Photo: Italian Sausages with Lentils Recipe
Ingredients
- 3 to 4 tablespoons olive oil (not extra-virgin), divided
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- Sprinkling salt
- About 2 3/4 cups (about 18 ounces) dried Puy lentils
- 1 fat clove garlic, squished with the flat side of a knife, and skin removed
- 8 Italian sausage links
- 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon red wine
- 1/4 cup water
- Flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped, for garnish
Directions
For the lentils:
Put 2 to 3 tablespoons of the oil into a good-sized saucepan (and one that has a lid that fits) on the heat and when it's warm, add the chopped onion. Sprinkle with salt (which helps prevent its browning) and cook over low to medium heat until soft (about 5 minutes). Add the lentils, stir well and then cover generously with cold water. Bring to the boil, then cover and let simmer gently for 1/2 an hour or so until cooked and most, if not all, the liquid's absorbed. I don't add salt at this stage since the sauce provided by the sausages later (and which will be poured over the lentils) will be pretty salty itself. So, wait and taste. And remember, you can of course cook the lentils in advance.
Anyway, when either the lentils are nearly ready or you're about to reheat them, put a heavy-based frying pan on the burner, cover with a film of oil and add the bruised garlic. Cook for a few minutes then add and brown the sausages. When the sausages are brown on both sides - which won't take more than 5 minutes or so - throw in the wine and water and let bubble up. Cover the pan, either with a lid or aluminum foil, and cook for about 15 minutes. Using a fork, mash the now-soft garlic into the sauce and taste for seasoning, adding a little more water if it's too strong.
Remove the lentils to a shallowish bowl or dish (I evacuate the sausages from their cooking pan, plonk the lentils in, then proceed) then cover with the sausages and their garlicky, winey gravy. Sprinkle over some flat-leaf parsley.
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By cupcake absolute
Near Yorktown,VA.
on July 31, 2011
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Just 3 Thoughts~de Puy Lentils name in U.S. And Rinse the Onions in a seive over cool water and let drain before cooking. Really takes that harsh taste out.Plus, in fridge for 15 minutes whole will help stop the tears from cutting Onions.A high Protein dish. Has more than You realise.Legumes taste wonderfull in this, especially the de Puy.
By kjf916
San Francisco
on July 12, 2011
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This was lovely, fast, easy, inexpensive, and tasty. I had to make a few modifications based on what I had, but I didn't stray far from the original concept. I happened to have a package of Trader Joe's imported, cooked, steamed and packaged lentils (from the fridge section so I didn't need to cook lentils first as this recipe requires. I wanted a new way to serve them, so, I coated my pan with garlic infused oil and browned the sausages and onions in the same pan, and when they were brown, deglazed the pan with the red wine and brought it to a bubble, and then stirred in the cooked lentils and simmered the sausages and the lentils until the sausages were cooked and the liquid reduced. My only other modification was to add a few dabs of butter and some whole mushroom caps to the pan as it was bubbling, so that I had a garlic wine buttery gravy, with mushrooms. It was absolutely fantastic. I can picture having this all winter long.
By mollthedoll
on April 16, 2011
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This was just lovely & so easy! The only change I made was to add a dessertspoon of Jalapeno relish + 1/2tsp soft brown sugar to the gravy 'cos I thought it was a tad bitter and it transformed the whole dish. Will definitely be making it again!
Read all 16 reviews