I love a vegan bolognese! One of the communityโs favorite recipes here is this hearty mushroom and beet bolognese. I also have a delectably savory eggplant bolognese in my cookbook. This comforting lentil bolognese recipe has all the depth, meaty, and toothsome qualities of those recipes, but it cooks up in 30 minutes, exclusively on the stove. The way the sauce clings to the rigatoni pasta is just heavenly. Overall, itโs a hearty vegan dinner that comes together simply with pantry ingredients.
What gives this lentil bolognese fast flavor?
- Dried porcini mushrooms: For speedy and substantive oomph, these dried mushrooms (that we rehydrate) are brilliant. There is no substitute for this ingredient.
- Shallots: I prefer shallots to onions because they have a mild flavor that seems to develop a bit faster.
- Tomato paste & marinara sauce: A whole can of tomato paste delivers concentrated, umami-packed flavor. We cook it out for a couple minutes to extract the tin-y quality. Prepared marinara sauce is a great shortcut for slow-simmered flavor.
- Tamari: If youโve made my recipes before, youโre no stranger to the finishing touch of Tamari. Here, it enhances the deeply savory porcini mushrooms and just makes the final product more mouthwatering.
- Aged balsamic vinegar: This product is bitter-sweet and syrupy. Proper 3+ years aged balsamic vinegar accents tomato-based sauces, highlights the natural acidity, and also enhances with sweetness.
- Non-dairy โcreamโ or milk: Many traditional bolognese recipes are finished with whole milk to enhance the luscious sauce. We do that here with an unsweetened vegan โcreamer,โ which is an easy vegan swap.
Instead of meat, this is a lentil bolognese with canned brown lentils. This is the first time Iโve featured canned lentils on my site! Normally, I find canned lentils to be a bit too soft, but in this recipe, they work well. The convenience and velvety texture is sublime as they bubble away in the sauce.
I love finishing this satiating vegan pasta dinner with lots of finely chopped parsley and freshly ground black pepper. If you have some vegan parmesan kicking around, itโs perfect here.
30-Minute Easy Lentil Bolognese
This 30-minute easy vegan lentil bolognese is luscious, meaty, and clings beautifully to rigatoni pasta. Dried porcini mushrooms, Tamari, tomato paste, garlic, and thyme add depth to the mouthwatering sauce. Total cooking time for this hearty dinner is 30 minutes thanks to canned lentils, all on the stovetop!
Servings 4
Ingredients
- 0.5 oz (14 grams) dried porcini mushrooms & boiling water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large shallot, fine dice
- 1 small stick celery, fine dice
- 1 small-medium carrot, fine dice
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- ยฝ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 teaspoons thyme leaves, minced (or 1 teaspoon dried thyme)
- 5.5 oz (162 ml) can tomato paste
- 19 oz (561 ml) can lentils, drained and rinsed
- sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 cups prepared marinara sauce
- 1 cup reserved porcini soaking water
- 2 teaspoons Tamari soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon aged balsamic vinegar (see notes)
- โ cup non-dairy โcreamerโ or rich milk (see notes)
- 12-14 oz (340-396 grams) dry rigatoni pasta
- chopped flat leaf parsley, for serving (optional)
Notes
- Donโt forget to reserve 1 cup of the porcini soaking water.
- I recommend a richer non-dairy milk here, such as soy, cashew, or oat. You can also blend ยผ cup soaked and drained cashews with ยพ cup water for a homemade option that will taste great.
Instructions
- Place the dried porcini mushrooms in a bowl. Cover them with boiling water and set aside for 30 minutes. Once rehydrated, drain the mushrooms (reserving the water). Finely mince the mushrooms and set aside.
- Get a pot of boiling water going for your pasta.
- Heat a braiser-style pot or deep skillet over medium heat. Once the pot is hot, add the olive oil and swirl around. Add the shallots, celery, and carrot all at once. Stir and sautรฉ until vegetables are very tender and slightly caramelized, about 8-10 minutes. Lower the heat if they are browning too fast.
- Add the garlic, smoked paprika, bay leaf, and thyme to the pot and sautรฉ until fragrant, 1 minute.
- Add the tomato paste to the pot and stir often for about 2-3 minutes, until the tomato paste has slightly darkened in colour. Add the drained lentils and chopped porcini mushrooms, and stir. Season with salt and pepper.
- Add the marinara sauce and porcini soaking liquid to the pot and stir. Bring the mixture to a boil and then lower heat to a simmer. Simmer the sauce for 10 minutes with a lid partially covering the pot. Check in and stir up the sauce here and there. While this is happening, start cooking your pastaโcook according to package directions minus 2 minutes (pasta is finished in the sauce)
- After the 10 minute simmer, add the Tamari and balsamic vinegar to the lentil bolognese sauce and stir. Add the non-dairy creamer and stir. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning if necessary. Fish out the bay leaf.
- Keep the sauce on a simmer while you add the mostly cooked pasta. Bring the sauce and pasta back up to a simmer and cook for another 2-3 minutes, or until pasta is al dente. Serve the bolognese hot with chopped parsley if you like.
Very flavourful and super customisable!
Love this recipe! I didnโt have mushrooms and my lentils were already seasoned ones I had leftover from a warm lentil salad, but even so this made a quick delicious dinner! Thanks you, I love following your recipes since Iโm an older adult who became a vegan only five years or so ago.
Worked very well with my new favorite pasta, Cascatelli from Sfoglini. The spines on the back of the pasta carried that sauce so well.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cz1o9zdODjUBykaLkt0KZWzIX5EXEDQJzaha6E0/
That is a perfect pasta choice for this sauce! So glad that you enjoyed it, Naomi :)
-L
Oh and I made sunflower seed cream because didnโt have cashews or store bought cream on hand.
Another hit! Laura youโre a flavour wizard. This is so delicious, I canโt stop eating it. For the gluten free humans โ I used Garofalo brand penne and it worked so well! Followed the recipe exactly, including finishing the pasta in the sauce, and it didnโt fall apart/break up at all. Truly a GF miracle.
Oh and I made sunflower seed cream because didnโt have cashews or store bought cream on hand.
This was very good though I opted not to add any milk (oat milk was my choice but it the flavor was too strong). I also did not finish the penne in the sauce because I live alone & am working on portion planning :-D I have reserved the rest of the sauce and will make some cashew cream to incorporate. Looking forward to it!
I made this last night. It was delicious, filling, and satisfying. I used home-cooked lentils made ahead because I couldnโt find canned (thank you for noting that in the comments!), Banza penne, and cashew cream. Iโm not fully vegan, but Iโm always looking for ways to add more plant-based meals into our rotation, and we will make this one again. I really appreciate your website and cookbook!
Another winner! I love your recipes. Used dried lentils and just simmered the sauce longer, next time Iโll cook them first. Thank you for the great work!
What if I forgot to save the porcini soaking water? Just add regular water or veg stock or? Asking for a friend. : )
I would go with veg stock! ;)
-L
I made this dish the same day you sent the email about it. It turned out fantastic! I served mine over Cauliflower Gnocchi and mixed in some baby spinach as well. Delicious! And, tastes even better the next day.
Cauliflower gnocchi! Genius!!
This looks wonderful! I cannot find canned lentils at my grocery store. I assume it would be fine to simply cook lentils ahead and then add to this recipe where you would add canned lentils?
Hi Laurie!
Yes, that is the perfect strategy. Youโll need about 2 1/4 cups of cooked brown lentils total.
-L
Laura, thank you. I plan to make this soon โ looks like a perfect comfort meal!
This looks great. dried porcini is hard for me to find. What is your recommended substitute? :)
There really isnโt a perfect substitute because they add so much to this minimal cooking time recipe. I would say dried shiitake mushrooms would be suitable, but my guess is that they may be just as difficult to find. For what itโs worth, I canโt always find dried porcini mushrooms locally, so I order them online.
-L