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This vegetarian Mushroom Lentil Bolognese is hearty and rich and perfect over a big plate of pasta. Use pantry staples to make this delicious dish in just about 30 minutes.
Pasta is one of my dinner go-to’s. The whole family loves it. The kids will always eat pasta, no matter what.
I try to make pasta meals healthier by serving it up with thick, hearty sauces. That way I can serve them less noodles, but they are still full and satisfied.
This Mushroom Lentil Bolognese is one of the most often made recipes in my kitchen.
Done in just 40 minutes from start to finish, you could be calling it dinner tonight too!
Ingredients you need
Ingredient notes and substitutions
Lentils ~ Use brown or green lentils. They hold their shape well. Use canned or steamed lentils for convenience.
You could also cook your own dried lentils.
Do not use red lentils. They turn to mush when cooked and do not hold their shape. Great in soup, but not in this lentil bolognese recipe!
Mushrooms ~ They provide a nice “meaty” texture. I use Baby Bellas, also known as cremini mushrooms. White button mushrooms would work, too.
Not a fan of mushrooms? Try my vegan Cauliflower Bolognese or my Chickpea Walnut Bolognese for a hearty pasta sauce instead!
Tomatoes ~ Canned crushed tomatoes are best for this recipe.
Use fire roasted tomatoes for a slightly smoky flavor.
Wine ~ Use a dry red wine. The alcohol cooks off, so it’s safe to use in this pasta sauce recipe even if you’re feeding kids. However, if you want an alcohol-free option, just leave it out.
Not all wine is vegan. If this is important to you, you can check Barnivore, an online directory of vegan and vegetarian beer, wine, and liquor, to find one that suits your needs.
Extras ~ Tamari and balsamic vinegar add richness and help to balance the flavors of the dish. If you like a little heat with your pasta sauce, add a pinch of crushed red pepper flakes.
How to make the recipe
Please scroll down to the recipe card for exact ingredient measurements and instructions.
Sauté the onion and mushrooms until the onions are soft and translucent and the mushrooms have let off all their liquid (1).
Add the dried herbs and red wine, if using, and simmer until the liquid is evaporated. Add the tomatoes, broth, tamari, salt and pepper (2). Stir to combine and simmer until thick and bubbly.
Add the cooked lentils and balsamic vinegar (3), stir, and simmer for a few minutes to heat through (4).
Serving suggestions
This lentil bolognese is perfect over a big plate of pasta. 16 ounces of pasta works perfectly with one batch of sauce.
You could also serve it over baked potatoes, polenta, rice, zoodles (zucchini noodles), or layer it in lasagna.
And don’t forget the vegan parmesan cheese sprinkled over the top and a slice of vegan garlic bread on the side!
Storage and freezing
Fridge: Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days. Store sauce separate from pasta, if using.
Freezer: This lentil bolognese sauce also freezes really well. Let it cool completely before transferring to a freezer-safe container or plastic bag. It should keep well for up to 3 months.
Pro tips and tricks
~ Use brown or green lentils, not red, for best texture.
~ Use canned lentils or packaged steamed lentils to make this dish in just 40 minutes. If you have leftover cooked lentils in the fridge, that works great, too!
~ Sauté the onions, mushrooms and dried herbs to bring out the most flavor before adding the liquids.
~ Use a dry red wine that you would drink on its own. If it doesn’t taste good in a glass, it won’t taste good in the final dish!
~ To make this lentil bolognese gluten-free, be sure to use gluten-free tamari and serve with gluten-free pasta, if using.
~ To make this dish oil-free, sauté the vegetables with broth or water, instead of oil.
FAQs
Typically, no. Traditional bolognese is made with ground meat. We are ditching the meat in this vegan version of bolognese and replacing it with lentils and mushrooms.
Use brown or green lentils for this lentil bolognese sauce. Red lentils become mushy when cooked and will make a thicker, soft sauce with not a lot of texture. Brown or green lentils more closely resemble the hearty texture of ground meat.
Yes! This vegan pasta sauce freezes well, so make a big batch!
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you tried it, please use the rating system in the recipe card and leave a comment below with your feedback.
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For even more easy family recipes, be sure to check out my cookbook, The Meatless Monday Family Cookbook!
Mushroom Lentil Bolognese
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion diced
- 10 ounces baby bella (cremini) mushrooms diced
- 2 tablespoons dried parsley
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- ¼ cup robust red wine your favorite (I used a cabernet)
- 1 can (28 oz) crushed tomatoes
- ½ cup low sodium vegetable broth
- 1 tablespoon tamari
- ¾ teaspoon salt or to taste
- ½ teaspoon black pepper or to taste
- 1 cup cooked lentils brown or green
- 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large, deep skillet over medium heat on the stove. Add the onion and sauté until soft and translucent, about 5 to 6 minutes.
- Add the mushrooms and sauté 5 to 6 minutes until they are soft and have released their liquid.
- Add the parsley, basil, oregano, and red wine and sauté until no liquid is left, stirring occasionally.
- Add the crushed tomatoes, vegetable broth, tamari, salt and pepper. Stir to combine. Increase the heat to bring to a boil, then decrease the heat to medium-low and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, until thick and bubbly.
- Add the cooked lentils and balsamic vinegar. Stir to combine and ook another 2 to 3 minutes to heat through.
Notes
Storage/Freezing Store leftovers in an air-tight container in the fridge for 4 to 5 days. Store sauce separate from pasta, if using. This sauce also freezes really well. Let it cool completely before transferring to a freezer-safe container or plastic bag. It should keep well for up to 3 months.
Nutrition facts calculated for sauce only, not including pasta.
Nutrition
Nutrition values are calculated using online calculators and are estimates only. Please verify using your own data.
Genny Teixeira says
I just made this for dinner tonight and my husband LOVED IT!!!! The flavor was fantastic!!! Definitely making this Bolognese sauce again and again. Thank you!!!
Jenn S. says
That’s wonderful, Genny! Thank you so much!
Aimee | Wallflower Kitchen says
I am so trying this!
Jenn S. says
WooHoo! I hope you love it, Aimee! It’s my favorite pasta sauce!
Christine says
I started cooking my dinner a little early tonight so that I wouldn’t have to worry about it later… and I made this bolognese. The problem is I can’t seem to wait until dinner to eat it!! The house smells amazing and I keep taking “tastes” of it. There isn’t going to be any left by the time dinner starts! This is seriously yummy! Not to mention clean of salt and oil and full of good stuff! I highly recommend this recipe!! This will be a regular for me…even my non veggie eating husband and son liked it!
Jenn S. says
Thank you so much, Christine!! I’m so happy to hear you loved it!! It’s been a staple around here for years!
Dustin Rodriguez says
Um… I looked really closely, and triple-checked. There are no lentils used in this recipe. They’re in the ingredient list… but nowhere in the directions! I have literally never used lentils before, and stumbled upon your site while searching around trying to find something to do with the dried lentils I bought to try. The recipe sounds great and I can’t wait to try it… but do I just mix in the lentils at the very end, once the sauce is done? Or do they go in for the final 15 minute simmer? I’ve got no idea how ‘robust’ lentils are, so I don’t know if it would be obvious to most people that the lentils have to be left out until the very very end because they will fall apart if included in the simmer, or what. Little help?
Jenn S. says
Hi, Dustin. Thank you so much for pointing that out. I just changed the directions. I’m so sorry for the confusion. But, yes, you just add the cooked lentils in at the end and then heat through for a couple minutes. I like to make a big batch of lentils early in the week and then I have them ready to add to my dishes when I’m ready. They are really so versatile! I hope you love this recipe. Please come back and let me know how it turns out! 🙂 Have a great week!
The Vegan 8 says
Jenn, this looks so hearty and full of flavor! I love the flavor of mushrooms, just not the texture, so if they are all mashed up or pureed well, I’m all over that, I just never cook them because my hubby has to avoid them like the plague because they are a huge gout trigger. I can see why your son loves this, looks absolutely delicious! Pasta is a go-to in our house too, make it couple times a week!
Jenn S. says
I remember you saying that about mushrooms before. I have made this a few times leaving the mushrooms out completely and just doing the lentils (maybe an extra 1/2 cup cooked lentils)…its a hit that way too, but I definitely love the taste/texture the mushrooms give. Thanks, Brandi!
Gin says
I LOVE hearty bolognese, and this looks delish! I feel like I would barely need any pasta! 🙂
Jenn S. says
You really don’t. LOL! I always have sauce left in the bottom of the bowl after my noodles are gone and it’s just as good eating by itself! Thanks!!
Uma Srinivas says
Looks delicious, and I love mushroom!
Jenn S. says
Thanks, Uma!
Linda @ Veganosity says
I hated mushrooms when I was a kid. Today, I love them! Very sneaky, Jenn. I did the same thing with certain foods when my kids where little. No shame in that. 🙂 This sauce looks delicious.
Jenn S. says
What they don’t know won’t hurt them, right?! Thanks, Linda!
Chris @thinlyspread says
My older three all hated mushrooms and have now come round to a sensible way of thinking and will scoff them down with glee – youngest is still to be converted! He will eat them all chopped up in a veggie burger, I’ll try him with this too! He loves a lentil bolognese, if I can hide mushrooms in there and him not notice I shall be delighted!
Jenn S. says
Glad to hear your older kids have come around! I’m sensing a trend. Clearly mushrooms just aren’t kid food. Though my youngest two still seem to like them. They are 4…that’s about when my son started to NOT like them. So, we will see 🙂 Thanks, Chris!
Lucie says
Yum! Bolognese is one of my favorites <3 I l've been making mine with crumbled tofu but I love that you used mushrooms and lentils instead. I need to give it a try. Our family go-to meal is classic vegan chili or cheezy pastas of all kinds 🙂
Jenn S. says
Oh, yes, we eat tons of chili too! Another favorite. Thanks, Lucie!!
Becca @ Amuse Your Bouche says
I LOVE lentil bolognese! Your version looks so hearty and comforting. Totally craving bolognese now 😉
Jenn S. says
Thank you, Becca!! We eat it at least 3-4 times a month around here. And that’s a lot since I don’t often make the same things twice. I like variety! But, this one is always a winner!
Dixya @ Food, Pleasure, and Health says
since this is the year of pulses, seeing lentils based dishes are making me happy and hungry!
Jenn S. says
Yes! So exciting about all the pulses! We eat them pretty much every day! Thanks, Dixya!
Nicole says
My son would actually love these, with big pieces of mushrooms. It’s crazy how much he loves eating them so this recipe would make him happy.
Jenn S. says
Thanks, Nicole! Have you seen my Mushroom Pepper Steak? That one has big mushrooms…it’s so good!!! My son will pick them out if they are big, which works also…but this dish works so well with the small dice. Really lends to that “meaty” texture.
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit says
This would be a winner in my house too, everyone here loves mushrooms! It seems to be a theme here, I didn’t like them when I was little either but now I love them. That’s amazing that he didn’t even notice they were in here 😀 So sneaky, but the deliciousness of pasta and tomato is a good distraction!
Jenn S. says
The funny thing is that up until about age 4, he loved mushrooms. Then just all of a sudden didn’t like them anymore. Kids are weird! I remember my parents always making mushroom pizza when I was little and I was so disgusted by it. LOL! He’ll come around! 🙂
Strength and Sunshine says
When your son gets older, don’t worry, he will love ALL mushrooms in everything! Same thing happened to me 😉
Jenn S. says
Me too, Rebecca! Let’s hope the trend continues!