Winter is the perfect season to cozy up with comfort foods. As temperatures drop, there's nothing more satisfying than a warm, hearty meal to soothe both body and soul. Whether it’s a steaming bowl of soup, creamy mac and cheese or some freshly baked bread, comfort food makes cold nights more bearable. And comfort foods are more than meals—they’re a reminder to slow down, savor the moment and embrace the season's simple pleasures.
Celebrated French chef, author and television personality Jacques Pépin is known for his mastery of French cuisine, but he's also known for making delicious, thoughtful, comforting food that's accessible to home cooks.
We recently ran across a video of him demonstrating his Easy Lentil and Sausage Stew on the Jacques Pépin Foundation's YouTube channel and we think it's the perfect New Year's Eve or New Year's Day meal.
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For us, part of the joy of a Jacques Pépin recipe is finding a video of him demonstrating the recipe. His soothing voice and thoughtful and patient instruction convince us that we can definitely pull this off at home.
This stew is absolutely doable and Pépin shows us how, step-by-step. The combination of spicy sausage that he turns into little meatballs, plus the combination of leeks, carrots and onions and the creamy lentils is everything we want to eat right now. After the rich holiday food, we're still craving comfort, but maybe something a tiny bit lighter—and this dish fits that bill.
The sausage adds some richness, the veggies add texture and flavor and some much-needed vitamins and minerals and the lentils are a great source of plant protein.
Related: How to Make the Simplest, Most Comforting Chicken Noodle Soup, According to Jacques Pépin (and His Mother)
How to Make Jacques Pépin's Easy Lentil and Sausage Stew
To make this dish, you'll start with about half a pound of Italian sausage, out of the casing. Pépin uses hot sausage, but you can choose mild if you prefer. Tear the sausage into bite-sized pieces and form them into balls. Cook them in some olive oil until they're browned, about 8 minutes.
Then you will chop some leeks, carrots, onion and garlic and add the vegetables to the pot with the sausage. Let the veggies cook in the sausage-infused oil until they're starting to get tender, about 4 minutes.
Next, add 2 1/2 cups of water, three-quarters of a can of diced tomatoes, salt, pepper and half a pound of rinsed lentils to the pot. Bring that to a boil and cook until the lentils are tender but not falling about, which should take around 45 minutes. As the lentils absorb the liquid, you'll end up with more of a stew than a soup. Spoon the stew into bowls and top with some freshly snipped chives.
Pépin suggests serving the stew with a nice salad, which we love. We'd also happily take a piece of bread (maybe garlic bread) alongside.
Related: How to Make the Perfect Classic Quiche, According to Chef Jacques Pépin
Why Jacques Pépin's Easy Lentil and Sausage Stew Is a Great New Year's Dish
A traditional New Year’s Day meal often features dishes symbolizing prosperity, luck and good health for the year ahead. In the Southern United States, where I was raised, black-eyed peas and collard greens or cabbage are staples. Black-eyed peas represent coins and financial luck, while the greens symbolize paper money and wealth. Often served alongside cornbread, which signifies gold, this meal is a flavorful wish for abundance in the year ahead.
In many cultures, pork is a key ingredient, symbolizing progress and moving forward, and we often have cabbage with ham or bacon. Lentils are also a common New Year's ingredient. The coin-like shape of lentils is said to bring luck and prosperity in the new year, so the pork sausage plus the lentils in this dish definitely qualify it as a lucky dish.
And even if you're not the superstitious kind, we'd say that you and your family will feel lucky when you make this dish because it's so comforting and delicious. And who doesn't want more of that in the year ahead?
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