Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan or oven proof casserole dish over a medium heat and fry the onion for 5 minutes until soft
1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 onion
Add the garlic, mushrooms and oregano and fry for a further 3 minutes
2 cloves garlic, 600 g mushrooms, 2 teaspoon oregano
Add the passata and lentils and stir together
700 g passata, 250 g dried red lentils
Add the hot vegetable stock, Worcestershire sauce, and most of the fresh basil, stir and season with salt and pepper. Reduce the heat and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Alternatively, cook in the oven at 180°C/360°F/gas mark 4 for 30 minutes
200 ml vegetable stock, 2 tablespoon worcestershire sauce, 4 tablespoon fresh basil, 1 dash black pepper, 1 dash salt
Notes
The nutritional values are estimates
Tips
Dried Red lentils are the easiest to use as they cook quickly. Green, brown or yellow lentils need to be simmered for around 35 - 45 minutes. If using these varieties you may need to add more stock due to the longer cooking time. Canned or tinned lentils are already cooked so will work well as an alternative.
Substitutions
Red Lentils - Dried Red lentils are very easy to use. They don't need pre-soaking and they cook in 15 - 20 minutes. You can of course use other lentils, but these will take longer to cook. Green, brown, or yellow lentils take around 35 - 45 minutes. If using these varieties then you may need to add more stock due to the longer cooking time. Canned or tinned lentils are already cooked so will work well as an alternative.
Vegetables - there are lots of different vegetables you can add to this lentil bolognese to make the recipe serve more portions or as a way to avoid food waste. Red bell peppers, aubergine (eggplant), or courgette (zucchini) can all be added as they don't have a long cooking time. If you're looking to add something green, try kale or fresh spinach.
Passata - Passata is a thick tomato puree. You can use tinned or canned chopped tomatoes instead but you may need to slightly reduce the amount of stock, depending on how much water is in the variety of tinned tomatoes.
Gluten Free - the red lentil bolognese sauce is gluten-free. Serve it with gluten-free pasta or see the other serving suggestions for more gluten-free options.
Storage
Store in the fridge for 3-4 days and freeze it for up to 6 months.