Try this Lentil Bolognese recipe, or contribute your own.
- salt and pepper to taste
- 15 oz. can tomato sauce
- 2 tablespoon oil
- 6 oz. can tomato paste
- 1 onion (finely diced)
- 1 rib celery (finely chopped)
- 3 large carrots (peeled and chopped)
- 7 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2-14.5 oz. cans diced italian tomatoes
- 2 tablespoon sweet basil
- 1 tsp . dried oregano
- 1/4 tsp . baking soda
- 2 c . red lentils (rinsed and picked over)
- 2 c . water
- Carbohydrate 0.140450000284951 g
- Cholesterol 0 mg
- Fat 108.033920219184 g
- Fiber 0.0848000014356644 g
- Protein 0.166950000338715 g
- Saturated Fat 13.9860130283754 g
- Serving Size 1 1 recipe (148g)
- Sodium 73.8925729170969 mg
- Sugar 0.0556499988492866 g
- Trans Fat 5.18938601052844 g
- Calories 956 calories
Step-by-step
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet.
- Add onion, celery, and carrot.
- Cook, stirring as needed, until softened, about 5-10 minutes.
- Add garlic, and cook, stirring frequently, for 30 seconds.
- Stir in tomato paste, and cook, stirring it in, for 1 minutes.
- Add tomato sauce, diced tomatoes with juice, basil, oregano, baking soda, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Stir in lentils and water.
- Simmer, stirring regularly, until lentils have softened, about 20-30 minutes.
Adding the lentils and water before the aromatics have properly caramelized results in an uneven texture where crunchy vegetables coexist with mushy legumes. Cooking the finely diced onion, celery, and carrot in oil for five to ten minutes until fully softened establishes the essential flavor foundation before any liquids enter the skillet. Minced garlic burns easily, which is why it requires only thirty seconds of heat exposure just before the tomato paste goes into the pan. Stirring the tomato paste for a full minute removes its raw metallic edge through caramelization of the natural sugars. Incorporating a quarter teaspoon of baking soda neutralizes the high acidity of the canned tomato sauce and diced Italian tomatoes, preventing a harsh finish without requiring granulated sugar. Red lentils demand steady liquid absorption over twenty to thirty minutes of simmering; insufficient water leaves the legumes raw inside while excess liquid turns the sauce into a soup.
Swapping dried oregano for fresh leaves requires tripling the measurement since dried herbs carry a more concentrated flavor profile. Storing leftovers in an airtight glass container preserves quality for up to four days in the refrigerator.
