Pressure-cooker sausage and lentil stew
50 min · 31 g protein · 372 cals / serving
Browned Italian-style turkey sausage, earthy lentils, carrots, celery and tomatoes, simmered with fennel seed and thyme into a thick, savory stew, then finished with a pile of kale, a splash of red wine vinegar and parmesan. Twenty minutes of hands-on time and a week of hearty lunches: freeze half, as it keeps 4 days in the fridge.
Ingredients
- 1 lb Italian-style turkey sausage raw turkey sausage, casings removed
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1 large onion, diced
- 3 medium carrots, diced
- 3 stalks celery, diced
- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tsp fennel seed, lightly crushed
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 5 1/2 cups chicken broth, low-sodium
- 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
- 1 1/4 cups brown or green lentils lentils, rinsed
- 1 tsp dried thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/2 tsp salt, more to taste
- 1 small bunch kale, stems removed, chopped
- 1 tbsp red wine vinegar
To serve
- 1/3 cup grated parmesan
Steps
- Set the electric pressure cooker to SAUTÉ (high), add the oil and the sausage and brown it, breaking it into bite-size pieces, about 5 minutes.
- Add the onion, carrot and celery and cook 4 minutes, then stir in the garlic, fennel seed, pepper flakes and tomato paste for 1 minute.
- Pour in a cup of the broth and scrape the bottom completely clean, then add the rest of the broth, the tomatoes, lentils, thyme, bay leaf and salt.
- Lock the lid, set to sealing and cook at HIGH pressure 12 minutes. Let the pressure release naturally for 10 minutes, then quick-release.
- Remove the bay leaf, stir in the kale and let it wilt on SAUTÉ for 2–3 minutes. Add the vinegar and taste for salt.
- Ladle into bowls and finish with the parmesan.
Good to know
Slow cooker instead?
Brown the sausage and vegetables in a skillet, then put everything except the kale, vinegar and cheese in the slow cooker with 1 extra cup (240 ml) of broth. LOW 7–8 hours or HIGH 4, until the lentils are soft; stir in the kale for the last 15 minutes.
How does it keep?
4 days in the fridge, 3 months in the freezer. Lentils keep absorbing liquid, so it reheats as a thick stew; loosen with broth or water and bring it back to a simmer on the stove or until steaming in the microwave.
Which lentils?
Brown or green lentils hold their shape. Red lentils dissolve into a thick purée, which is good too but a different dish, at about 72 instead of 76; cut the time to 6 minutes if you use them.
Alternative
Per
- Calories
- 72
- Protein
- (36%)
- 6 g
- Fat
- (26%)
- 2 g
- Carbohydrates
- (38%)
- 8 g
- of which sugar
- 2 g
- Fiber
- 3 g
- Sodium
- 384 mg
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Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. General guidance, not medical advice. Talk to your prescriber. How
As written, 2232 kcal goes into the pot and 3203 g of ingredients comes out as about 3100 g of food: 72 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.