Red lentil bolognese

This delicious red lentil bolognese dish is the classic combo of tomatoes and herbs, ready and on the table in 30 minutes and freezes really well. It's low cost, dairy free and vegetarian and it freezes really well, if you want to prepare ahead.

Serves: 6

Time to make: 30 mins

Ingredients

More weights & measures

1 cup red lentils, uncooked

2 tablespoons oil

1 onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 x 400g tins canned tomatoes, chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 teaspoon sugar

2 tablespoons pesto (add more or less to your taste)

salt and pepper

$AVER recipes were costed at $5 or below at the time of publication. We are mindful that seasonal and regional availability and price fluctuations occur - click here for healthy shopping tips for greater savings.

Instructions

Stay Awake

1 Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Pour in the lentils and stir to ensure they do not stick to the base of the saucepan. Boil the lentils for 8-10 minutes or until soft.

2 Heat the oil in a medium pan and sauté the onion and garlic until soft. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and herbs, then stir in the lentils. Season with salt and pepper to taste and simmer until flavours develop, around 15 minutes

Variations

Step 1 Red lentils blend easily with beef mince. To use the lentils as a meat extender, allow around 1/2 cup of lentils per 500g mince. Cook the lentils in boiling water as outlined above.

Step 2 Then, in a medium-sized pan, brown the meat, add the onion and garlic and continue to cook till soft. Add the remainder of the ingredients and 1 1/2 teaspoons of beef stock. When the lentils are cooked, stir them into the meat sauce and simmer for a further 10-15 minutes until flavours are developed.

Nutrition Info (per serve)

Calories 149 cal

Kilojoules 625 kJ

Protein 4.5 g

Total fat 8.8 g

Saturated fat 1.5 g

Carbohydrates 13.2 g

Sugar 7.5 g

Dietary fibre 2.9 g

Sodium 295 mg

Calcium 50 mg

Iron 2.1 mg

Note: This nutrition analysis is a guide only. Nutrition composition will vary depending on the exact ingredients used. See our guides on your optimal daily nutrition intake, and supermarket shopping.