Vegetarian Bolognese

By Ali Slagle

Updated December 10, 2024

  • Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Susan Spungen.
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Total Time
45 minutes
Rating
4(1,850)
Comments
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Unlike a traditional Bolognese sauce, this riff on the classic has no meat and isn’t simmered for hours, but the results are still rich, buttery and sweet. Mild cauliflower and soffritto — the carrot, celery and onion mix that is the traditional base of the the sauce — become the bulk. Tomato paste and soy sauce are toasted to build umami. Then, everything is braised with whole milk, which softens the vegetables and adds silkiness. Swap the cauliflower for broccoli, mushrooms, cabbage, eggplant, or even green lentils, chickpeas or crumbled tempeh. To make it vegan, swap 2 tablespoons oil for butter in Step 1, use nondairy milk, and swap 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast for Parmesan.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

  • Kosher salt and black pepper

  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  • 1 large yellow onion, roughly chopped into ¼-inch pieces

  • 2 medium carrots, roughly chopped into ¼-inch pieces

  • 1 medium (1 to 1 ½-pound) cauliflower, stem and head coarsely chopped into pieces no bigger than ½ inch

  • ¼ cup tomato paste

  • 2 tablespoons low-sodium soy sauce

  • 4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

  • ¾ cup whole milk

  • 1 fresh bay leaf or thyme sprig

  • 1 pound rigatoni or another ridged dried pasta, or fresh pappardelle or tagliatelle

  • ½ cup finely grated Parmesan, plus more for serving

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

99 grams carbs; 40 milligrams cholesterol; 711 calories; 9 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 10 grams saturated fat; 24 grams fat; 6 grams fiber; 690 milligrams sodium; 25 grams protein; 11 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, in a large Dutch oven, melt 2 tablespoons butter with the olive oil over medium-high. When foaming, add the onion, carrots and cauliflower, season with 1 teaspoon salt and a few pepper grinds. Cook, stirring just once or twice, until browned and juicy, 5 to 7 minutes. Add the tomato paste, soy sauce and garlic and cook, stirring and smashing the vegetables, until the tomato paste is a shade darker and sticks to the bottom of the pot, 2 to 3 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Add the milk and bay leaf, season with salt and pepper, reduce heat to low, and stir to combine, scraping up browned bits from the pot. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the milk has thickened slightly and the vegetables are very soft, 15 to 20 minutes. (At first the pan will look dry, then the vegetable liquid will thin the sauce and it will thicken slightly).

  3. Step 3

    Halfway through cooking the sauce, add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente. Reserve 1 cup pasta water and drain. If the sauce is ready before the pasta, remove sauce from heat and keep covered.

  4. Step 4

    Remove the bay leaf from the sauce. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Increase heat to medium-high. Add the pasta, ½ cup pasta water, the Parmesan and the remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Stir vigorously until the pasta is well coated, adding more pasta water as needed until the sauce is glossy. Season to taste with salt and pepper, and serve with more grated Parmesan on top.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
1,850 user ratings
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Comments

Patrick

May I recommend the Marcella hazan Bolognese recipe but substitute beyond meat crumble and only simmering for an hour at the end. Almost indistinguishable from the meat recipe.

Roni

delicious! doubled the garlic, added rosemary and red pepper flakes, and deglazed with a little white wine after cooking the vegetables in step 1

Kara H.

This was very good and I loved that it was so vegetable dense. If I made it again, these are the few modifications I would make - I would chop the carrots and cauliflower smaller than the instructions say. I also ended up using twice the amount of tomato paste (1 8oz can) and threw in a smidge of the red wine I was drinking after I added the paste. Next time I'd pour myself a glass of wine and I'd pour a healthy glass for the sauce. Otherwise, this is delicious and makes 4 generous portions.

Kyle

Excellent. I did sub mushrooms for the cauliflower as noted in their notes. And just because I like it saucier, I added a 28oz can of crushed tomatoes and 1/2 c. red wine. As written, it would have been fine and tasted delicious. The tomatoes and wine were my preference. Will make again and again and again

Amy RB

Delicious!!! Made per the recipe, with a little extra tomato paste and some cherry tomatoes. Was sooo good. Somehow the flavor of the cauliflower was delectable. Used food processor to chop all the veggies and garlic and to shred the parmesan. Hard not to love a good al dente rigatoni.

Dee K

Onion, carrot, celery, cauliflower, handful mushrooms, rosemary, bay leaf. Half and half, can of fire roasted diced tomatoes, splashes of red and white wine, toscani pasta from WFM, parm per recipe, pinch of red pepper. Veggies all very finely diced. Cried out for parsley, had a tiny bit, would be good with a ton added after cooking. Didn't use butter. Gary liked it, Dee thought a bit Chef Boy Ardee but had seconds.

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