Andouille Sausage Lentil Stew

About This Sausage Lentil Soup Recipe

This recipe is one of our favorite ways to cook Andouille sausage. Its bold flavors infuse the lentil stew with a medley of smokiness, spice and warmth. We also rely on a couple of ingredients borrowed from French lentil stew for a layer of freshness at the end of the cooking process. 

You can have dinner on the table within an hour of starting to work on the recipe - it all depends on how fast the lentils you choose to use will cook. 

Ingredients for Lentil Stew with Smoked Sausage

Andouille sausage. You will need about 14 ounces to a pound of Cajun andouille for this stew. See the section below for clarification on the different types of andouille. Also note that Cajun andouille sausage is spicy due to the cayenne it is made with. You can always use a smoked sausage like kielbasa instead. 

Olive oil. For maximum flavor choose extra virgin. You will sauté with part of it and stir the rest into the cooked stew for a burst of fresh floral, spicy notes.

Onion, carrots, celery, garlic cloves and tomato paste. To make the base for the stew. Use a large onion and be brave with the garlic.

Lentils. Green lentils or brown lentils will work best in this recipe. Nutrition wise they offer fiber and protein. Red lentils will become too soft, too fast.

Beer/wine and broth. To deglaze and add flavor choose a dry but flavorful beer (we like to use a Belgian amber ale or a saison) or a dry red or white wine. Alternatively, deglaze with broth. For the bulk of the stew liquid if you have pork broth on hand - it works perfectly, otherwise chicken or vegetable. 

Herbs, spices and condiments. Besides salt and black pepper this soup is flavored by bay leaf, thyme and rosemary - you can use fresh or dry. We recommend that you use fresh rosemary - add the whole sprigs to the stew so that you can easily remove them at the end. Flavor with chopped fresh rosemary before serving. A dollop of Dijon mustard, if folded into the stew at the end, brings a lot of umami taste. A bit of sherry vinegar or a similar mild vinegar is optional, but highly recommended.

About Andouille Sausage

Andouille (pronounced ahn doo wee) is a smoked pork sausage. Most people don't realize this but there are two very distinct types - French andouille and Cajun/Louisiana andouille (with which most Americans are familiar). 

• French andouille is mostly associated with the region of Brittany and is made from layers of chopped up chitterlings (pig intestines) and tripe, onions, wine and spices. This is not the kind of sausage we are concerned with here.
• Cajun/Louisiana andouille despite its French name actually has German origins. It was first made by German immigrants from the Rhineland who settled in an area just up the Mississippi from New Orleans known as Cotes des Allemandes or the German Coast. Their sausage was made with coarse ground pork, garlic, cayenne pepper and salt and smoked over pecan wood. Andouille became a symbol of Cajun cuisine as those early Germans started intermarrying with the French speaking Acadians. 

Today most commercially sold Cajun andouille sausage is very similar in flavor to the original, but has a finer grind and comes in edible casings like most other smoked sausage. You can still buy the authentic product - at South Louisiana meat markets (where it goes just by Andouille) and at specialty stores around the nation. 

If you ever wondered what to make with Cajun andouille sausage - this lentil stew is a great option! 

Step-by-Step Process 

Prep. Slice the andouille (just over half inch thick circles) and rinse and soak the lentils in cold water, remove any impurities that float to the top. Dice the vegetables and garlic. 

Brown the andouille. Heat some olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat and brown the sausage, then transfer it to a plate - you will add it to the stew towards the end.

Make the base. In the same oil sauté the onion, carrots, celery and garlic until soft, stir in the tomato paste and cook for another minute to develop its flavors. Deglaze with the Belgian beer or wine, scrape off all brown bits from the bottom of the pot. Let the alcohol cook off. 

Simmer. Add the drained lentils to the pot, add the salt and pepper, bay leaf, rosemary and thyme. Add the chicken broth and stir. Bring to boil, then reduce the heat, cover (leave a small partial opening) and simmer until the lentils are cooked. 

Finish. Once the lentils are tender, remove the bay leaf and rosemary and add the browned sausage. Stir and simmer for a couple of minutes. In the meantime finely chop fresh rosemary and fold it into the stew once you take the pot off the heat. Also fold in the Dijon mustard and extra virgin olive oil. Just before you serve the lentil stew, add some sherry vinegar. 

TIP: Folding the finely chopped rosemary at the very end brings about a fragrant herbal freshness to the hearty stew and counters the smoky and garlicy dominance of the andouille. It is not to miss! The extra virgin olive oil contributes floral notes and the umami of the Dijon adds a sophisticated depth of flavor. Then all you need is a touch of acidity - if you don't have sherry vinegar handy use apple cider or white wine vinegar. 

How to Modify This Lentil Sausage Soup Recipe 

For a vegetarian or vegan lentil stew replace the sausage with sweet potato cut into hearty chunks (or Yukon gold potatoes). Also use large carrots chunks and brown both instead of the andouille. You can add chopped Swiss chard, kale or baby spinach toward the end of the cooking process. 

Serve with crusty bread such as sourdough or baguette (or a gluten-free alternative).