Lentil Stew with Chicken Sausages

a family tradition, I don't really have or follow a recipe, so adjust as suits your family.

• 3 chicken sausages or one half Kielbasa
• 1 med onion
• 2 Carrots
• 3 celery stalks
• 3 cloves garlic
• 5 med potatoes
• 1 cup green lentils
• 4 cups chicken broth 
• Worcestershire/Tamari/Braggs/Fish Sauce to taste -- I usually use a few dashes of each

1. Cook your sausage of choice for a few minutes until brown, then remove 2. Dice onions, celery, carrots and saute in sausage grease, adding additional fat if needed, until soft. 3. Add garlic and cook one or two more minutes. 4. Add the rest of the ingredients and simmer until the lentils and potatoes are tender 5. Return sausages to soup; add water to soup if thinning is needed. 6. Add umami seasonings to taste.

Note: I use a few different fermented sauces to help get a little deeper flavor in the stew. They add umami, which is one of the 5 basic tastes like sweet, sour, salty, bitter. Umami is the savory flavor you find in tomatoes, roasted meats, sausages and such.

Worcestershire is a fermented sauce made from anchovies, malt vinegar, molasses and a host of other goodies. Lea and Perrin's is the original, and in my mind, the best.

Tamari is a slightly different way of brewing soy sauce, which is fermented soybeans. I usully buy San-J.

Braggs Liquid Amino Acids is another soy based sauce. You can find it at most health food stores.

Fish Sauce is just what it sounds like - a fermented fish sauce. This is a key flavor and ingredient in Thai cooking. I don't use any particular brand, but check the Thai section at Wegmans or a health food store for a decent good one. Mine's all in Thai so I can't read it. A few dashes goes a LOOOOONG way, so a small bottle is a good pace to start.