THE SAUSAGE SPECIAL, WITH A SIDE OF—LENTILS!

I haven’t quite finished with my porky extravaganza (see previous posts on pork loin and chorizo sausage). This week I’m enjoying salchicha, fresh pork link sausage. But, I’m giving equal time and place on the plate to a vegetarian lentil dish that can be served on its own or as a side with the sausages.

 

Sherry-glazed sausages, lentils and crisp salad--great lunch dish.

Salchicha is a fresh sausage that must be kept refrigerated and cooked before eating. It’s similar to the breakfast links you’re probably familiar with or to sweet Italian sausage.

Salchichas--fresh pork sausage.

The Spanish version consists of pork meat and fat ground together; seasoned with salt, lots of white or black pepper, nutmeg, garlic, oregano and parsley, and stuffed in sausage casings. It’s ready to eat immediately, without curing time. Fresh link sausage is also sometimes called longaniza blanca. Another version, called salchicha criolla or longaniza roja has pimentón (paprika) and hot pimentón or chile as well.

Salchicha can be fried, grilled or simmered in soups.  I’ve prepared an easy version, frying the sausages, then simmering them with fino Sherry, a dish often served in tapa bars. The lentils along with a salad with a sharp citrus dressing make great side dishes. Or, hold the sausages and serve the lentils as the main event.

Sausages with Sherry
Salchichas al Jerez

If the sausage pieces are to be served as a tapa, cut the links into 1 ½ -inch pieces.

Serves 4-6 as part of a meal, or 10-12 as a tapa.

Sausages as tapa.

1 pound fresh pork link sausage
½ tablespoon olive oil
1/3 cup dry Sherry
Chopped parsley

Heat the oil in a skillet and brown the sausage pieces on all sides. Add the Sherry and cook on a medium heat for 3 minutes until the sausages are slightly glazed. Serve the sausages with the pan juices, sprinkled with parsley.

Don Quixote’s Friday Lentils
Lentejas Viudas

Vegetarian lentils get flavor from a sofrito of vegetables.

Lentils are what Don Quixote ate on Fridays. Or, so Cervantes tells us in the first paragraph of the novel. Because it was Friday—usually a day of abstinence from meat in the Catholic Church—they were certainly lentils viudas, “widowed,” bereft of meat or sausage. Nevertheless, well flavored with the olive oil of the region, garlic, onions, and spices such as cumin and pepper, they were probably a substantial and tasty meal.

Pardina lentils.

Use the tiny dark brown pardina lentils for this dish, which is served “dry,” not soupy. Small Puy green lentils could be used as well. With a salad and bread, lentils make a fine vegetarian meal. They are also a good side dish with duck, ham or pork. (Another recipe for lentils is here.)

A splash of vinegar or lemon juice at the end of cooking really jacks up the flavor of lentils.

 

Serves 4 as a main dish or 6 to 8 as a side dish.

1 pound small brown lentils (about 2 ½ cups)
1-inch piece of lemon zest, slivered
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon salt
6 cups water
¼ teaspoon saffron threads, crushed (optional)
3 tablespoons olive oil + additional to serve
1 ½ cup diced carrots
1 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup diced celery
1/3 cup chopped red bell pepper
3 cloves garlic, chopped
¼ teaspoon whole cumin seed
Pinch of ground cloves
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar
1 hard-cooked egg, chopped (optional)
Lemon wedges to serve

Place the lentils in a pot or cazuela and add water, slivered zest, bay leaves and salt. Bring to a boil and cook, covered, for 8 minutes. Drain the lentils, saving the liquid. Discard the bay leaves.

If using saffron, soak it in 2 tablespoons hot water for 15 minutes.

Heat the oil in a pot or cazuela and sauté the carrots, onion, celery and red pepper for 3 minutes. Add garlic and sauté 5 minutes. Add the cumin seed and sauté 1 minute.

Stir in the lentils and 2 cups of the reserved liquid. Add the cloves, pepper, saffron, and additional salt, if necessary. Bring to a boil and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes, or until lentils and carrots are tender. Add additional liquid as needed to keep the lentils from scorching on the bottom. Add vinegar and cook 3 minutes longer. Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil over the lentils immediately before serving. If desired, serve them garnished with chopped egg. Serve with lemon wedges to squeeze into the lentils.

Lentils make a satisfying meal.

Citrus Salad Dressing

Use this dressing on salad greens, on cooked vegetables such as beets, carrots or asparagus, or on grilled fish fillets.

Oranges add a sweet tang.

1 orange
1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped scallions
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Grate a little orange zest into a small bowl. Peel the orange removing all the white pith. Cut the sections free from membranes and chop the sections. Add to the bowl. Stir in the vinegar, oil, scallions, salt and pepper. 

TURN UP THE HEAT WITH A POT OF LENTILS

In all the years I have lived in southern Spain, I recall only twice ever that the temperature dropped below freezing. Once, many years ago, I awoke to find icicles hanging from a drippy tap in the garden. Another time, the dog’s water bowl was frozen over. On another occasion, although it wasn't so icy cold, we awoke to find the ground covered in snow! The kids raced to ski down the steep driveway before it melted off.

So when the TV weather woman predicted a hard freeze for my region, I prepared. Dry firewood ready (prunings from the olive trees). Gloves and scarves located. And a big pot of lentils on the stove.

Today is, indeed, mighty cold. But the temperature did not dip below freezing. The sun is shining and I’m going to curl up by the fire and enjoy a bowl of heartwarming, stick-to-the-ribs lentils.

Castellana and pardina lentils.

The most common variety of lentil in Spain is the rubia castellana, big, flat disks of a pale greenish-brown color. They cook up ever so soft, without turning to mush. The tiny, dark brown pardina lentils, which always stay al dente, can be substituted. Castilla-La Mancha grows 90 percent of the lentils produced in Spain, but, as this is insufficient to meet demand, much is imported. At my local store in southern Spain, the castellana lentils come from Canada!

Lentils don’t need soaking overnight, as do most legumes. Be sure to use soft water (bottled or filtered, if your water is naturally hard), for cooking. This helps the legume to soften.

Lentils with chorizo and vegetables.

Lentejas con Chorizo
Lentils with Sausage

Pork belly, consisting of ribbons of lean and fat, is pancetta or bacon before it is salted and cured. Any fatty bits of fresh pork could be used, including spare ribs cut into short lengths. Fresh pork-link sausage can be substituted for the chorizo. Add additional pimentón, if not using chorizo.


Serves 4 to 5.

1 pound lentils
4 ounces pork belly
4 ounces soft, cooking chorizo or pork-link sausage
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 cloves
1 small onion
1 whole head of garlic
2 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 green pepper, cut in strips
1 tomato
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon pimentón de la Vera (smoked paprika)
Red pepper flakes (optional)
½ pound potatoes, peeled and cut in 1-inch cubes
Pickled onions and hot peppers, such as peperoni, to accompany

Wash and drain the lentils. Place them in a cazuela or soup pot and add 6 cups of fresh water.

Cut the pork belly into ½-inch strips. Slice the chorizo crosswise. Heat the oil in a small skillet and fry the pork and chorizo on medium heat until lightly browned. Tip the skillet to drain the fat to one side and skim the pork and chorizo out and add to the lentils. Discard the fat.

Stick the cloves into the onion and tuck it into the lentils with the head of garlic, carrots, green pepper, tomato, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Stir the pimentón into 1 tablespoon of water until smooth, then stir into the lentils. Add the red pepper flakes, if using.

Bring to a boil, lower heat to a simmer and cover the lentils. Cook gently for 30 minutes. Add the potatoes and cook 30 minutes more or until lentils are tender.

Remove and discard the onion and bay leaf. Remove the tomato, cut out the core and discard skin. Use the edge of a spoon to break the tomato into pieces and return them to the lentils. If desired, the soft-cooked garlic cloves can be separated and mashed into the lentils. Let the pottage sit, covered, 15 minutes before serving. Each person adds pickled onions and peppers to taste.