Take a skewer and make some holes all around the cotechino. This will prevent the skin from breaking while cooking.

Put it in a big enough pot and cover it with cold water. Bring to a boil, reduce the flame to low and simmer for 3 hours.

When ready, let it cool down completely and then cut it in 2 cm – ¾ inch slices.

Put all the ingredients in a pot (or in a pressure cooker), cover them with just enough water and cook until the lentils are tender. Make sure not to cook them in too much water, you want to get a thick “soup-like” consistency at the end (like in the pictures below).

Serve both warm.