This has been a quick and easy favourite for our family. In general, prepare batches beforehand and freeze. When needed, defrost slightly, put frozen inside instant pot. This is really easy for quick meals when company is coming over on short notice, dinners and even to pack as lunches. It can be served over spaghetti, rotini, rice pasta, elbows and rice for gluten free options. When making a larger batch, a food processor is especially helpful.
- 1 cup dry red lentils, soaked for 15- 20 minutes
- 200 g / 7 oz button mushrooms, diced into
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 1 large carrot finely diced
- 1 large celery rib, finely diced
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt
- 10 black or green olives, diced roughly
- 2 dates, righly dived
- 3 cloves of garlic, finely diced
- 1 teaspoon of paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes
- 1 teaspoon brown or white miso (optional)
- 1 vegetable stock cube
- 2 tablespoons soy sauce
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 2 cups crushed tomatoes
It’s possible to add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste after cooking to establish a stronger tomato flavour.
- Combine all these ingredients into a large sealable zip-lock bag or freezable container.
- When ready to use, set on counter to thaw to the point it can be removed from the bag or container. Often running the bag or container under hot tap water helps loosen the solid mass enough to empty the contents into the instant pot.
- Add 1 cup of water to the pot, less if you desire a thicker consistency.
- Select the Pressure Cook Setting for 20 minutes on high and let it cook.
- After the pressure cooker completes and naturally release, add 1 tablespoon of tomato paste if desired and serve. When preparing ahead of time, I add the 1 teaspoon of tomato paste already.
What we do is prepare ahead of time 4 batches of this bolognese sauce in zip log bags and freeze them. When want to use them, we’ll pop them out of the zip lock bags into the instant pot and add a cup of water. Set the Instant Pot on high pressure cook for 20 minutes and voila there is an easy meal to server over a bed of whole wheat or rice pasta. The zip lock bags allow us to remove the frozen contents without having to defrost ahead of time inside glass or other rigid containers.
