Braised French Lentils with Bacon
 
 
Author:
Serves: 4
Ingredients
  • 1 cup French lentils, rinsed and drained
  • 3 pieces bacon, finely diced
  • 2 heaping tablespoons minced onion
  • 2 heaping tablespoons finely diced carrot
  • 2 heaping tablespoons finely diced celery
  • 1 small garlic clove, minced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 2 - 3 sprigs fresh thyme
  • ⅓ cup sherry (Hartley & Gibsons Amontillado Medium Sherry recommended)
  • 2¾ cups chicken broth
  • few grinds of pepper (optional)
Preparation
  1. Wash lentils and drain in a sieve.
  2. In a medium saucepan (I use my Le Creuset 3½ quart Dutch oven) cook diced bacon until crisp and rendered. If there is too much bacon fat in the pan you may pour off some of it. Once the bacon is crisp, turn heat down to medium-low and add mirepoix. Sauté gently (do not brown) until vegetables soften a bit, about 5 minutes. Add minced garlic, bay leaf and thyme stirring continuously for 1 minute.
  3. Deglaze pan with the Sherry, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Add lentils and chicken broth to the pan. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan and cook for about 45 minutes, or until the lentils are just tender. Check the lentils occasionally making sure they are not boiling. Adjust the heat as necessary. I usually have the heat set to low allowing the lentils to simmer gently.
  4. The lentils are done when just tender. You may uncover the pan for a few minutes if there is too much liquid (the lentils should not be dry). Keep in mind the lentils will absorb some of the liquid once refrigerated.
Recipe by My Lilikoi Kitchen at https://www.mylilikoikitchen.com/2019/06/04/braised-french-lentils-with-bacon/