The BEST Vegan Bolognese.
A delicious plant-based take on this Italian classic that'll leave your meat eating friends totally in awe!!
Ingredients
- 16 oz super firm tofu (check Substitutions section above for substitution information)
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (oil-free options included in instructions)
- 2 vegan Italian sausages (I used Field Roast)
- 2 tbsp vegan butter
- 3/4 cup onion (small diced)
- 1 cup cremini mushrooms (small diced)
- 3/4 cup carrots (small diced)
- 3/4 cup celery (small diced)
- 1/4 cup walnuts (finely chopped)
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1/3 cup dry wine (red or white)
- 1 cup oat milk
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg (ground or freshly grated)
- 2 cups strained tomatoes
- 1 lb pasta (cooked according to package instructions)
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 450° F. Then, prep your tofu by using your fingers to crumble it into a large bowl. They should resemble ground meat bits. Add soy sauce and a small amount of extra virgin olive oil (you can skip the oil if you want to keep this recipe oil-free). Set aside for 20 minutes in the refrigerator. Then, spread the tofu crumbles on a baking sheet in one single layer. Bake for 25 minutes, until the bits are browned. Set aside.
- Cut the vegan Italian sausage into chunks and place them, together with the walnuts, into the food processor. Pulse around 10 to 12 times until they resemble small pebbles.
- Add a little oil and vegan butter to a large Dutch oven or large saucepan (can substitute with vegetable broth to keep this recipe oil-free) over medium-high heat. When the butter has fully melted, add the onion and mushrooms to the pot and sauté until the onions grow transparent (around 3 minutes). Then, add the carrot, celery, and walnuts and season with salt and pepper. Again sauté until the carrots begin to soften (around 2 to 3 minutes). Then, add tofu crumbles, as well as the sausage to your pot. Continue cooking until ground sausage begins to brown (around 2 to 3 minutes).
- Add the tomato paste to your pot and stir until your veggies are evenly coated. Then, deglaze the pot with wine (or vegetable broth), scraping up all the browned bits at the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Add milk and nutmeg and bring to a boil (about 1 minute), stirring to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the pot. Then, add strained tomatoes and lower heat to very very low.
- Cook on very very low heat for three hours (yes, three hours!!). Stir regularly (around every 20 minutes or so), in order to guard against the sauce sticking to the bottom of your pan. If you feel the sauce is truly getting too dry, add one of the three: (a) a tablespoon of vegan butter, (b) 1/4 cup of vegetable broth, or (c) 1/4 cup of strained tomatoes. When completed, the sauce should be thick, dark, and bursting with flavor. Season with salt and pepper, as needed (shouldn't be a lot, if any).
- To serve, cook your pasta (traditionally tagliatelle, but pappardelle or your favorite pasta is fine) according to package instructions, preserving one cup of the pasta water. When your pasta is al dente, drain (keeping the preserved pasta water), and then place back in the pot. Add desired amount of bolognese, together with a couple tablespoons of pasta water (and butter, if you want), and stir in the sauce. Continue adding pasta water until you reach the desired consistency. Make sure to taste, in case you need to add a little salt and black pepper. Garnish with vegan parmesan, a drizzle of olive oil, and fresh basil or fresh parsley.
Notes
- Make sure to check out the Key Ingredients and Substitutions section if any of the ingredients don't sit right with you.
- The sauce takes 3 hours to cook over very very low heat. If the heat is too high, the sauce will stick to the bottom of your pan and scorch. Keep the heat low and stir regularly.
- If you want a richer (and more like the traditional) sauce, add butter if the sauce gets too dry while it's cooking. Otherwise, add a mix of veggie broth and tomato puree to keep the sauce from getting too dry.
- Bolognese is traditionally served with tagliatelle. I couldn't find a vegan tagliatelle, but I was able to find a vegan pappardelle (which is very similar). If you can't find either, use whatever long, slurpy pasta you can find!
Nutrition
Calories: 497kcalCarbohydrates: 61gProtein: 26gFat: 16gSaturated Fat: 3gPolyunsaturated Fat: 3gMonounsaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0.01gSodium: 690mgPotassium: 683mgFiber: 7gSugar: 9gVitamin A: 2639IUVitamin C: 10mgCalcium: 99mgIron: 3mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!