Some dishes don’t just taste good – they taste like childhood. My mum’s Italian-style mince sauce is one of those dishes for me. I loved it as a child, and I could probably still eat it every week today.
Over the years, I’ve simply veganised the original recipe: instead of minced meat, I use plant-based mince, along with onions, ketchup, mustard and the same seasonings my mum used back then. The only addition that has found its way into my version over time is a little garlic powder.
No elaborate Bolognese, no long list of ingredients, and definitely no claim to Italian authenticity – just Mum’s Italian-style mince sauce. Best served with spaghetti, of course.
At a glance
🕒 Preparation time: 20–25 Minuten
👩🏼🍳 Difficulty: easy
Ingredients (2 servings)
- 270 g plant-based mince
- 1 large onion
- 1 ½ tbsp flour
- about 500 ml water, plus more if needed
- ½ tbsp vegetable stock powder
- about 4 tbsp ketchup
- about 1 tsp mustard
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 level tsp black pepper
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
- Peel and finely dice the onion. Heat a little oil in a large frying pan or saucepan and sauté the onion until translucent. Add the plant-based mince and fry for a few minutes until nicely browned.
- Sprinkle the flour evenly over the mixture and cook briefly while stirring. Gradually stir in about 500 ml water, making sure the flour is well incorporated and no lumps form.
- Stir in the vegetable stock powder, ketchup, mustard and garlic powder. Season with the pepper and a little of the salt.
- Let the sauce simmer over low to medium heat for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add a little more water as needed until the sauce reaches your preferred consistency.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt, pepper, ketchup or mustard if needed. Serve with spaghetti.
Notes
- Allergen note: Depending on the products used, additional allergens may be present. Flour may contain gluten, vegetable stock may contain celery, and plant-based mince may contain allergens such as soya or gluten. Please check the ingredient labels of the products you use.
- The recipe is easy to adapt to your own taste – for example, use a little less ketchup and 3 tbsp tomato purée instead, or fresh garlic in place of garlic powder. A bay leaf would also work well.
- I personally stay fairly close to my mum’s original recipe, though, because to me it will always be the best sauce for spaghetti.
I still have my mum’s handwritten original recipe today – typically her, written partly in German and partly in Swedish. 😊
