping of kosher salt and cracked black pepper. Remove from the heat.
Serve the bolognese generously heaped over your pasta of choice and topped with the chopped parsley and some nutritional yeast.

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