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–+ servings
A plate of spaghetti tossed with vegan lentil Bolognese sauce.
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5 from 3 votes

Lentil Bolognese Sauce

This lentil Bolognese sauce is hearty, nutritious, and only takes 25 minutes to cook! It's also cheap to make and freezes well.
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time25 mins
Total Time35 mins
Cuisine: American / Canadian
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 94kcal
Author: Kelly Neil

Equipment

  • measuring cups and spoons or digital kitchen scale
  • sharp knife
  • cutting board
  • can opener
  • 12-inch deep-sided skillet or pot
  • rubber spatula or wooden spoon

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • ½ medium onion diced
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
  • 1 teaspoon oregano dried
  • ½ teaspoon basil dried
  • ½ teaspoon thyme dried
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • ¼ teaspoon black pepper ground
  • 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
  • ¼ cup red wine
  • ½ cup red lentils dried, split
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Heat the olive oil in a deep-sided skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onion and garlic to the pan. Cook until fragrant, and the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes.
  • Add the fennel seeds, oregano, basil, thyme, salt, and pepper to the onions. Continue to cook for one minute.
  • Pour the crushed tomatoes into the pot and hive everything a good stir. Add the lentils and stir again to combine. Simmer the sauce gently, on low-medium heat, for 20 minutes. If the sauce is bubbling hard, reduce the heat a bit. You can also add a lid to the pot, placed on slightly ajar for steam to escape, to prevent splattering.
  • Add the red wine to the pot and continue to simmer for 5 minutes more, or until the lentils are tender. Serve the sauce hot on top of, or tossed with, your favourite cooked pasta.

Notes

Don't skip the fennel seeds! They add a note of flavour which is reminiscent of a true Italian meat ragu. You simply can't get the flavour with any other herb or spice.
If you don't include alcohol in your diet simply omit from the recipe.
You could try substituting other dried lentils, or even canned lentils, however, I have only tested this recipe with dried red lentils. I like them because they cook quickly and don't turn to mush.
If you are vegetarian, try adding ½ cup of 35% whipping cream to the sauce when you add the red wine. 

Nutrition

Serving: 113g | Calories: 94kcal | Carbohydrates: 12g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 197mg | Potassium: 200mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 22IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 2mg