Healthy Bolognese Sauce is a delicious, hearty dinner. Paleo, Whole30 friendly and loaded with flavor – this hidden veggie bolognese is one you’ll love!
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Healthy Bolognese Sauce is one of the most comforting and delicious recipes. Heartier than regular tomato sauce, you can pile it high on top of zucchini noodles or your favorite pasta.
This classic dish is typically higher in fat, but I’ve come up with a lighter version that brings ALL the flavor while being veggie loaded and good for you!
If you never had bolognese sauce, you might be wondering what the difference is from regular tomato sauce.
What defines a Bolognese sauce?
Bolognese sauce is a ragu that’s made from a mix of ground meat + vegetables. It is typically made with wine and milk and served over pasta.
Regular tomato sauce typically doesn’t have meat in it and is much thinner.
My version of bolognese sauce is paleo, Whole30 friendly, gluten free and dairy free – however – you can totally doctor it up if you don’t follow any of those diets. I love it with parmesan cheese on top – and have included some other substitutions for you below!
What makes this bolognese sauce healthy?
- ALL the veggies – There are over 12 cups of veggies in this sauce. Meaning each serving of sauce has at least 2 servings of vegetables in it! Even the pickiest of eaters will enjoy this because you can’t even tell they’re hidden in there
- Low in fat – Healthy fats are good for us, but typically bolognese can be high in fat from the meat used, making it somewhat greasy. This sauce is made with turkey, keeping it low in fat
- SO easy– This sauce is so simple to make. I prefer to make it in the crockpot but you can also make it on the stove top in under an hour.
- No dairy– Some bolognese sauces use heavy cream. This doesn’t need it.
Even though this bolognese sauce is healthy, it really doesn’t taste like it. The veggies give SO much flavor to this, and when let it cook low and slow in the crockpot (or on your stove) the meat becomes so tender.
We love our regular Healthy Crockpot Tomato Sauce with Turkey Meatballs, but make this for a nice change up all the time. It’s delicious and simple!
P.S. – If you love crockpot recipes, check out these 45 Healthy Crockpot Recipes!
Healthy Bolognese Ingredients
To make healthy bolognese sauce you’ll need
- onion, garlic, carrots + celery
- spices: salt, pepper, red pepper flakes
- fresh herbs: basil & parsley
- ground turkey
- crushed tomatoes
You can find substitutions for all of these ingredients below in the green shaded substitutions box.
The key to this recipe is cutting the vegetables SUPER finely. This is difficult to achieve with a knife. I use my food processor.
How to make Healthy Bolognese Sauce:
Making bolognese sauce is easy!
- Brown your veggies
- Remove veggies from pan and brown your meat
- Add it all in the pot (or slow cooker) and let it cook! As I mentioned before – make sure you chop your veggies VERY finely.
This is an affiliate link for the food processor I use. It’s under $20 and will make cooking/chopping veggies SO much easier. I use it every day!
Once the sauce cooks, it thickens up and has such a rich delicious texture. It seriously is SO delicious and your whole house will smell heavenly.
Storing Turkey Bolognese Sauce
Storing: This sauce actually gets better as the days go on and the flavors have time to meld together. This bolognese sauce can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 4 days, o
Freezing: You can freeze it in an air tight container. If you freeze this sauce, when you’re ready to reheat, simply defrost the night before and warm on the stovetop.
Substitutions for Ground Turkey Bolognese
Meat: You can use ground beef or ground chicken in this recipe. I wouldn’t recommend using ground pork only because I think it would be a little bit fatty – but it would work. You can also try this Rosemary Chicken Sauce if you want a chicken breast recipe.
WW Freestyle Note: The only ingredients that could have points in this are the turkey and the olive oil. If you use 99% fat free turkey, that is 0SP. 1 tablespoon of olive oil = 3SP. You can limit this or use something else to saute your veggies and make this 0SP per serving
Wine: You can add 1/2 cup of red or white wine to this before turning it on to cook if you are not strict paleo/Whole30. It’s not necessary but it does add flavor.
Dairy: I prefer bolognese sauce without milk, but traditional bolognese does call for it. You can 1/2 cup whole milk to this recipe if you’d like.
Veggies: I have also made this with 1 cup chopped mushrooms added and it was delicious. If you don’t have a certain amount of veggies, you can mix and match with others. A little less carrots or celery, etc – will not drastically affect the taste.
Fresh herbs – I prefer to use fresh herbs in this recipe. Depending on what you use, I do a 3 to 1 ratio of fresh to dried spices. For example, you can use 3 tablespoons of fresh chopped herbs or 1 tablespoon of dried herbs.
How to prevent soggy zucchini noodles
I commonly get asked how to avoid watery zucchini noodles. I have two tips for you on how to avoid soggy zucchini noodles.
- REALLY squeeze the water out of them- I use a thick, absorbent (and clean!) dish towel and squeeze the water out of the noodles, hard. The towel should be damp when done. I then lay the zucchini noodles out on a paper towel lined baking sheet or bowl until I’m ready to use them.
- Don’t add in the zucchini noodles to the dish until you are ready to serve. If you’re meal prepping, you can place the chicken/veggie mixture into a container and place your raw zucchini noodles on top. When you’re ready to eat, microwave or heat over the stove to avoid mushy noodles.
We hope you love this hearty, delicious meal! It’s one of our favorites and is always a hit when served to family/friends.
If you love ground turkey, check out these Healthy Ground Turkey Recipes!
FAQ for Turkey Bolognese
The main difference between bolognese sauce and spaghetti sauce is that bolognese sauce is made with ground meat while spaghetti sauce is made with just tomatoes. Typically bolognese sauce is made with a mix of ground pork and ground beef, while spaghetti sauce is just made with tomatoes and has no meat. Sometimes bolognese doesn’t have tomato in it.
Meat sauce and bolognese are often used interchangeably and they can be the same thing. Bolognese sauce is made from ground meat, but meat sauce can be made with larger pieces of meat like seared pork or beef.
Bolognese is a very versatile recipe. There isn’t much you ‘can’t’ put in it. Typically bolognese is made with ground pork and ground beef, onions, garlic and tomatoes.
Pasta shapes that have crevices are best for bolognese because they help collect the sauce. Fusilli, cavatappi are some of our favorites. Noodles or flat pasta are delicious but don’t grip on to the sauce as well.
Healthy Turkey Bolognese Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1.5 cup carrots minced finely
- 2 tablespoons garlic minced finely
- 1 cup onion minced finely
- 1 cup celery minced finely
- 56 oz cans crushed tomatoes (2 28 oz cans)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ¼ cup fresh basil chopped finely
- ¼ cup fresh parsley chopped finely
Instructions
Crockpot Instructions:
- In a pan, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil. Brown ground turkey for 5-7 minutes. When fully cooked, remove from pan and set aside, reserving the juices/grease
- Add carrots, garlic, onion and celery. Saute until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add cooked ground turkey + veggies, along with tomatoes, spices + herbs into crockpot base
- Stir to combine. Cook on low for 8-10 hours or high for 4-6 hours.
- Serve over pasta, zucchini noodles, rice, or whatever you like best!
StoveTop Instructions:
- In a large pot, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil. Brown ground turkey for 5-7 minutes. When fully cooked, remove from pan and set aside, reserving the juices/grease
- Add carrots, garlic, onion and celery. Saute until onions are translucent, about 5 minutes.
- Add cooked ground turkey back to the pan, along with tomatoes, spices + herbs.
- Stir to combine, and bring to a boil over high heat.
- Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour, uncovered, on medium- low heat, stirring every few minutes.
- After 1 hour you can serve this sauce, but it’s best when simmered on low heat for 6-8 hours. This allows the flavors to come together and for the meat to be super tender.
- Serve over pasta, zucchini noodles, rice, or whatever you like best!
tina says
Being Italian, my kids have had nothing else to compare my sauce to! We decided to try out this recipe and we were quite surprised how good it was! Will definitely keep this recipe in mind!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Glad you liked it, Tina! We’re Italian too.. homemade sauce is the way to go!
Kim says
I haven’t tried a recipe from the Clean Eating Couple I haven’t loved yet. I’ve made this recipe a few times with either turkey or beef and it did not disappoint. It’s so incredibly easy! Super delish.
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you liked it Kim!! You’re the best, thanks for always making our recipes and sharing them 🙂
Mona says
Could this be made in an instant pot on the pressure cook setting? If so how long would it take? Thank you. I am excited to try this recipe.
The Clean Eating Couple says
I’m sorry but I don’t have instant pot instructions for this recipe. We have not been able to make it with out getting a burn message in the instant pot.
Mona Khalil says
No worries, I just used the slow cook option on the instant pot.
Mona Khalil says
Loved the addition of veggies in this recipe! It was a hit with my family. I put it on slow cook for 1 hour in my instant pot because I wash in a rush and it still turned out delicious. It would have been even better if I left it for the full time. Will definitely make again! Thank you!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thank you so much, Mona! Glad you liked it!!
Lauren says
This is the best recipe on the internet for so many reasons. It’s so delicious and easy and a true kitchen confidence boosting meal – like you make homemade sauce that you can call your grandma and brag about. It freezes SO WELL so you can make a double batch and always have some on hand. Finally, this recipe taught me to mince my veggies in my vitamix and my life had been changed for the better.
The Clean Eating Couple says
This is so sweet – thank you so much Lauren!! I’m so glad you like the sauce! And chopping your veggies is a gaaaaame changer!
Kate says
In the ingredients it says turkey mince, but in the method it says ground beef…which should I be using?
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thanks for pointing out that typo. You can use whatever ground meat you like. We prefer turkey but beef or even ground chicken is great!
Christine says
I have picky eaters in my house but the healthy Bolognese is absolutely amazing and everyone loves it! It is almost a weekly staple… You got a love when a eight-year-old asks for it! This was easy to make and delicious at the same time, thank you!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Love to hear that, Christine! Thank you! It’s perfect for sneaking in veggies for picky eaters 🙂
Becca says
Made this last night and my whole family loved it! Definitely kid (and picky adult 🙄) approved!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad everyone enjoyed it!
Rebecca says
I will definitely make this recipe again! I loved how there were so many veggies. I added a cup of mushrooms and it was amazing!!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Love the extra veggies!
Kaitlin says
DELICIOUS!! Just made this and I ended up what wouldn’t fit in my Tupperware with a spoon it was that yummy!
Only changes I made: ground chicken and only did 28oz of tomatoes as I had started the recipe by the time I realized I only had 1 can (rookie mistake!). Making it this way resulted in a crazy chunky and delicious sauce which was phenomenal! 10/10 recommend!
Also utilized the pro tip you share on Instagram of using a food processor to dice veggies- life changer!
The Clean Eating Couple says
So glad you liked it, Kaitlin! Thank you!!
Paula G says
This recipe was delicious and easy to follow. Will def make again!
The Clean Eating Couple says
Thanks, Paula! Glad you enjoyed it!
Julie Walsh says
Do we let this recipe simmer covered or uncovered for one hour?
The Clean Eating Couple says
Per the instructions: Once boiling, reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour, uncovered, on medium- low heat, stirring every few minutes.