Easy veggie bolognese recipe

As I explained yesterday, I'm bring veggie back. This blog has got far too meaty of late, so I'm going back to my vegetarian roots with a few posts about leading a meat-free lifestyle.

Vegetarian cooking doesn't have to be boring and you really can make some incredible meat-free dishes. I've got loads of amazing recipes that I'll be sharing on this blog over the next few months, but first of all I've decided to start with something very simple - a bolognese sauce.

I wanted to do this because when meat eaters ask me how difficult it is to become a vegetarian, I find a lot of the time they are simply finding it hard to envisage because they are imagining their current diet, minus the meat - rather than thinking about the culinary possibilities.

But even if you don't want to be too experimental with your diet, there are so many meat-free alternatives available these days that it's very easy to eat quite a traditional diet whilst still avoiding meat.

Most families eat a pasta dish at least once a week, but now that horse DNA has been found in ready meals like lasagne and spag bol, I reckon more people will now be trying to make their own. So here's a really easy veggie bolognese sauce recipe that Neil and I tend to make about once a fortnight. We normally have it over spaghetti on the first night, then the following day use the leftover sauce to make a pasta bake. This is really easy - just cook some pasta, stir in the sauce, pop in a baking dish, sprinkle grated cheese on top, and heat in the oven.

You can also freeze this sauce. - making it an ideal recipe to cook at the weekend and then use for mid-week teas.

Meat-free mince is much lower in fat than even lean minced beef, so it's healthier too. You can buy meat-free mince in the fridge or freezer section of health food shops like Holland and Barrett or whole food shops.

VEGETARIAN BOLOGNESE SAUCE

INGREDIENTS (serves 4-6)
1 standard-sized pack vegetarian mince, any brand
3 tins peeled plum tomatoes
2 bell peppers, diced, any colour you like
1 large onion, diced, again whichever colour you prefer but we use white
1 whole green chilli, scored once
4 cloves garlic, sliced (we like garlic - you can use less!)
1tbsp tomato puree
Approx 300g mushrooms, chopped, button or flat work well
1 handful fresh oregano or basil, or 1tsp dried
Splash Henderson's Relish (optional)
Dash olive oil

 
METHOD:

In a large, heavy-bottomed pan, fry the onion, chilli and garlic in olive oil for about five minutes or until the garlic becomes sticky. Add the tinned tomatoes and herbs, and simmer for around 25 minutes on a moderate heat. Rinse the tins out and add any extra juices. Adding the splash of water too is fine. Remove the chilli, then mash the tomatoes using a potato masher or fork. Add the tomato puree, mushroom and pepper, and season. Cook for a further 15 minutes or until the pepper starts to become tender. Finally add the mince (you can use it straight from the freezer) and simmer for a further 15 minutes. 

Serve with spaghetti, penne, or even over jacket or wedge potatoes.