This tempeh bolognese makes for a delicious vegan pasta sauce that's low in fat and gluten-free. With a meaty texture and rich, flavourful base, it's great with spaghetti or any pasta alternative of your choice.
Tempeh may not be what first comes to mind when you imagine a vegan bolognese, but it works really well. By chopping it into very small cubes, it'll cook into the tomato sauce to emulate the mince you might find in other recipes.
Ready in a little over 30 minutes, this is a healthy lunch or dinner option that you can also batch-cook and store in the freezer. If you prefer to keep your tempeh in bite-sized pieces, check out this vegan jambalaya and creamy tempeh pasta.
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What is tempeh?
Tempeh is a fermented soybean product with a dense, meaty texture. An excellent source of plant-based protein, it is much firmer than tofu and is growing in popularity as a meat replacement in vegan and vegetarian cooking.
If you're looking for more vegan tempeh recipes, check out this teriyaki tempeh stir-fry and grilled tempeh with sesame-lime marinade.
Is tempeh gluten-free?
Tempeh made purely from soybeans is often naturally gluten-free. Exceptions include tempeh products that also contain grains or non-GF flavourings such as soy sauce.
If you need to ensure that your tempeh is 100% gluten-free, use a brand that is certified or labelled as such.
What do I need?
The ingredients for this vegan bolognese sauce include:
- Tempeh for a meaty texture
- Veg and garlic to create a flavourful base or 'soffritto'
- Yeast extract (or tamari/soy sauce) to provide rich umami notes
- Fresh basil for a fragrant lift at the end of cooking
How to make tempeh bolognese
Heat the oil in a large pan on low/medium heat. Add the chopped onion, carrot, and celery, and soften for around 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle in some salt and pepper at this stage.
Once the veg has softened, add the chopped tempeh and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly to try and get some colour on the tempeh pieces. If necessary, you can add a little more olive oil to help it along.
Turn up the heat, then add the tomato puree and red wine. Stir well and cook for a minute, before adding the tinned tomatoes and breaking these apart with a spoon.
Next, stir in the yeast extract (or tamari/soy sauce), bay leaves, dried oregano, and vegan stock (or pasta cooking water – see next step). You can also rinse each tomato tin with a splash of water and add this to the pan. Stir well and simmer on a low heat for 10 minutes.
If you're cooking dried pasta to serve with the bolognese, I'd start that about now. As the pasta cooks, you can add some of the starchy cooking water to the sauce to help thin it out. Do this as much as you need to maintain the desired consistency.
Once the sauce has been cooking for around 10 minutes, chop most of the fresh basil and stir this in. Adjust the seasoning and serve.
Serving suggestions
Serve this tempeh bolognese with freshly cooked pasta or a healthier pasta substitute such as spiralised courgette (zucchini noodles). Simply top it off with fresh basil leaves and homemade cashew parmesan.
You could also enjoy it with sides such as baked potatoes, or use it to make a lasagne or pasta bake.
Recipe FAQ
Tempeh is often naturally gluten-free, but you may want to double-check that yours is certified or labelled as such. You'll also want to use a GF yeast extract (or tamari/soy sauce), vegan stock, and pasta variety.
If using frozen tempeh, defrost this first according to package instructions.
You can store the tempeh bolognese in the fridge for up to four days.
You can freeze the sauce in airtight containers or resealable bags for several months. Defrost and reheat thoroughly before eating.
Variations and tips for tempeh bolognese
- Veg: If you don't want to finely chop all the veg, you could simply blitz it in a food processor.
- Other additions: Ingredients such as chopped mushrooms or walnuts would also work well here.
- Wine: If you don’t want to splash out on a bottle of (ideally vegan) red wine, just skip this.
- Pasta: If cooking pasta, I find it’s always better to cook this ‘to order’. I.e. if there are two of you eating, just cook 200-250 grams of pasta and save the rest of the sauce for the next time you want to eat.
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More vegan recipe ideas
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Full recipe
Vegan Tempeh Bolognese
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, finely chopped
- 2 medium carrots, grated or finely chopped
- 2 medium sticks celery, finely chopped
- 7 oz (200 g) fresh tempeh, chopped into small cubes (approx. ½ cm, see notes for gluten-free)
- 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons tomato puree
- ½ cup (120 ml) red wine (ideally vegan, optional)
- 2x 14 oz (400 g) tins plum tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon GF yeast extract (or 2-3 tablespoons tamari or soy sauce)
- 3 bay leaves
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano (or homemade Italian mixed herbs)
- 1 cup (250 ml) vegan stock or pasta cooking water
- Small handful fresh basil
- Salt and black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Heat the oil in a large pan on low/medium heat. Add the chopped onion, carrot, and celery, and soften for around 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Sprinkle in some salt and pepper at this stage.
- Once the veg has softened, add the chopped tempeh and garlic. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly to try and get some colour on the tempeh pieces. If necessary, you can add a little more olive oil to help it along.
- Turn up the heat, then add the tomato puree and red wine. Stir well and cook for a minute, before adding the tinned tomatoes and breaking these apart with a spoon.
- Next, stir in the yeast extract (or tamari/soy sauce), bay leaves, dried oregano, and vegan stock (or pasta cooking water – see next step). You can also rinse each tomato tin with a splash of water and add this to the pan. Stir well and simmer on a low heat for 10 minutes.
- If you're cooking dried pasta to serve with the bolognese, I'd start that about now. As the pasta cooks, you can add some of the starchy cooking water to the sauce to help thin it out. Do this as much as you need to maintain the desired consistency.
- Once the sauce has been cooking for around 10 minutes, chop most of the fresh basil and stir this in. Adjust the seasoning and serve with freshly cooked pasta or a pasta substitute of your choice. Top with fresh basil leaves and cashew parmesan.
Notes
- Spaghetti Bolognese with Mushroom & Soy Mince
- Creamy Tempeh Pasta with Tarragon Sauce
- Ultimate Vegan GF Lasagne
- 15-Minute Tomato Tahini Pasta
- Vegan Spaghetti alla Puttanesca
- Vegan Pasta Peperonata
- Creamy Vegan Mushroom and Leek Tagliatelle
- Butternut Squash Pasta Bake
Nutrition
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Vicky
Love this recipe - wouldn't have thought to use tempeh in this way 🙂
The Pesky Vegan
Cheers, it's a good 'un!