This is completely different [well, fairly different] from the recipe that inspired it, which was a stew of Merguez sausages and lentils that appeared in volume 171 of Cuisine magazine. It was not even a recipe really, not much more than a serving suggestion, but as always a source of endless inspiration. Check it out on http://www.cuisine.co.nz. Due to an amazing oversight I found that I did not have any North African mutton sausages in stock, nor any tomato passata, but I did have some frankfurters and a can of crushed tomatoes, so I went from there.
Ingredients.
2 cups vegetable stock.
1 tsp red wine vinegar.
1 cup orange lentils.
2 cloves garlic, crushed.
Salt to taste.
1 tsp ground cumin.
1 tsp ground coriander.
1 tsp paprika.
¼ tsp white pepper.
Salt to taste.
¼ cup olive oil.
1 medium onion, peeled grated.
1 medium carrot, grated.
1 stick celery, grated.
1 400g can chopped tomato.
½ cup chopped coriander greens.
Juice of half a lemon.
300g frankfurters, sliced into bite sized chunks.
2 cups chopped kale.
Preparation.
In a small saucepan bring the stock to the boil. Stir in the lentils and garlic. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from the hob, add the salt and leave for 10 minutes then drain and keep warm. While the lentils are cooking, grate the onion, carrot and celery together and set aside, then mix the spices and the salt together and set aside. Preheat the oven to 160°C.
Method.
Heat the oil in a frying pan over a hot flame and fry the onion, carrot and celery until starting to turn brown. Add the spices and cook, stirring, for another 1-2 minutes. Add the tomato, the coriander, the lemon juice and the lentils, stir together and turn into a tagine [or casserole dish].
Arrange the sausages on top of the mixture and sprinkle with the chopped kale. Cover and bake in the oven for 30 minutes [or until the 6 O’clock News has finished]. Remove the lid and serve directly to the table.
Serves: 2.
Poddimok 