When I first stumbled upon making such a classic dish in this way, I was genuinely surprised at how well it worked out.
The two main differences?
1. I use a truckload of vegetables and less meat.
2. Rather than pasta, I use soba noodles.
The result? A no-fuss and delicious version of the ever-popular spaghetti bolognaise.
I'm all about a dish that you can prep in minutes and walk away whilst it simmers on the stove - returning to a nourishing meal!
Red meat can be a divisive subject in the world of nutrition so for more on that and to understand where red meat fits, head here.
Personally, I eat red meat anywhere from once/week to once/month and usually that red meat is lamb.
That's me. It's certainly not a nutritional recommendation for you.
What I would recommend however, especially if you feel you *could be low in iron, as women very often are, is to seek the advice of professional Nutritionist.
It's imperative, that even if you feel fatigued, experience headaches, poor immunity and even digestive disturbances that you have your iron levels assessed and taken into consideration of your whole diet and lifestyle.
FYI - you can book into see me here.
For a variety of reasons, I think it's great to include more vegetables in all the meals we eat and that's what this bolognaise recipe is all about. There's a whole heap of substitutes that I've included and you can really make this your own.
- 2 garlic cloves
- ½ medium red onion
- ½ large red capsicum
- ½ medium eggplant
- ½ large zucchini
- 5 small mushrooms
- ¼ bunch fresh parsley leaves
- ¼ bunch fresh basil leaves
- 2 teaspoons fresh or dried thyme
- 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, to cook
- 400g quality lamb mince
- 2 tins quality diced/chopped tomatoes
- ¼ cup quality tomato paste
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 1 packet soba noodles or preferred pasta
- Parmesan or pecorino cheese, to serve
- Finely dice onion and crush garlic
- Wash and finely dice capsicum, eggplant, zucchini and mushrooms
- Finely chop herbs and set aside
- Heat a large saucepan on medium-high heat, add oil
- Once hot, add garlic and onion, cooking until they start to soften
- Add mince, break up and cook until medium
- Add vegetables and cook whilst stirring for 5 minutes or until softened
- Add tomatoes, tomato paste, herbs and season to taste
- Simmer with lid on over low heat for 40 minutes
- Whilst simmering, cook noodles as per packet instructions
- Once bolognaise has cooked, remove from heat and add to noodles mixing through well
- Serve with cheese
- You could substitute beef mince - or a combination of the two - for a recipe variation.
- For another meal idea, you could serve yourself more veg whether that be alongside a large wedge of baked pumpkin or with green beans.
- Gluten-free? Use buckwheat, quinoa or zucchini 'noodles.'
