Ragout in French (or ragú in Italian) simply means “stew”- a common word for a variety of dishes with different flavors. In this French style lentil ragout there’s a fresh flavor from the different herbs as well as a hit of color from the carrots.

You can serve this over pasta, rice, or polenta for meal that comes together quickly and tastes of wonderful French home cooking.

Depending on where you live you might consider lentils to be a health food. But, in France there’s a long tradition of using these legumes in all kinds of dishes.

There are even special varieties of lentils that are only grown in certain regions of France. These can be hard to find in the US so that’s why we’re using the more common brown lentils (or green if you have those). You want to stay away from the smaller varieties like red lentils as they tend to break down in the stew too much.

The great thing about this ragout is that the lentil are very distinct in the mixture. You can add more broth to make it soupier, but the lentils shouldn’t dissolve into the stew.

To add color and flavor stir in some chopped parsley and then this comforting dish is ready to serve. It’s tasty all by itself, but I’ve also found that a little bit of grated parmesan on top goes very nicely with this ragout as well.

I love this dish over orzo or rice but it goes well alongside many different starches and proteins. That’s why it’s such a great recipe to have on hand!