Lentil and walnut stuffed onions with rosemary and red wine gravy

Serves - 4

You’ll need

• 4 large onions
• 1 tbsp olive oil, plus a little extra for the baking dish
• 1 small carrot, finely diced
• 1 celery stick, finely diced
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 tsp fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1 x 400g tin green or brown lentils, drained and rinsed
• 75g walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
• 50g fresh breadcrumbs
• 1 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• Sea salt
• Black pepper

For the red wine gravy
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small shallot, finely chopped
• 1 tsp tomato purée
• 1 tbsp plain flour
• 200ml vegan red wine
• 300ml vegetable stock
• 1 small rosemary sprig
• 1 tsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp red wine vinegar
• Sea salt
• Black pepper

Method

1. Soften the onions

Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil. Peel the onions, keeping the root ends intact, then lower them carefully into the water and simmer for 15–20 minutes until softened but still holding their shape.

Lift them out and leave until cool enough to handle. Cutting into a boiled onion immediately is an excellent way to discover just how much heat one vegetable can retain.

2. Hollow them out

Slice the top off each onion, then carefully scoop out the centres, leaving 2 or 3 layers intact to form sturdy shells.

Finely chop about half of the removed onion and keep it for the filling. The rest can go into another soup, sauce or whatever else happens to need rescuing from the fridge.

3. Start the filling

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the chopped onion, carrot and celery with a small pinch of salt and cook gently for 7–8 minutes until softened.

Add the garlic, rosemary and thyme and cook for another minute, just until fragrant.

4. Build the stuffing

Stir in the tomato purée and cook for a minute, then add the lentils, walnuts, breadcrumbs, Dijon mustard and soy sauce.

Cook for another 2–3 minutes, stirring until everything is well combined. Mash a small portion of the lentils with the back of the spoon as you go. This helps bind the filling while leaving enough whole lentils and walnuts for proper texture.

Taste and season with salt and black pepper.

5. Fill the onions

Heat the oven to 190°C fan. Lightly oil a baking dish and sit the onion shells inside.

Spoon the lentil and walnut mixture generously into each one, pressing it down lightly but not compacting it into submission. Any leftover filling can be tucked around the onions in the dish.

Drizzle with a little olive oil and cover loosely with foil.

6. Bake until tender

Bake for 25 minutes, then remove the foil and cook for another 15–20 minutes until the onions are completely tender and the tops of the filling are lightly crisp and golden.

The onions should be soft enough to cut easily with the side of a fork but still capable of remaining recognisably onion-shaped.

7. Start the gravy

While the onions bake, heat the olive oil in a small saucepan over a medium heat. Add the shallot and cook gently for 5–6 minutes until softened.

Stir in the tomato purée and cook for a minute, then add the flour and stir for another minute until everything forms a thick paste.

8. Add the wine

Gradually pour in the red wine, whisking as you go so the gravy stays smooth.

Let it bubble for 3–4 minutes, then add the vegetable stock, rosemary sprig and soy sauce. Simmer gently for 10–15 minutes until reduced and glossy.

Remove the rosemary, stir in the red wine vinegar and taste for seasoning. You want something rich and savoury with enough acidity to keep it from becoming too heavy.

9. Serve

Spoon the red wine gravy onto warm plates and sit a stuffed onion on top of each portion.

Serve with creamy vegan mash, roasted root vegetables or simply some wilted greens alongside. The onions are generous enough to hold centre stage, though a good pile of mash rarely makes matters worse.

A couple of helpful notes
- Green or brown lentils work best because they hold their shape. Red lentils will soften too far for this filling.
- Check that both the red wine and Dijon mustard are vegan if you are cooking for someone who avoids all animal-derived ingredients.
- The onions can be filled earlier in the day and refrigerated, then baked when needed. Add another 5–10 minutes to the cooking time if they are going into the oven cold.