Unrivalled Vegan Spag Bol

I know too many Italians to assume I can get away with calling this recipe straight up Spaghetti Bolognese or Ragù Bolognese or anything of the sort. Shame on me for even making that connection! In fact, nothing could be further removed from the traditional meaty stew: no ground beef or veal here, no pancetta, no milk, no wine…not even a crumb of parmigiano in sight to make things better. And still, my version of this comfort dish most non-Italians know as Spaghetti Bolognese or Spag Bol (classy!) is giving genuine Bolognese vibes. Yes, I said it. Sue me!

The recipe has been tried and approved by my chef friends, several non-vegan friends and, most importantly, my meat-loving, capital-F-fussy four-year-old nephew. If he likes it, you’ll like it!

Ingredients

For 2 (and a little extra)

200g Spaghetti

125g soya granules

1/2 mushroom stock cube

1 small white onion or shallot

2 big garlic cloves

1/2 tbsp smoked paprika

1/4 tsp allspice

1/8 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tbsp thyme

1/2 tbsp oregano

4 tbsp soya sauce or tamari

1 can chopped tomatoes or whole plum tomatoes in juice, blended

2 tbsp tomato puree

1 tsp balsamic vinegar

Salt, pepper and olive oil for seasoning

Method

Step 1 Dissolve half a mushroom stock cube in 225ml of boiling water and pour the hot stock over your soya granules. Mix well. The mixture is supposed to be wet without any excess liquid. If it seems too dry, just add another 25-50ml or so of hot water. Cover the bowl and let it sit while you mince your onion and garlic.

Step 2 Add 1.5 tbsp olive oil to a frying pan, add the minced onion and turn the hob to medium heat. Let the onion caramelise slowly for a while, stirring occasionally.

Step 3 When the onion is soft and golden, add the minced garlic along with a sprinkle of salt. Bring up the heat to medium-high and sauté your onion and garlic until both are nicely golden brown in colour.

Step 4 Now add your spices (smoked paprika, allspice, cinnamon) and roast them along with the onion and garlic for a minute or two to bring out all the good flavours. Be careful not to burn the spices!

Step 5 Add another 1.5 tbsp olive oil to the pan, fluff up the soaked soya bits with a fork and add them to the frying pan as well. Give the mixture a good stir and turn up the heat.

Step 6 It’s time to crisp up that fake mince: pan-fry your soya mince mixture until it’s very, very crispy. Depending on the amount of liquid the bits have absorbed as well as the size of your pan, this might take a while. It’s worth the wait, though, I promise. If the mince is burning rather than crisping up, don’t be afraid of adding a little more oil.

Step 7 When your soya mince has reached peak crispiness, add the herbs (thyme, oregano) and stir once more. Then, add 4 tbsp soya sauce and mix well. Keep frying the soya mince until all the moisture has gone. Then, add the canned tomatoes, 2 tbsp tomato puree and one bay leaf.

Step 8 Give it all a good stir, turn down the heat to medium, pop a lid on and let it all simmer for about 20-30 minutes. The simmering on low heat isn’t strictly necessary, so you can skip this step if you don’t have the time.

Step 9 Cook your pasta al dente according to instructions.

Step 10 Season your sauce with a teaspoon of balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper to your liking. Just before serving, I like to add just a little EVOO or high quality chilli oil to the sauce — this will elevate the dish to the next level!

Step 11 Serve with fresh basil, garlic bread and plant based parmesan.

Notes on Ingredients

Canned Tomatoes

I usually like to cook with whole canned plum tomatoes because I find the chopped alternative mostly super watery and lacking in flavour. However, what you want to use for this recipe is a smooth tomato sauce — no whole tomatoes, no chunks! If you don’t have smooth canned tomatoes (or ‘polpa’) at home, you can simply blend a can of chopped or whole tomatoes.

Frying Pan

Ideally, you want to use a non-stick pan with a large surface for frying and deep walls that’ll allow the soya bits to crisp up quickly and will keep them from spilling out in the process. For example, a non-stick wok style pan works well when working with the original recipe. If you choose to double the recipe, high walls and a large frying surface are especially important, otherwise it will take a long time and a lot of stirring to crisp up the mince. Keep in mind that you’re going to add some liquid, too, so opt for a generously sized frying pan. If your pan isn’t big enough, fry in th mince in batches.

Mushroom Stock

I love working with mushroom stock rather than plain old vegetable stock because it adds that meaty, savoury flavour that’s not necessarily easy to find in plants. I used Kallø Organic Mushroom stock cubes for this recipe. You can sub with regular vegetable stock if you don’t have mushroom stock at hand.

Olive Oil

If for some reason you don’t like to cook with olive oil, you can use your choice of neutral vegetable oil for frying. However, for the last sprinkle of olive oil just before serving use a good quality EVOO (extra virgin olive oil) only. Otherwise, skip this step.

Red Wine

I’m all for cooking with wine and while it’s not strictly necessary for this recipe, adding a bit of dry red wine along with the soya sauce won’t hurt. I usually add a splash of wine if I have some at home.

Soya Granules

The soya ‘mince’ is the heart and soul of this recipe so you want to follow the steps for seasoning and frying closely before adding your wet ingredients. It’s important to crisp it up nicely or else you will end up with soggy soya bits in tomato sauce.

My go-to brand for this recipe is Holland & Barrett’s Soy Protein Mince. You can, of course, use other brands. They usually come as ‘soya bits’, ‘soya granules’ or ‘soya mince’. You can’t substitute with soya ‘chunks’.

Soya Sauce

Soya sauce gives the ragù the necessary saltiness and makes it super savoury, so do not skip it! However, you can use tamari as a gluten-free alternative.