Italian Lentils

5 from 3 votes

It's always good luck to have lentils to ring in the New Year. This lentil side dish, or New Year's lentils is a fun Italian tradition to start the year off right!

Prep Time15

Cook Time45

Total Time1

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American, Italian

Servings: servings

Calories: 202kcal

Author: Vincent DelGiudice

Cost: $10

Equipment

1 large saucepan

Ingredients

1 cup lentils
4 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoon olive oil
2 carrots, finely chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 celery stalk, finely chopped
2 tablespoon tomato paste
½ cup red wine
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoon freshly chopped parsley
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper

Instructions

Place a large saucepan on medium heat and add 2 tablespoon olive oil. Once hot, stir in the carrots, celery, and onion. Saute for 8 minutes, until softened.
Add the tomato paste to the saucepan in a place where it directly touches the pan. Let it sit for 2 minutes then stir through the vegetable mixture and season with salt and pepper.
Stir in the lentils and coat well with the mixture. Then pour in the red wine and bring to a simmer. Simmer until the red wine is completely absorbed. Add the chicken broth and the bay leaf and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and bring to a low simmer. Cover and simmer for 25 minutes.
Remove from the heat and serve with crunchy Italian bread for dipping.

Notes

Sauteing the vegetables well before adding the lentils, will bring out the most flavor in the dish.
Caramelize the tomato paste to the pan by placing it directly touching the pan for a more intense flavor.
Let the lentils soak up the wine completely before adding the broth for the most concentrated flavor.
Always serve with bread to soak up the extra sauce.

Nutrition