Vegetarian Meatless Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
on May 06, 2019, Updated Apr 08, 2024
Meatless spaghetti sauce is easy to make and perfect for everyday cooking. This heart vegetarian spaghetti sauce recipe is full of flavor and so satisfying. Learn how to make delicious spaghetti sauce with no meat!
Meatless Spaghetti Sauce
Spaghetti is a staple in our house, and we eat it at least once or twice a month.
This recipe is my go to for easy meatless spaghetti sauce.
This recipe is both vegan and vegetarian!
It occurred to me recently that not everyone knows just how easy it is to make spaghetti both meatless and delicious.
Whether you are vegetarian, or just looking for a meatless monday recipe, this spaghetti is for you!
Meatless spaghetti sauce is not only delicious but packed full of veggies.
I’m a big fan of mushrooms, and they are perfect for getting that “meaty” texture in spaghetti sauce.
This recipe is mushroom based for that reason!
Mushrooms are just incredible for substituting meat in recipes.
They are also one of the key ingredients in my vegetarian bolognese recipe.
And a must have when making vegetarian baked spaghetti.
So easy to cook and delicious every time!
How to make spaghetti sauce with no meat
The flavor of fresh garlic and onion add a ton of depth to this recipe, so I start with that as a base.
Add your fresh diced garlic and onion to a large skillet or jumbo cooker.
The pan pictured is called a “jumbo cooker” and I purchased mine from walmart.
It is by far my most used and loved kitchen tool, and I have been buying them for close to 10 years!
If you’re looking for a great all purpose pan that will hold just about any recipe, I highly suggest getting one.
Mushrooms to use for meatless pasta sauce
Next, add in your sliced baby bella mushrooms.
These are small and the texture is perfect for meatless substitutes.
I also use chopped up portobello mushrooms (see below.)
Just buy the caps and dice them up into pieces.
The combination of both mushrooms makes for a super chunky and flavorful sauce.
Texture is everything!
Once your garlic, onions, and mushrooms cook down, they will look like this.
Browned and delicious.
That means they are perfect!
Basically, we are looking for two things: the onion to be caramelized, and the mushrooms to have released and cooked out all of their liquid.
The pan should not have a lot of excess liquid left over.
After this is done, pour in a jar of your favorite pasta sauce (I use mushroom flavor because I just love it so much!)
Any flavor of your favorite pasta sauce will work fine.
Stir for a few minutes to heat, and it’s ready to serve!
We love whole wheat noodles around here, but sometimes go for the traditional white.
Either way you cannot go wrong!
This mushroom spaghetti sauce is already vegan, or you can add cheese if you are not vegan.
Freshly grated parmesan cheese will take the flavor to the next level!
My favorite toppings are shredded mozzarella, freshly grated parmesan, and red pepper flakes for a bit of spice.
If you like a little spiciness, red pepper flakes are so good in this dish!
This makes a huge batch and easily serves 5 – 6 adults.
Perfect for leftovers!
Some people don’t like leftovers, but I will always love leftover spaghetti.
It is always so yummy!
We usually eat this leftover two or three times as a family of 3.
The next night I will mix the sauce and noodles and bake it with cheese to make baked spaghetti.
Crispy cheesy edges are the best part of baked spaghetti!
And speaking of baked pasta dishes, this Veggie Lover’s Baked Rigatoni is always a hit too.
This is our new go to spaghetti sauce recipe! We use it in baked spaghetti too! So delicious!
If you love pasta recipes, be sure to check out this reader favorites crock pot baked ziti and vegetarian baked ziti.
Meatless Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
Vegetarian Meatless Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 oz baby bella mushrooms, sliced
- 1 medium onion, diced
- ⅓ cup minced garlic, around 15 cloves
- 8 oz portobello mushrooms, diced
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- 2 teaspoons oregano
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 25 oz pasta sauce
- 1 lb spaghetti
Instructions
- Cook the spaghetti according to package instructions
- Add the salt, pepper, oregano, olive oil, minced garlic, diced onion, portobello mushrooms, and baby bella mushrooms to a large skillet
- Saute the mixture over medium high heat for 15 – 20 minutes, or until the mushrooms release and cook off all liquid
- Add the pasta sauce and stir until hot (1 – 2 minutes)
- Serve the sauce over spaghetti
- Top with optional mozzarella, parmesan, and red pepper flakes
I like this recipe. Have made something similar for many years, got it from a person at Weight Watchers. The main difference is that I mince the mushrooms so it ends up looking more like ground meat.
I already make a similar one. However, I add chopped green peppers. I stir fry mushrooms, onions, garlic, and green peppers in olive oil and a little water until tender. Meanwhile, I use another saucepan and mix in some red kidney beans, spaghetti garlic sauce, and a small amount of olive oil. I let this simmer for about twenty minutes. Then and mix the strained spaghetti and sauce. Top with sharp cheddar cheese. I use all organic ingredients.
Absolutely love this recipe, I add a few more onions and a grated carrot sweat the onions on a low to medium heat before following the rest of the recipe…thank you for sharing:)
so glad you enjoyed the recipe patty!
This is our new go to spaghetti sauce recipe! We use it in baked spaghetti too! So delicious!
So glad you enjoyed the recipe Sarah!
Hi. This recipe is great and perfect for us. Very tasty .
Can you freeze it.
Thank you
I have not tried freezing it, so I am not sure if it would keep well.
Awesome sauce! I added a red pepper with the onions and mushrooms. It was thick and delicious, thank you.
So glad you enjoyed it, red pepper sounds like a delicious addition!
I followed your recipe to the T. Very good! However, I added Italian seasoning in the end. I will make again. Thank You. PENNY
How do I read the reviews on this dish!! I want to know if people changed any part of this recipe.
Gale.
Hi Gale,
All written reviews are in the comment sections. Some readers chose to leave a star review with no text included.
This was amazing!
As for the amount of garlic, 1/3 of a cup is quite a bit. Is this correct?
Hi Cindi,
Yes that is correct. I love the flavor that garlic gives this dish. If you don’t want to use that much you can use however much you want!