Plantbased Spaghetti Bolognese 

Ever since I was a kid I have loved pasta, and especially spaghetti. As a 7-year-old, I didn’t like the bolognese, I just wanted a plate of plain spaghetti. But no ketchup. If anyone put ketchup on the pasta, I went bananas. I just hated it! Not like most kids I guess, but you know, you gotta set your own rules, right? ?

When I was a student (fast forward 10-15 years), pasta was obviously a staple in my kitchen. You know, cheap, easy to prepare and perfect for lunch boxes. That was until I figured that I was allergic to gluten and had to switch to the much more expensive gluten-free pasta. It was around that time I took a break from pasta altogether, the gluten-free version was just not as good and it contained too many ingredients. And it wasn’t student economy friendly either.

Now this was about 6 years ago, and much has happened since then. There are almost too many options today; lentil pasta, chickpea pasta, corn pasta, soybean pasta… And the list goes on. At least it’s not hard to find gluten-free pasta nowadays. And it doesn’t have to contain 25 ingredients or be expensive either.So, now I’m back in pasta heaven again. I don’t eat it that often to be honest, but I still love to have a big bowl of pasta now and then. We often use chickpea pasta when we decide to make a big pasta salad or a super easy pasta+pesto+lemon+asparagus dinner. For vegan spaghetti bolognese and pasta marinara, we always use corn pasta from a Swedish brand called Garantskafferiet (not sponsored, just really like this product). It’s made only from corn flour and water and it tastes just like traditional spaghetti.

Now, to make a plant-based bolognese there are a few options. You can use meat substitutes like minced soy, but I rather make my bolognese using lentils. This bolognese is super creamy and with the oregano, it gets just the perfect taste. Almost like you’re in Italy. I also like to add a jalapeno or two to spice things up a bit, but you do as you like. Bon appetit!

Plant-based Spaghetti Bolognese

4 servings

2 cloves of garlic
1 yellow onion
1 jalapeno
1000 g organic canned tomatoes
1/2 – 1 dl water
1 tsp sweet paprika
1/2 tsp cumin
1 tbsp oregano
1/2 tsp thyme
4 dl red lentils, pre-cooked or canned
salt & black pepper to taste

oil for cooking

500 g of spaghetti, I used gluten-free corn spaghetti

Directions

1. Heat up water for the spaghetti and then cook the pasta according to the instructions on the package.
2. Peel and finely chop the yellow onion and garlic. Cut the jalapeno into thin slices.
3. Heat up some oil in a large saucepan, then fry the onion over medium heat for a couple of minutes.
4. Lower the heat and add the canned tomatoes, water, jalapeno, spices, and herbs.
5. Let the tomato sauce cook over low heat for about 10 minutes.
6. Add the pre-cooked lentils and let cook for another couple of minutes.
7. Season with salt and black pepper to taste.
8. Serve the spaghetti with the bolognese, and vegetables of your choice. Personally, I like to serve my pasta bolognese with cherry tomatoes, fresh spinach, and steamed asparagus.