Forget Sausages: Lentils Pair Even Better With This Meat!

Why stick to green lentils with sausages? Laurent Mariotte challenges this established norm and introduces us to the meat choice that locals from Auvergne prefer. In this regional dish, Puy green lentils are served with… guinea fowl! The lentils and poultry simmer together in a pot, allowing the grains to soak up the delicious juices from the bird, creating a truly indulgent experience far removed from any unpleasant cafeteria memories.

When it comes to ingredients, Laurent Mariotte favors local products: an Auvergne free-range guinea fowl, and a white wine from Côtes d’Auvergne named “La Légendaire, Terre et Lave,” he specifies. However, you can certainly use a guinea fowl from another region, and choose any dry, rounded white wine for deglazing your dish.

To keep the guinea fowl tender, the food writer prefers a two-stage cooking process in a pot. After browning the legs and breast still on the bone, he sets aside the breast. The legs, being fattier, cook longer than the guinea fowl breast, thus preventing them from drying out. The rest of the steps are meticulously laid out in the recipe…

• 1 free-range guinea fowl, gutted and cut (with “whole carcass on bone and legs separate,” Laurent Mariotte notes)
• 1 half-bottle of white wine
• 2 red onions
• 40 cl of poultry broth
• 100 g of Puy green lentils
• 1 bouquet garni
• 30 g of flour
• 30 g of butter

1. In a pot, heat a drizzle of vegetable oil and butter. Season the guinea fowl with salt and pepper, then brown the legs and giblets, skin side down.

2. Next, brown the carcass on all sides and set it aside.

3. Cut the onions into wedges and cook them for 5 minutes in the pot. Add the bouquet garni and flour to “thicken the sauce,” cook for another 5 minutes, then deglaze with the white wine.

4. Bring the mixture to a boil. Then add the poultry broth and the pre-rinsed lentils. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes on low heat.

5. Return the carcass to the pot and continue cooking for another 25 minutes.

After cooking, arrange the legs and the deboned breast fillets on a serving dish, remove the bouquet garni, then reduce the sauce for a few minutes and pour it over the meat. You’ll find that the combination of lentils and guinea fowl is as delightful as it is tasty!