This Red Lentil Bolognese recipe is vegan-friendly and packed with flavor and nutrition! Toss it with pasta or zucchini noodles, or serve it on top of grilled chicken.
Add the oil to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Once hot, add the onion and cook until starting to soften, about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more, stirring constantly.
Add the tomatoes, red lentils, vegetable stock, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, molasses, oregano, paprika, salt, and black pepper. Cover the saucepan and bring it up to a simmer; turn the heat down and simmer until the sauce is thickened, about 1 hour to 1 hour 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, but stirring more frequently toward the end. (Also, remember that the sauce will thicken more as it cools, so don’t let it get too thick.)
Remove from the heat and stir in the cream.
Toss the sauce with pasta (garnished with a little fresh oregano if you want), or use it any way you’d use regular tomato sauce.
Notes
This recipe yields about 5 cups of sauce, or about enough sauce to generously coat 2 pounds of pasta. Each serving is about 6 tablespoons.
To Keep This Vegan: Use vegan Worcestershire sauce and coconut milk instead of heavy cream.
To Reheat: This sauce thickens upon standing, so you may need to add a splash of water when you reheat it. This sauce can be reheated on the stovetop or in the microwave.