Red Lentil Ragu with Courgetti and Carrot Spaghetti
Prep: 15 mins Cook: 40 mins
Serves 4 - 6
This is a Guest Recipe from the BBC with a few tweaks of my own.
A healthy tomato 'pasta' dish that makes full use of your spiralizer. This vegan-friendly supper is five of your five-a-day and will fill you to the brim and can be frozen.
Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil, plus 1 tsp
3 celery sticks, chopped (I used fine slicer of my Magimix)
2 carrots, chopped (I used fine slicer of my Magimix)
4 large garlic cloves, chopped
2 onions, finely chopped
140g button mushrooms from a 280g pack, quartered
500g pack dried red lentils
500g pack passata
1 reduced-salt vegetable bouillon or organic Vegetable Stock Cube
500 ml boiling water
1 tsp dried oregano
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1-2 large courgettes, cut into noodles with a spiraliser, julienne peeler or knife
1 large carrot, spiralised
AND THIS IS WHAT YOU DO.....
- Heat the 2 tbsp oil in a large sauté pan.
- Add the celery, carrots, garlic and onions, and fry for 4-5 mins over a high heat to soften and start to colour.
- Add the mushrooms and fry for 2 mins more.
- Add about 300 ml of boiling water.
- Stir in the lentils, passata, bouillon, oregano and balsamic vinegar.
- Cover the pan and leave to simmer for 30 - 45 mins until the lentils are tender and pulpy. Check occasionally and stir to make sure the mixture isn’t sticking to the bottom of the pan; if it does, add a drop of water. (I found I needed to add another 200 ml)
- To serve, heat the remaining oil in a separate frying pan, add the spiralised courgette and carrot and stir-fry briefly to soften and warm through.
- Serve half the ragu with the courgetti and chill the rest to eat on another day. Can be frozen for up to 3 months.