Who hasn't grown up with it? A nice plate of spaghetti bolognese, also called ‘a bolo’ at many a dinner table. How can you veganise this great recipe - which makes every child lick their fingers? Culi Anne shares her most delicious recipe for vegan spaghetti bolognese that will delight young and old and make the animals happy too, because no animal suffering!
Spaghetti bolognese without animal cruelty
This has forever remained my favourite dish. At our house, everyone loves it and it is therefore on the table almost every week. Spaghetti bolognese, what child doesn't like it? My mother made spaghetti bolognese like the best. She didn't eat it herself as she was a vegetarian. I eventually went vegan myself, but spaghetti bolognese is still on the table here almost every week. Still as tasty as ever! Without animal suffering, it actually tastes much better. I share this fine recipe. A little from mum and a little from myself.
Making tasty spaghetti bolognese
The flavour of a good bolognese is not in the minced meat, but in the sauce. The flavour of the sauce gives flavour to the pasta and the minced meat or, in this case, the meat substitute. Sautéing the onion, garlic, carrot, pepper and celery for a while in a good tomato puree releases the flavours for a good bolognese sauce. The longer you simmer the vegetable stew, the tastier your sauce will become. Use a slightly more expensive Italian brand for the sauce (such as Bertolli, Mutti, Valgri or Grand d'Italia), as Italian tomatoes have much more flavour. Cook the spaghetti in ample and heavily salted water, this way you avoid sticky bland pasta. And don't rinse your spaghetti under cold water when it's cooked, but drain it and add the pasta directly to the sauce that's ready. That way, the flavours will immediately soak into the pasta and your dish will taste even better. This is why pasta from the day before is so incredibly delicious to eat for lunch the day after.
The secret to a good bolognese is not in the minced meat, but in the sauce.
Traditional bolognese
Bolognese sauce is an Italian pasta sauce and comes from the traditional cuisine of Bologna. It is the most famous pasta sauce in the world. However, an Italian will never serve a bolognese sauce with spaghetti, as we Dutch do. Thick sauce goes with thick pasta. Bolognese sauce rather belongs with tagliatelle or lasagne. So we made up Spaghetti bolognese ourselves. The sauce should actually be called rage alla Bolognese. Red wine drinks nicely with bolognese sauce, the Italians agree. As long as it's an Italian red and vegan, of course. Enjoy your meal!
Recipe: vegan spaghetti bolognese
Kitchenware
- large cooker
- large frying pan (without non-stick coating)
Ingredients
- olive oil
- 2 onions chopped
- 1 red pepper in small pieces
- 2 turnips in small pieces
- 2 stalks of celery in small arcs
- 1 el tomato paste
- Italian herbs
- paprika
- salt and pepper
- 2 up to 3 cloves of garlic chopped
- large bottle of tomato sauce
- 375 gr vegan minced beef (I find those from The Vegetarian Butcher the most suitable. It is also delicious to use red lentils instead of minced meat. We previously built a vegan lasagne with this.)
- 250 gr cherry tomatoes in pieces
- basil
- vegetable cheese grater
- mixed lettuce (optional)
- olives (optional)
- cucumber (optional)
Instructions
- Fry the onion in a dash of olive oil.
- Add pepper, carrot, celery and garlic. Fry this for quite a while (at least 10 minutes) in the tomato puree and season as desired. The longer you let it simmer, the more the flavours will be released. Is it threatening to overcook? Add a dash of water.
- Meanwhile, cook the spaghetti in heavily salted water.
- Add the tomato pieces to the other vegetables and fry for a while until well softened.
- Add the tomato sauce and warm with it.
- Finally, stir the vegan minced beef into the sauce and season with salt, pepper and fresh basil. Before serving, add a splash of balsamic vinegar or ketchup.
- Delicious with vegetable cheese grater, mixed lettuce, olives and diced cucumber.
More child-friendly recipes from thegreenlist.nl
- The perfect vegan greasy bite: chips of jackfruit peanut satay.
- Delicious child-friendly side dish: crispy vegan cauliflower nuggets.
- Child-friendly and quick vegan curry: tikka masala with lentils, pepper and potato.
Sources: RTL news. Photo credits: Anne van Twillert.
