Copycat Restaurant Recipes
Copycat Carrabba's Italian Grill Sausage Lentil Soup Recipe
This restaurant-style sausage and lentil soup is a soul-warming Italian classic that balances savory Italian sausage with earthy lentils and vibrant aromatics. It is a thick, protein-packed meal that delivers deep, slow-cooked flavor in less than an hour.
- Prep
- 15 min
- Cook
- 45 min
- Serves
- 4
- Level
- Easy
- Per serving
- 480 kcal
Method
Place a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the crumbled Italian sausage and cook until browned, breaking it into small pieces with a spoon as it cooks. Drain any excess grease, leaving about a tablespoon in the pot for flavor.
Add the diced onion, carrots, and celery to the pot with the sausage. Sauté for 5 to 7 minutes until the vegetables begin to soften.
Stir in the dried oregano, dried basil, and bay leaf. Cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
Pour in the chicken broth, diced tomatoes (including the juice), and the rinsed lentils. Stir well to combine.
Bring the mixture to a boil, then immediately reduce the heat to low. Cover the pot and simmer for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the lentils are tender but not mushy.
Remove the bay leaf. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. If the soup is too thick, you can splash in a little more broth before serving.
Notes
For the most authentic flavor, use a mix of spicy and mild Italian sausage.
Do not salt the soup until the end; salt can sometimes toughen lentils if added too early in the cooking process.
Rinse your lentils thoroughly in a fine-mesh sieve to remove any dust or small debris before adding them to the pot.
This soup tastes even better the next day as the flavors have more time to meld together.
