Cotechino — the large, coarse-ground pork sausage of Modena, heavily flavoured with spices (cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, white pepper) — is one of the most complex fresh sausage preparations in Italian cooking. Served with lentils (traditionally on New Year's Eve — the lentils representing coins, abundance), it demonstrates the Italian principle that the sausage and its accompaniment are designed as a unit: the cotechino's fat and spice require the lentil's earthy absorption to be complete.
- **The cotechino:** Sold pre-cooked (vacuum-packed) or fresh. Fresh cotechino: pricked with a skewer to prevent casing burst, simmered very gently in water for 2 hours. The fat renders slowly into the cooking water; the casing remains intact. - **The simmering liquid:** Never salted — the cotechino is already heavily seasoned. - **The lentils:** Castelluccio lentils from Umbria (small, hold their shape perfectly through cooking without becoming mushy) or Puy lentils as a substitute. Cooked from dry in a soffritto-based liquid until tender but intact. - **The combination at service:** The cotechino is sliced thickly and placed on a bed of lentils — its fat renders into the lentils on the plate, producing a self-sauce. The lentils absorb; the cotechino releases. The dish completes itself on the plate.
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