A lot of the magic in a vegan kitchen happens in the pantry, and this Lentil Bolognese lentil and carrot stew a prime example. It’s a comforting, tasty meal made exclusively with budget-friendly, shelf-stable ingredients. They mostly tasted like vegetables in marinara sauce.

So I challenged myself to come up with a recipe that delivered the same flavor and texture profile as traditional bolognese. Plus, it requires just 10 main ingredients, so you can almost always make it at a moment’s notice. Okay, not counting water, oil, salt and pepper. But yeah, just 10 main ingredients! It’s hearty and meaty but not in-your-face meaty. It’s rich, thick, and sticks to your ribs.

The bolognese sauce is made entirely with wholesome ingredients like red lentils and walnuts. Feel free to make it even more wholesome with whole wheat pasta. And as you can see from the step-by-step photos in the next section, the bolognese is just that. This is a result of a few things. First, cooking down an entire tube of tomato paste brings a rich body to this sauce. It gets even more body if you add in the optional red wine. Using the minimum amount vegetable broth also keeps this sauce thick.

Also, using a wide-shaped pasta or ridged pasta helps the chunky, thick sauce cling to the noodles. Flavorwise, bolognese is obviously quite meaty. But, it does have a deceptively meaty taste that is very satisfying thanks to all the layers of umami. Second, crushed walnuts enhance the meatiness of the lentils, both from a texture and taste perspective. You can enhance the flavor even more by toasting the walnuts. Finally, you get what you love about bolognese in a wholesome plant-based way. Step-by-step instructions First, soak your red lentils in water for at least 30 minutes, then drain.

Meanwhile, dice the onions and mince the garlic. Cook the onions in olive oil in a deep saute pan until a fond starts to appear. Then start deglazing the pan with a few splashes of water. Cook for a total of 9-10 minutes, continuing to deglaze as needed, until the onions are deeply golden brown. Cook for 60-90 seconds, stirring frequently. Add in the tube of tomato paste.

Optional: deglaze with the red wine. Cook until the smell of alcohol burns off and the mixture becomes jammy. Add in the vegetable broth, soaked red lentils, and finely chopped walnuts. Cook the lentil mixture at a rapid simmer for 20 minutes. The sauce should be really thick by this point.

Stir in the balsamic vinegar and season to taste with salt and pepper. Use tomato paste in a tube, not a can. Tomato pastes are NOT created equally. I learned this the hard way when I made this recipe using a can of tomato paste instead of a tube.

The way tomato paste from a tube is made and preserved makes it more flavorful and gives it a brighter and truer tomato flavor. Read more here about the differences at The Kitchn. I like to finish my red sauces with a splash of good-quality balsamic vinegar. The acidity balances the richness, and the slight sweetness pairs nicely with the tomatoes. Modena Giuseppe Giusti A fantastic balsamic vinegar that’s aged for at least 12 years. Tastes so much better than any store-bought balsamic vinegar I’ve tried. Red wine is optional, so you can omit it if you don’t drink alcohol.

That said, it does make a noticeable improvement. Tip: deglazing the pan with red wine brings out the meatiness in the lentils and lends a richer body to the bolognese. While it is definitely possible to make this recipe using only very budget-friendly ingredients, if you can spring for a few higher-quality ingredients, it makes a difference. Bianco Dinapoli, San Merican, and Cento. For tomato paste, I like Amore, Cento, Mutti, San Merican, and the Whole Foods 365 and Trader Joe’s brands.