This vegan lentil bolognese is the best ever! It’s hearty and veggie packed and satisfying. Vegans and non-vegans alike will love this comfort food classic.
Now this is a seriously tasty meal. It’s savory and filling and really high in protein too. It’s also really easy.
The hardest thing about making this is chopping up your veggies really small, because finely chopped veggies is a must in creating that perfect bolognese texture.
It’s wonderful served over spaghetti with grated vegan parmesan cheese and fresh parsley.
And if you love delicious pasta sauces check out our vegan vodka sauce and vegan spaghetti sauce. You’ll also love our vegan bolognese made with tofu, lentils, walnuts and mushrooms and our delicious lentil ragu.
How To Make Lentil Bolognese
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Add olive oil to a pot along with crushed garlic, finely chopped onion, dried basil, dried oregano and dried rosemary and sauté until the onions are softened.
- Add in finely chopped carrot, celery, red bell pepper along with tomato paste, white miso paste, dried brown lentils, vegetable stock and canned chopped tomato.
- Bring to a simmer. Let it simmer until the lentils are soft but firm (about 35 minutes).
- Add in a little coconut sugar for flavor balance and your bolognese is ready!
Ingredient Notes
- Dried Brown Lentils: We used dried brown lentils in this recipe and this works great. If you do substitute a different type of lentil like red lentils this is totally fine, but will affect your cooking time as different color lentils cook at different speeds. So just keep an eye out, as soon as your lentils are soft, they are cooked!
- White Miso Paste: We used white miso paste in this recipe which works great, but you can substitute a different color miso without any adverse affects.
- Coconut Sugar: We just use a little coconut sugar in this recipe to balance the acidity from the tomatoes. However, you can omit this if you prefer or substitute it for brown sugar.
Chef’s Tips
Finely Chopped Veggies: It’s important to chop your veggies really finely so that they blend in with the lentils and create a really uniform sauce like what you see in the pics. You can do it by hand or you can use a food processor to chop your veggies up really small.
Make it gluten-free. The lentil bolognese sauce is already gluten free, so just serve it with a gluten free pasta and you’re all set.
Serving Suggestions
This vegan lentil bolognese is divine served over spaghetti or any pasta. Top it with fresh parsley and a sprinkle of grated vegan parmesan cheese.
The vegan parmesan you see in these pics is the Violife brand which is very delicious. Alternately you can make your own vegan parmesan and sprinkle that over the top.
And if you’re looking for a side dish to serve it with then look no further then our vegan garlic bread.
Storing and Freezing
Keep leftovers in the fridge where they will keep very well for 4-5 days. It is also freezer friendly for up to 3 months if you want to freeze it. Thaw overnight in the fridge and then reheat on the stove or in the microwave.
More Delicious Lentil Recipes
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Lentil Bolognese
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 Tablespoon Crushed Garlic
- 1 Medium Onion White, Yellow or Brown, Finely Chopped
- ½ teaspoon Dried Basil
- ½ teaspoon Dried Oregano
- ½ teaspoon Dried Rosemary
- 2 Large Carrots Finely Chopped
- 2 Stalks Celery Finely Chopped
- 1 Medium Red Bell Pepper Finely Chopped
- ½ cup Tomato Paste (130g)
- 1 Tablespoon White Miso Paste
- 1 cup Dried Brown Lentils (200g)
- 3 cups Vegetable Stock (720ml)
- 14 ounces Canned Chopped Tomato (400g)
- 1 Tablespoon Coconut Sugar
For Serving (Optional):
- Spaghetti
- Vegan Parmesan Cheese Grated
- Fresh Parsley
Instructions
- Add the olive oil to a pot along with the crushed garlic, finely chopped onion, dried basil, dried oregano and dried rosemary and sauté until the onions are softened.
- Add in the finely chopped carrot, celery and red bell pepper along with the tomato paste, white miso paste, dried brown lentils, vegetable stock and canned chopped tomato.
- Bring to a simmer. Let it simmer until the lentils are soft but firm (about 35 minutes).
- Add the coconut sugar and stir in.
- Serve with spaghetti and top with a little grated vegan parmesan and some fresh parsley.
Notes
- Miso paste – we used white miso paste but you can use any color miso paste.
- Coconut sugar – is just for flavor balance. You can also use light brown sugar.
- Storing: Keep leftovers in the fridge where they will keep very well for 4-5 days.
- Freezing: It is freezer friendly for up to 3 months if you want to freeze it. Thaw overnight in the fridge and then reheat on the stove or in the microwave.
- Nutritional information is for the bolognese only and does not include spaghetti or vegan parmesan.
Hello Alison.
As usual, an outstanding recipe! I eat plant based, my partner doesn’t.
To cut a long story short, he is of Greek/Maltese background, and was brought up on lentils. Alot.
The thought of lentils in any meal and he runs.
He ate this meal like there was no tomorrow!!!
THANK YOU.x
Happy to hear you enjoyed the recipe!
This is an incredible recipe, very nutritious and tasty, easy to make with everyday ingredients. My Sicilian mother loved making bolognese because we were three boys who needed good nutrition. Thank you for reminding me!
Thank you Alison for the wonderful recipes. I got my ingredients for the vegan steak, just haven’t got it made yet, but look forward to trying it and your other recipes. Thanks again.
There are a lot of vegan Bolognese recipes out there but this is hands down THE BEST. As a vegan family bringing up vegan children I try to use predominantly whole foods and avoid “meat substitutes”. So I love that this recipe uses lentils and ticks all my nutritional boxes. The addition of miso is genius for giving this recipe the edge. Thank you Alison for another family favourite!
I forgot to mention I added a teaspoon of cayenne pepper for a bit of heat else followed the recipe to the letter.
Thanks so much Satin! xoxo
Made this today for the first time and it was delicious! I used 2 tsp’s of Italian seasoning, 1 tsp salt, pepper and a bay leaf for the seasoning as it is what I had on hand. Otherwise followed the recipe to the letter. Delicious! I could eat it on its own!
Awesome! Thanks so much Susan!
Made this and it was insanely delicious and easy to do. I added a little balsamic vinegar to the sauce which gave it a really beautiful flavour. Will definitely be making this again and again.
Awesome! Thanks so much for the great review Tracey.
I didnt have much pepper left, or celery and only one carrot but I threw in some finely cut broccoli stalks and some mushrooms and this came out great. Really rich and tasty.
Wow! This was amazing! Totally my new favorite vegan bolognese recipe. Thanks so much.
Awesome! Thanks Jessie!
Hi Alison, I made this for the family on Sunday it was delicious. I couldn’t find Brown lentils so used red. Everyone including non vegans went back for seconds love your recipies keep up the good work
Cath
Thanks for sharing Catherine! 🙂
Wow, that is an awesome recipe! So easy to make and yet so tasty. I just substituted the Miso with soy sauce but still ended up so tasty.
I really appreciate your efforts for this awesome website here, gonna try your other recipes as well since they basically all sound quite easy and tasty, exactly what I was looking for.
I was researching a lot on vegan recipes on Youtube but was kinda disappointed…this here is way better. Keep up´the great work!
Chris
Thanks so much Chris!