Cotechino con Lenticchie
Cotechino with lentils is the first meal of the year for almost every Italian. Cotechino is a sausage made of secondary pork cuts, pork rind and fat. It traditionally originates in Modena but, it’s far more widespread than that now. Don’t let you put off by its content: it’s delicious!
In Italy you can buy fresh Cotechino which requires a long cooking time. An alternative option to this is the pre-cooked version which is the one that can be easily found in the UK too.
Lentils symbolise wealth and the more you eat the richer you’ll be in the New Year. I have so many memories that involve this dish. It reminds me of home, festive family meals and for some reason it also reminds me of my grandfather. This was by no means his favourite dish but I have clear memories of him reminding me to eat as many lentils as I could. I remember the last New Year’s Eve we spent together in Athens. He was visiting from Italy and there was an incredible snowstorm going on while we where having our meal and waiting to greet the New Year. I was only seven years old but I remember the sound of the wind blowing outside, him sitting at the head of the table and his plate full of lentils.
Simple dishes like this one hold a special place in my heart. If you happen to find a cotechino lying down in the post festivities discount aisle give it a go.
Money Money Money
Ingredients
1X500g precooked cotechino
300g lentils
2 cloves of garlic
1 handful of parsley
a few sage leaves
400g chopped tomatoes (1 tin)
3 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper
Put aside 1 big cup of lentil cooking water & keep the cotechino cooking liquid (exact instructions below)
Step by step
Follow the instruction at the back of your cotechino pack. You normally put it in water cover it with a lid and bring it to boil. Cooking time from boiling point is approximately 20min. Make sure you take it out 5min before it’s time (or you’ll risk turning it into mash). Set it aside to cool down
Add your lentils in a big deep pan and cover them with water. Bring the water to boil and cook the lentils for 20min. You want them to still be a bit hard. Set aside 1 big cup of the boiling water.
In a separate pan start a tomato sauce by sautéing the garlic in olive oil. Make sure you choose a big deep pan
Add your tomato tin, chopped parsley and sage in the pan with the garlic. Mix well and season
Add the lentils to the tomato sauce and add in half of the lentil boiling water you had put aside. Cook them for roughly another 15 minutes. If the sauce becomes to dry, add in some more of the boiling water you had set aside
Not it’s time to take your cotechino out of its bag. Put aside the liquid and juices you’ll find inside the cotechino cooking bag. Time to slice the cotechino. Make sure your slices are nice and chunky
Now carefully place the slices in your pan with the lentils and pour the cotechino juices you previously set aside. Mix very carefully with a wooden spoon (you don’t want to break the slices). Adjust seasoning and cook for 5 to 10 minutes. It will be ready when the lentils are fully cooked
Enjoy!
Tips & Cheats
If you can’t find cotechino or if you are vegetarian you can simply cook the lentils on their own without adding the meat at the end. They are equally tasty!
If you don’t want to add the juices from the cotechino bag it’s ok, skip that step
As mentioned above, always cook the cotechino 5 minutes less than indicated on the box. It’s an extremely soft mean that can crumble very easily.
If you don’t like parsley try unsing rosemary and bay leaves instead.
