Cotechino is a cooked pork sausage made from a mix of top quality pork, lean and fatty cuts, and pigskin from pigs bred in Italy. It’s seasoned with natural flavorings and spices, filled in casings and tied by hand at both ends. It’s very rich and filling, you don’t need much but it adds a ton of flavor. I used Levoni brand Cotechino from Modena, it’s got the PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) meaning the pork can only come from a specific region in Modena and is a hallmark of quality. It’s usually sold in a box and inside the sausage is sealed in an aluminum sachet. It is imported from Italy.
I used Beluga lentils here, but you can use any dry lentils you like. Red Chief have a beautiful orange color, just know that after they are cooked they all kind of look the same, like a grey color. You always want to rinse lentils really well before using, the way there are grown, I find pebbles just about every time.
