Boldly rich, flavorful, super hearty and incredibly easy to make this vegan mushroom bolognese recipe takes your plant-based eating goals to new heights. Serve on its own over toasted crusty bread, or tossed with any long pasta or along side some grilled protein, its all good!
Easy Mushroom Bolognese
One of my pantry staple is a jar of marinara, its a beginning of beautiful thing to come, don’t you think! I’m biased towards the really good stuff, San Marzano tomato based ones, it is a bit pricey, but I splurge when they’re on sale at the grocery store and stock up a couple of jars—loaded with wonderful San Marzano tomatoes, slow cooked it’s a luxury that really delivers. Most times I buy simple whole organic, plum tomatoes and amp up the flavors with garlic, basil, oregano, fennel, chili flakes etc. And in this case, it pairs up with umami rich hearty mushrooms to make a flavorful, rich vegan bolognese sauce that packs a huge meaty texture. Healthy, hearty, vegan, rich, quick, easy, yummy—this bolognese is a weeknight superstar.
So today’s mushroom bolognese recipe uses a variety of mushrooms. The more combinations you use, the more delicious your pasta will be. I’ve made this with only cremini mushrooms, and it’s fab. So don’t feel obligated to buy more varieties. If you’ve got a pack of baby Bellas in the the fridge that needs to be used up, go ahead use them up. But if you’re making this for a special occasion, say date night or lucky to find fresh chanterelle at a decent price, (hello Costco), I certainly would splurge or even a bag of dried porcini mushrooms hydrated will make this bolognese extra special..
How To Make Mushroom Bolognese
Whether you’re a true vegan, or simply taking a break from meat (meatless Monday Inspo), this umami rich and hearty bolognese recipe is sure to hit the spot. Here are some basic steps:
- Chop all your veggies really fine. You may even pulse them in a food processor a few times. It should resemble crumbly ground meat.
- Sauté carrots, celery and onions.
- Take time to sauté your mushrooms, this will build rich flavor and that meaty body.
- Simmer! Cook low and slow—much like you would with traditional bolognese—but not as long as the real meat one.
- Serve! tossed with long pasta preferably or of your choice. I also recommend a showering of Parmesan, the real or vegan, for that extra yumminess.
Mushroom Bolognese
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp e.v olive oil
- 2-3 tbsp butter, vegan
- 1 lb mixed mushrooms, about 500g cremini, Bella chanterelle, white. (No Shiitake please), wiped clean, tough stem removed and minced or finely chopped
- 1 medium onion finely chopped
- 2-3 medium ribs celery finely chopped
- 1 medium carrot finely chopped
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 cup Marinara sauce
- ½-¾ cup oat milk or any plant based milk
- ½ cup red wine optional
- 1 tsp Italian herb mix or oregano
- ½ tsp chili flakes
- 1 tsp fennel seeds lightly pounded or crushed
- 12-14 oz spaghetti or any long pasta
- sea salt and black pepper as needed
- grate parmesan cheese, for serving
- fresh flat parsley, for serving
Instructions
- Heat a large Dutch oven over medium heat, warm the olive oil. Once hot, add the chopped onion, celery, carrot and garlic and cook for 5 minutes until softened.
- Add the butter, chopped mushrooms and a few pinches of sea salt. Stir and cook the mushrooms down stirring until most of the moisture is cooked out. About 8-10 minutes.
- Add the tomato paste, milk, wine, marinara sauce, oregano or Italian herb mix, fennel and red pepper flakes. Stir and cook again for another 10 minutes to reduce, stirring occasionally. Taste for salt and pepper, adjust accordingly.
- Turn the heat to low and simmer for another 10 minutes. The texture should be saucy continue to cook if you’d like it thicker.
- While the sauce cooks, cook the pasta according to instructions. Drain out most of the water, saving enough to keep the pasta from drying out.
- Divide the pasta and sauce into each bowl, mix and serve garnished with parmesan and fresh parsley..
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