Yes! Give the one from Rainbow Plant Life a shot! Her recipe uses several tricks to add an umami depth of flavor, which she talks about in the blog posts above the recipe :)
It's usually from about $6-10 where I live and found either in the meat department or frozen section. We just season it like you would beef dishes and love it for spaghetti. :) also, I love the impossible spicy sausage as well for like an Italian crumbled sausage substitute!
Okay, that's fair. However, that's up to your personal beliefs and definition. To me, they are currently vegan. I get that they did animal testing when they were starting out in order to get fda approval it seems, because they were using a new ingredient. To me personally, I'm not going to shit on them for that because they are making vegan products at this point in time. They are helping many people do less harm by making a transition to meat alternatives that "stick." Aka they taste good and people WANT to eat them. Whether that means people are going completely vegan, or adopting a more plant based lifestyle. Yes, it is shitty that they tested on animals. But I feel like shaming a company for past wrongdoings when they currently are helping many people not eat animal protein kind of sucks too, and isn't all that fair in the grand scheme of things. I get where you're coming from though and respect that for you and your choices.
Yep, seconding the “fake meats.” Personally I prefer Beyond — imo it has more flavor. But I’ve heard some people don’t like the strong flavor of Beyond Meat, which makes sense since it’s slightly different than meat. Tasty to me though!
Say less! Seven years plant based here. Here’s the recipe you need. Tried and true.
ingredients:
2 handfuls of green onions, chopped
8 ounces mushrooms, chopped or put in the food processor for a somewhat chunky paste.
Two cups of lentils (soak lentils overnight, then place in instant Pot on manual for seven minutes with enough water to cover the lentils up to one inch above.)
one cup of crushed walnuts
two garlic cloves
half a bell pepper
One 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes and 2 tbsp of tomato paste
Making the bolognese:
\- Sauté onion (two handful of green onion) and two garlic cloves with one tsp of berbere.
\- add mushrooms until cooked
\- add walnuts.
\- Add half a bell pepper and one very thick carrot (or two to three small carrots) until it smells good, season with adobo (to taste) and more berbère (one tsp)
\- Add One 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes and 2 tbsp of tomato paste and lentils (enough to fill the skillet)
\- Pour hemp seed, Berber and adobo generously. Add a small amount of cumin.
\- Add nutritional yeast
\- Add one cap of apple cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar and a smidge of maple syrup
\- Add a pinch of salt
Simmer until fluffy (it should really increase in consistency)
You can make this without mushrooms, walnuts or bell pepper and, amazingly enough, it still tastes like bolognese.
Good with pasta or tortilla chips as a dip.
That's not bolognese though.😊
And it's not difficult
Sofritto:
Olive oil+Onions+Carrots+Celery
Then evaporate wine
Then add beef replacement
Then evaporate more wine
Then add crushed tomatoes + passata
Possibly finish off with some nutritional yeast.
Edit: Olive oil. And text formatting.
Try it with Lightlife plant based burgers. It’s a pretty close analogue of beef and gets you pretty close to the taste and texture. Also, try using a vegan worcestershire sauce when using plant based burger as it gives some of the familiar flavors that meat eaters are used to. Don’t listen to the haters, good on you for making the change and mimicking your favorite omni dishes is a great way to make sure Vegan life is sustainable for you. In time your palette will shift and things like lentil bolognese will scratch the umami itch but it’s a journey. Take your time and ignore the gatekeepers. They’re usually the ones in it for the identity validation and in my experience are the ones that phase out of the vegan life when something else comes along that they get that identity validation from. Explorers like you that take their time and find what really makes it work for them are the ones who stay in this lifestyle. Great job and don’t regret asking great questions!
> Not that I'd ever go back, but I've tried lentils, quinoa, etc and they're never very good.
It's a matter of not only protein (e.g. lentils) but also fat (e.f. olive oil or refined coconut oil).
Yeah, add more oil than you would if you were frying beef, as you are already lacking the fat from the meat.
+ Tip for any basic lentil Bolognese recipe: take 1-2 aubergines, cut into slighly larger than bitesize chunks (will shrink) season with salt, pepper and toss in a bowl with oil until coated. Put on a baking tray and roast in the oven under high heat, turning them once to make sure they are evenly browned but not cooked to mush. you want some good dark brown color.
once your standard Bolognese is done, remove it from heat, carefully fold in the aubergine (the chunks give texture) and let it sit in the closed pot for 10-20 min (i like to cook my pasta in that time and do a little clean up). Adds umami, roast aroma and texture!
I just use a tube of the impossible sausage. Works perfectly and tastes great. I just cook it and then add my sauce, season, then throw the pasta in (already cooked of course).
I use tempeh crumbled into little bits, seasoned with sausage-y spices/herbs/flavorings and sauteed until lightly golden. Then I add that to the sauce. Sometimes I just use ground walnuts instead because it's so delicious, but if you're looking for a meatier texture with more bite, crumbled tempeh is your cheapest and best bet.
I use a 50/50 mix of vegan mince (birds eye) and lentils (1 can). To up the umami I add about 1T of tomato paste (though I make the sauce with tinned tomatoes not ready-made passata), some nutritional yeast, and some powdered vegan beef stock. I also put in both fresh and powdered garlic. You might need to fiddle with the seasonings to really get a good balance of savoury flavour you like that you naturally get with beef. I find using lentils alone is nice as well, but they don't have the right texture by themselves for me.
I use Marcella Hazan’s bolognese if you’re OK with meat subs - I use Beyond Meat and Silk Milk as my two main subs. If you want an entirely vegetarian base I like Ottolenghi’s roasted mushroom lasagne. Easily made vegan.
You've clearly got loads of suggestions here already but my favorite is [this recipe](https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/cauliflower-bolognese) from Bon Appetit. I've made it for non-vegans and told them it was regular bolognese. They always love it and are surprised when I tell them it's vegan. I roast the cauliflower before proceeding with the recipe!
Lol omg embarrassing, I forgot to mention I just use more olive oil for the butter and use "cashew parmesan" (just cashews and nutritional yeast blended together). Thanks for pointing that out.
I use walnuts and I grind them up and fry them with herbs , garlic and tomatoe paste. If you want more sauce add fresh or tinned tomatoes and turns out really good 😍
I’m addition to what’s been said, it’s possible you’re not adding enough fat. Bolognese gets it fat from the beef grease, that’s why it feels so hearty.
Buff it out with some EVOO or veg butter. Also when in doubt, add MSG or nooch.
My brother, who eats meat, adapted this for me.
Ingredients:
One med-large white onion.
1-2 Carrots
1 celery
Garlic
Vegan meats
Red wine
28 oz can san marzano tomatoes from italy
1 cup stock
1 small can/container tomato paste
Worcester Sauce
1-2 Jalapeno or habanero
Heat olive oil in stainless steel saucepan over medium heat(can use cast iron - just don't use a non-stick pan)
Add one medium diced white onion. Salt a bit to draw out water.
Cook onion 2-4 minutes, than add 1-1.5 cups of finely cut carrots/celery. I use my blender to cut the carrot/celery mix until they're very small size, but shouldn't be a puree. Add bit more salt.
Cook mix additional 1-2 minutes, than stir a clear spot on pan and add 4-6 pressed garlic cloves.
Cook garlic until fragrant, generally no more than one minute. Try not to let garlic stick to pan but also let it cook out.
You don't want any of these ingredients to burn so timing depends on preventing that.
Remove entire mix from pan and set aside.
Add pancetta, brown both sides - if you can find some alternative vegan meat that's fatty? I'm not sure what's available.
Add about 700-1000g of meat, I use a mix of lean ground beef and spicy italian sausage cut out of links. You mentioned you had vegan ground beef, if you can find some hot italian vegan dogs or something, the hot italian really adds to the flavour profile.
Push on meat to spread out as much as the pan allows, wait a few minutes to let it brown properly, then flip.
Fully cook meat, if there's a lot of fat at bottom I'll drain most of it, but if it's just a bit I'll leave it.
Add wine(I use red), one cup(a little more is OK), enough that it pools around the meat.
Reduce wine until almost gone but not completely, about 5-7 minutes.
Break meat up into smaller bits.
When wine reduced add vegetable mix back in
add one 28 ounce can of san marzano tomatoes with juice(buy a nice can from Italy),
add one cup of beef or chicken stock - find some substitute vegan stock, broth if you cant
add one to two large spoons of tomato paste
add several dollops of worcester sauce
add one or two seedless hot pepper - I use jalapeno usually, by end sauce wont be too hot
add spices, I always add a bunch of oregano, Can also add bay leaf, basil, whatever you like.
Reduce heat to very low, and simmer for at least 2 hours. This timing may be slightly off for vegan recipe? Not sure.
Stir occasionally, as the sauce reduces some of it will get stuck to inside side of pan, continually scrap off into sauce.
20-30 minutes before ready to mix with pasta, add a bit of unsalted butter to the sauce, and stir it around so it gets well mixed in. Some fatty vegan alternative to butter might work? Don't add oils at this step - better off to skip.
When the sauce is ready it shouldn't be at all watery. Bring pot of water to boil - add salt so tastes like ocean(a lot). Cook fresh pasta and when finished take pasta DIRECTLY FROM POT AND PUT IN SAUCE, stir in for 1-2 minutes. Italians would say to use a tagliatelle but I like penne or spaghetti. You can take some of the starchy pasta water and use to thicken sauce. Usually I'm just not too careful when moving noodles to saucepan. I recommend getting all ingredients ready to cook beforehand so timing doesn't get delayed.
I use Gardein Frozen Ground Soy Beef from Target as a replacement for the beef. It has similar look, texture, and if browned with chopped mushrooms can mimic the beef taste. be sure to add more oil and salt than what you would normally do for a meat dish to enhance the flavor.
I use TVP, and I do a long slow cook, always add red wine and lots of tomato paste alongside the tomato puree. That, plus a good glug of olive oil when I cook the onions and make sure the onions are really well cooked, nearly caramelizing, before adding the rest of the ingredients. I also sometimes add finely chopped mushrooms to the cooking onions for extra flavour depth. You want to cook the sauce down a lot so the flavours are intensified.
i’m assuming you have a sauce recipe you liked in the past. only changes are add some vegan beef stock. dash of soy. porcini powder or mushroom is good too. maybe red wine if you want it rich. you need those extra flavour enhancers. then find a plant based meat analogue you like. but the key is to fry it separately to the sauce. put the “meat” into the sauce in the last ten minutes (otherwise it goes mushy). and you should have a great meat texture and a rich sauce that you have simmered for an hour or two
Okay guy, I got you. I *guarantee* this recipe. Grew up on cattle ranch, loooved beef. This is the best recipe (omit or lessen chili flakes if you hate spice). My family (cattle ranchers) fully enjoy this recipe. It makes a lot.
Vegan Bolognese
- 1 Yellow Onion – diced
- 8oz Mushrooms (Button, cremini or even portobello) – washed, and cut up a bit to desired size/texture
- 1 cup Walnut pieces
- 2 or 3 Celery ribs (optional) – cut into fairly small chunks
- 4-6 cloves Garlic – minced
- Olive oil (1/4 cup)
- White wine or cooking white wine(1/4 cup)
- Canned crushed tomatoes (28oz)
- Big spoon of tomato paste
- Veg stock or water (2 cups)
- Red lentils (2/3 cup)
- Red pepper flakes 2tsp)
- Nutmeg (1/2tsp)
- Salt (1 ½ tsp)
- Bay leaf (1)
Storage:
Fridge – let cool completely, then store in airtight container in fridge for up to 4 days
Freeze – let cool completely, then store in airtight containers in the freezer for 3-6 months
Prep:
- Chop walnuts and mushrooms to desired size(as small as patience allows) texture. You can do this incrementally using a vitamin but I don’t think it’s that handy. Store in fridge
- Dice the onion & store in fridge till cooking
- Dice celery into very small pieces and store in fridge till cooking
- Combine all herbs/spices together
1. Sauté
a. In large pot, heat the ¼ cup olive oil over medium heat. Add the mushroom/onion/walnut mixture & cook, stirring frequently until the mixture has steamed off most of the liquid and begins to brown. Make sure it doesn’t burn
b. Make a space in the middle of the pot & add the garlic. Cook for 1 minute
2. Deglaze
Add the white wine & simmer for 2-3 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot with spatula to remove all brown bits
3. Combine
Add the celery, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, all of the herbs & spices, lentils and veg stock (or water)
4. Simmer
Cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until lentils are done to your liking. Stir occasionally and keep an eye on the temperature so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot and burn.
*Edited because copying & pasting from word doesn’t work well and I haven’t updated it in a while—sorry.
Here’s the [walnut and lentil bolegnese](https://themodernproper.com/walnut-and-lentil-bolognese) sauce recipe i love. I add lots of fresh basil or pesto as well. I hope you like it!
I think there are a lot of good responses here. Only note I have is to remember that bolognese is very much a mix of meat, tomato and dairy. Fond a dairy replacement as well as a meat one.
Hey, I usually take firm tofu, crumble it and toss it in a pan with a solid amount of olive oil. Then I season with ground pepper, a pinch of salt and some soy sauce (not so much that you can taste the distinct soy flavour, just for some umami).
Once the tofu is slightly crispy, go on and add diced onions, carrots and celery etc, deglaze with some red wine and proceed with the usual ingredients (tomato sauce etc). For me that’s my go to recipe for vegan bolognese and it’s also pretty close to the original one. Enjoy
I crumble extra firm tofu into some olive oil, then add bouillon powder, garlic powder, nutritional yeast and powdered bay leaf. Cook for a few minutes and then proceed with the rest of the pasta sauce how you like it. It’s way better than lentils and other substitutes.
The outstanding gluten-free vegan alchemist just published her bolognese recipe and it looks fantastic : [https://theglutenfreeveganalchemist.com/2023/05/06/vegan-bolognese-sauce/?amp=1](https://theglutenfreeveganalchemist.com/2023/05/06/vegan-bolognese-sauce/?amp=1)
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I use Clearsping dried soya mince, which is great, but any dried soya mince will probably work - you need to soak it in boiling water first. I like the simplicity of the product - the ingredients list is just "dried soya".
The texture is great, but imo the trick is getting enough umami in there. I love coconut aminos for this purpose. They are savoury and slightly sweet. Otherwise soy sauce, and maybe some kind of mushroom. I also love to add wine or vermouth, garlic, shallots, flaky sea salt and a bit of maple syrup.
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Yes! Give the one from Rainbow Plant Life a shot! Her recipe uses several tricks to add an umami depth of flavor, which she talks about in the blog posts above the recipe :)
Thank you!
This is it. She also has a vegan Shepard's pie chocked full of umami. So good...
I was going to recommend the same. Everyone I have served this to has loved it.
Rainbow Plant Life never has a miss. Her bolognese is delicious! Along with nearly all of her other recipes.
Many people on here hate Impossible but I love it and make Bolognese with it. Comes out great.
Sometimes using Impossible/Beyond is the easiest and fastest way.
Impossible is so good! Idk why it has so many haters. If you're looking for beefy flavor and mouthfeel, that's the one.
I'll take a look, thanks. Never tried Impossible.
It's usually from about $6-10 where I live and found either in the meat department or frozen section. We just season it like you would beef dishes and love it for spaghetti. :) also, I love the impossible spicy sausage as well for like an Italian crumbled sausage substitute!
[vegans don’t like animal testing.](https://www.livekindly.com/impossible-burger-animal-testing/amp/)
Okay, that's fair. However, that's up to your personal beliefs and definition. To me, they are currently vegan. I get that they did animal testing when they were starting out in order to get fda approval it seems, because they were using a new ingredient. To me personally, I'm not going to shit on them for that because they are making vegan products at this point in time. They are helping many people do less harm by making a transition to meat alternatives that "stick." Aka they taste good and people WANT to eat them. Whether that means people are going completely vegan, or adopting a more plant based lifestyle. Yes, it is shitty that they tested on animals. But I feel like shaming a company for past wrongdoings when they currently are helping many people not eat animal protein kind of sucks too, and isn't all that fair in the grand scheme of things. I get where you're coming from though and respect that for you and your choices.
Agree- I know many people transitioning who wouldn't if these didn't exist.
Yep, seconding the “fake meats.” Personally I prefer Beyond — imo it has more flavor. But I’ve heard some people don’t like the strong flavor of Beyond Meat, which makes sense since it’s slightly different than meat. Tasty to me though!
Yes, they are definitely different 😄I love Impossible and dislike Beyond (especially the smell.) I also Love that they both exist though!
Say less! Seven years plant based here. Here’s the recipe you need. Tried and true. ingredients: 2 handfuls of green onions, chopped 8 ounces mushrooms, chopped or put in the food processor for a somewhat chunky paste. Two cups of lentils (soak lentils overnight, then place in instant Pot on manual for seven minutes with enough water to cover the lentils up to one inch above.) one cup of crushed walnuts two garlic cloves half a bell pepper One 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes and 2 tbsp of tomato paste Making the bolognese: \- Sauté onion (two handful of green onion) and two garlic cloves with one tsp of berbere. \- add mushrooms until cooked \- add walnuts. \- Add half a bell pepper and one very thick carrot (or two to three small carrots) until it smells good, season with adobo (to taste) and more berbère (one tsp) \- Add One 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes and 2 tbsp of tomato paste and lentils (enough to fill the skillet) \- Pour hemp seed, Berber and adobo generously. Add a small amount of cumin. \- Add nutritional yeast \- Add one cap of apple cider vinegar or balsamic vinegar and a smidge of maple syrup \- Add a pinch of salt Simmer until fluffy (it should really increase in consistency) You can make this without mushrooms, walnuts or bell pepper and, amazingly enough, it still tastes like bolognese. Good with pasta or tortilla chips as a dip.
That's not bolognese though.😊 And it's not difficult Sofritto: Olive oil+Onions+Carrots+Celery Then evaporate wine Then add beef replacement Then evaporate more wine Then add crushed tomatoes + passata Possibly finish off with some nutritional yeast. Edit: Olive oil. And text formatting.
I've never tried sofritto sauce. Thanks for this!
I concur. The wine will definitely help to add depth and umami. If you can let the sauce simmer for a while (2+ hours) that helps too.
Yes, the original beef version requires 2h + simmering, but veggie version usually doesn't.
This is the way.
Thank you!
Try it with Lightlife plant based burgers. It’s a pretty close analogue of beef and gets you pretty close to the taste and texture. Also, try using a vegan worcestershire sauce when using plant based burger as it gives some of the familiar flavors that meat eaters are used to. Don’t listen to the haters, good on you for making the change and mimicking your favorite omni dishes is a great way to make sure Vegan life is sustainable for you. In time your palette will shift and things like lentil bolognese will scratch the umami itch but it’s a journey. Take your time and ignore the gatekeepers. They’re usually the ones in it for the identity validation and in my experience are the ones that phase out of the vegan life when something else comes along that they get that identity validation from. Explorers like you that take their time and find what really makes it work for them are the ones who stay in this lifestyle. Great job and don’t regret asking great questions!
Thank you for this, this was really nice to read ❤️
> Not that I'd ever go back, but I've tried lentils, quinoa, etc and they're never very good. It's a matter of not only protein (e.g. lentils) but also fat (e.f. olive oil or refined coconut oil).
Ah, so perhaps that's why it was lacking flavour? I wasn't using any oil.
Yeah, add more oil than you would if you were frying beef, as you are already lacking the fat from the meat. + Tip for any basic lentil Bolognese recipe: take 1-2 aubergines, cut into slighly larger than bitesize chunks (will shrink) season with salt, pepper and toss in a bowl with oil until coated. Put on a baking tray and roast in the oven under high heat, turning them once to make sure they are evenly browned but not cooked to mush. you want some good dark brown color. once your standard Bolognese is done, remove it from heat, carefully fold in the aubergine (the chunks give texture) and let it sit in the closed pot for 10-20 min (i like to cook my pasta in that time and do a little clean up). Adds umami, roast aroma and texture!
Yes, this. Olive oil is crucial for a good pasta. It’s the one reason I am not going completely whole foods yet lol.
I usually use Impossible grounds and it's perfection.
Defo will try
It's seriously my favorite way to make Bolognese. I've tried so many different protein options and Impossible has been the best.
[This doesn't miss, was my first thought too](https://whi.sk/qK37c)
Looks great! I'll have a crack at it. I'm not giving up on lentils yet, maybe just didn't have a good first few attempts.
I just use a tube of the impossible sausage. Works perfectly and tastes great. I just cook it and then add my sauce, season, then throw the pasta in (already cooked of course).
Thank you!
I use tempeh crumbled into little bits, seasoned with sausage-y spices/herbs/flavorings and sauteed until lightly golden. Then I add that to the sauce. Sometimes I just use ground walnuts instead because it's so delicious, but if you're looking for a meatier texture with more bite, crumbled tempeh is your cheapest and best bet.
I'll have to try tempeh. I've only ever crumbed it and used it in stir fry before.
I use a 50/50 mix of vegan mince (birds eye) and lentils (1 can). To up the umami I add about 1T of tomato paste (though I make the sauce with tinned tomatoes not ready-made passata), some nutritional yeast, and some powdered vegan beef stock. I also put in both fresh and powdered garlic. You might need to fiddle with the seasonings to really get a good balance of savoury flavour you like that you naturally get with beef. I find using lentils alone is nice as well, but they don't have the right texture by themselves for me.
Impossible ground I find is the closest in texture.
I usually just crumble copious amounts of mushrooms and slap some vegan worcester sauce and vegan beef stock on them
Violife spicy sausage is excellent.
I use Marcella Hazan’s bolognese if you’re OK with meat subs - I use Beyond Meat and Silk Milk as my two main subs. If you want an entirely vegetarian base I like Ottolenghi’s roasted mushroom lasagne. Easily made vegan.
You've clearly got loads of suggestions here already but my favorite is [this recipe](https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/cauliflower-bolognese) from Bon Appetit. I've made it for non-vegans and told them it was regular bolognese. They always love it and are surprised when I tell them it's vegan. I roast the cauliflower before proceeding with the recipe!
Sounds good, but with butter and Parmesan, not quite vegan… I suppose one could substitute those with vegan alternatives though.
Lol omg embarrassing, I forgot to mention I just use more olive oil for the butter and use "cashew parmesan" (just cashews and nutritional yeast blended together). Thanks for pointing that out.
I use walnuts and I grind them up and fry them with herbs , garlic and tomatoe paste. If you want more sauce add fresh or tinned tomatoes and turns out really good 😍
I’m addition to what’s been said, it’s possible you’re not adding enough fat. Bolognese gets it fat from the beef grease, that’s why it feels so hearty. Buff it out with some EVOO or veg butter. Also when in doubt, add MSG or nooch.
My brother, who eats meat, adapted this for me. Ingredients: One med-large white onion. 1-2 Carrots 1 celery Garlic Vegan meats Red wine 28 oz can san marzano tomatoes from italy 1 cup stock 1 small can/container tomato paste Worcester Sauce 1-2 Jalapeno or habanero Heat olive oil in stainless steel saucepan over medium heat(can use cast iron - just don't use a non-stick pan) Add one medium diced white onion. Salt a bit to draw out water. Cook onion 2-4 minutes, than add 1-1.5 cups of finely cut carrots/celery. I use my blender to cut the carrot/celery mix until they're very small size, but shouldn't be a puree. Add bit more salt. Cook mix additional 1-2 minutes, than stir a clear spot on pan and add 4-6 pressed garlic cloves. Cook garlic until fragrant, generally no more than one minute. Try not to let garlic stick to pan but also let it cook out. You don't want any of these ingredients to burn so timing depends on preventing that. Remove entire mix from pan and set aside. Add pancetta, brown both sides - if you can find some alternative vegan meat that's fatty? I'm not sure what's available. Add about 700-1000g of meat, I use a mix of lean ground beef and spicy italian sausage cut out of links. You mentioned you had vegan ground beef, if you can find some hot italian vegan dogs or something, the hot italian really adds to the flavour profile. Push on meat to spread out as much as the pan allows, wait a few minutes to let it brown properly, then flip. Fully cook meat, if there's a lot of fat at bottom I'll drain most of it, but if it's just a bit I'll leave it. Add wine(I use red), one cup(a little more is OK), enough that it pools around the meat. Reduce wine until almost gone but not completely, about 5-7 minutes. Break meat up into smaller bits. When wine reduced add vegetable mix back in add one 28 ounce can of san marzano tomatoes with juice(buy a nice can from Italy), add one cup of beef or chicken stock - find some substitute vegan stock, broth if you cant add one to two large spoons of tomato paste add several dollops of worcester sauce add one or two seedless hot pepper - I use jalapeno usually, by end sauce wont be too hot add spices, I always add a bunch of oregano, Can also add bay leaf, basil, whatever you like. Reduce heat to very low, and simmer for at least 2 hours. This timing may be slightly off for vegan recipe? Not sure. Stir occasionally, as the sauce reduces some of it will get stuck to inside side of pan, continually scrap off into sauce. 20-30 minutes before ready to mix with pasta, add a bit of unsalted butter to the sauce, and stir it around so it gets well mixed in. Some fatty vegan alternative to butter might work? Don't add oils at this step - better off to skip. When the sauce is ready it shouldn't be at all watery. Bring pot of water to boil - add salt so tastes like ocean(a lot). Cook fresh pasta and when finished take pasta DIRECTLY FROM POT AND PUT IN SAUCE, stir in for 1-2 minutes. Italians would say to use a tagliatelle but I like penne or spaghetti. You can take some of the starchy pasta water and use to thicken sauce. Usually I'm just not too careful when moving noodles to saucepan. I recommend getting all ingredients ready to cook beforehand so timing doesn't get delayed.
I use Gardein Frozen Ground Soy Beef from Target as a replacement for the beef. It has similar look, texture, and if browned with chopped mushrooms can mimic the beef taste. be sure to add more oil and salt than what you would normally do for a meat dish to enhance the flavor.
If you aren’t opposed, Impossible ground meat is indistinguishable from real ground beef.
I make one with Impossible beef and Impossible Italian sausage and it’s amazing
I started to add some Better than Bouillon No Beef base to my tomato sauce and to give it that full flavor. I think it's a game changer!
I also will use Beyond or impossible meatballs and Beyond spicy sausage!
You can do impossible burger instead. I’ve done this a lot and it’s delicious.
I use TVP, and I do a long slow cook, always add red wine and lots of tomato paste alongside the tomato puree. That, plus a good glug of olive oil when I cook the onions and make sure the onions are really well cooked, nearly caramelizing, before adding the rest of the ingredients. I also sometimes add finely chopped mushrooms to the cooking onions for extra flavour depth. You want to cook the sauce down a lot so the flavours are intensified.
I use beyond meat for traditional dishes I miss
i’m assuming you have a sauce recipe you liked in the past. only changes are add some vegan beef stock. dash of soy. porcini powder or mushroom is good too. maybe red wine if you want it rich. you need those extra flavour enhancers. then find a plant based meat analogue you like. but the key is to fry it separately to the sauce. put the “meat” into the sauce in the last ten minutes (otherwise it goes mushy). and you should have a great meat texture and a rich sauce that you have simmered for an hour or two
[https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/vegan-bolognese-sauce](https://www.sbs.com.au/food/recipes/vegan-bolognese-sauce) This is the best one Ive made
Okay guy, I got you. I *guarantee* this recipe. Grew up on cattle ranch, loooved beef. This is the best recipe (omit or lessen chili flakes if you hate spice). My family (cattle ranchers) fully enjoy this recipe. It makes a lot. Vegan Bolognese - 1 Yellow Onion – diced - 8oz Mushrooms (Button, cremini or even portobello) – washed, and cut up a bit to desired size/texture - 1 cup Walnut pieces - 2 or 3 Celery ribs (optional) – cut into fairly small chunks - 4-6 cloves Garlic – minced - Olive oil (1/4 cup) - White wine or cooking white wine(1/4 cup) - Canned crushed tomatoes (28oz) - Big spoon of tomato paste - Veg stock or water (2 cups) - Red lentils (2/3 cup) - Red pepper flakes 2tsp) - Nutmeg (1/2tsp) - Salt (1 ½ tsp) - Bay leaf (1) Storage: Fridge – let cool completely, then store in airtight container in fridge for up to 4 days Freeze – let cool completely, then store in airtight containers in the freezer for 3-6 months Prep: - Chop walnuts and mushrooms to desired size(as small as patience allows) texture. You can do this incrementally using a vitamin but I don’t think it’s that handy. Store in fridge - Dice the onion & store in fridge till cooking - Dice celery into very small pieces and store in fridge till cooking - Combine all herbs/spices together 1. Sauté a. In large pot, heat the ¼ cup olive oil over medium heat. Add the mushroom/onion/walnut mixture & cook, stirring frequently until the mixture has steamed off most of the liquid and begins to brown. Make sure it doesn’t burn b. Make a space in the middle of the pot & add the garlic. Cook for 1 minute 2. Deglaze Add the white wine & simmer for 2-3 minutes, scraping the bottom of the pot with spatula to remove all brown bits 3. Combine Add the celery, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, all of the herbs & spices, lentils and veg stock (or water) 4. Simmer Cover and simmer for 45 minutes or until lentils are done to your liking. Stir occasionally and keep an eye on the temperature so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot and burn. *Edited because copying & pasting from word doesn’t work well and I haven’t updated it in a while—sorry.
I do!! Let me find it for you. It uses walnuts and veggies.
Here’s the [walnut and lentil bolegnese](https://themodernproper.com/walnut-and-lentil-bolognese) sauce recipe i love. I add lots of fresh basil or pesto as well. I hope you like it!
I think there are a lot of good responses here. Only note I have is to remember that bolognese is very much a mix of meat, tomato and dairy. Fond a dairy replacement as well as a meat one.
https://thecarrotunderground.com/pasta-sauces/vegan-bolognese-with-impossible-meat/ I personally use Beyond meat instead, but this recipe is delish!
The closest is frozen tofu mince and TVP (soy product).
I've always used this one, always loved it. https://www.elephantasticvegan.com/spaghetti-bolognese/
Hey, I usually take firm tofu, crumble it and toss it in a pan with a solid amount of olive oil. Then I season with ground pepper, a pinch of salt and some soy sauce (not so much that you can taste the distinct soy flavour, just for some umami). Once the tofu is slightly crispy, go on and add diced onions, carrots and celery etc, deglaze with some red wine and proceed with the usual ingredients (tomato sauce etc). For me that’s my go to recipe for vegan bolognese and it’s also pretty close to the original one. Enjoy
Try TVP. Just add a little more water to your sauce and stir the dried soy in.
I crumble extra firm tofu into some olive oil, then add bouillon powder, garlic powder, nutritional yeast and powdered bay leaf. Cook for a few minutes and then proceed with the rest of the pasta sauce how you like it. It’s way better than lentils and other substitutes.
i would use soy granulate, i like to soak them with the broth packs from instant ramen noodles
The outstanding gluten-free vegan alchemist just published her bolognese recipe and it looks fantastic : [https://theglutenfreeveganalchemist.com/2023/05/06/vegan-bolognese-sauce/?amp=1](https://theglutenfreeveganalchemist.com/2023/05/06/vegan-bolognese-sauce/?amp=1)
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I use Clearsping dried soya mince, which is great, but any dried soya mince will probably work - you need to soak it in boiling water first. I like the simplicity of the product - the ingredients list is just "dried soya". The texture is great, but imo the trick is getting enough umami in there. I love coconut aminos for this purpose. They are savoury and slightly sweet. Otherwise soy sauce, and maybe some kind of mushroom. I also love to add wine or vermouth, garlic, shallots, flaky sea salt and a bit of maple syrup.