I am not in general a great believer in creating vegetarian versions of ‘meat’ classics, but with this Vegetarian Spaghetti Bolognese I make an unapologetic exception. The character of a good Bolognese Sauce lies in a deep and rich tomato sauce. This is traditionally flavoured with minced beef, although in rural areas of Italy whatever meat is available is used: mutton, goat, horse meat, donkey meat…

I use portobello mushrooms instead. However, tomatoes and mushrooms are not natural bedfellows in my opinion, so do not be tempted to overdo the mushroom-ness. Use vegetable stock, and avoid dried mushrooms such as porcini, as these will overpower. Do not be mean with the tomato purée. I also add tomato sauce; I forget now where the idea originally came from deep in the past, but believe me, it adds another dimension of flavour – omit it at your peril!

To make this recipe more substantial, I like to serve it with Salade Nicoise, omitting the salmon.

Serves 2
Time: 60 minutes
Difficulty: **
Origin: Italy
Good with: Salade Nicoise