For many families, serving lentils at New Year is a way of wishing for prosperity. Their shape resembles small coins: a symbolic association, not a promise of money or good fortune. Sagu can join the meal as a familiar dessert without implying that there is a universal New Year ritual associated with it.
Traditions vary between households
Some people eat lentils at midnight; others serve them at lunch the following day. Some keep dried lentils as a reminder of a New Year wish. These customs are optional. Anything placed in a decorative keepsake bag should not go back into the cooking pot; keep small dried grains away from young children.
In Brazil, sagu commonly means a dessert made with small cassava-starch pearls. For the recipe below, use this product, also sold as small tapioca pearls, rather than granulated tapioca or large bubble-tea pearls. Check the manufacturer’s instructions, as size affects soaking and cooking.
Bacon lentils: 6 side portions
- 300g dried brown or green lentils, checked and rinsed
- 900ml water or low-salt vegetable stock, plus up to 300ml hot water if needed
- 150g diced bacon; use 150g sliced mushrooms for the meat-free option
- 100g chopped onion, 3 chopped garlic cloves and 100g carrot in small dice
- 15ml olive oil, 1 bay leaf and 2 tbsp chopped parsley
- Salt and pepper to taste; optional 15ml wine vinegar
- Heat the oil in a saucepan and cook the bacon until browned and cooked through. For the meat-free version, brown the mushrooms in the oil.
- Add the onion and carrot and cook for about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic for 1 minute.
- Add the lentils, bay leaf and 900ml liquid. Bring to the boil, lower the heat and simmer partly covered for about 25–35 minutes, until tender but not falling apart.
- Stir occasionally and add reserved hot water a little at a time if the pan dries before the lentils soften. You may not need all of it.
- Remove the bay leaf, season and stir in the parsley and optional vinegar. Serve with some broth; reduce excess liquid uncovered for a few minutes if needed.
Tinned lentils are already cooked and do not need the same water or cooking time as dried lentils. This recipe is written for dried lentils. If using tinned lentils, choose a recipe designed for them rather than directly substituting three tins for 300g dried lentils.
Grape sagu without wine: about 6 small portions
- 100g small cassava tapioca pearls
- 750ml water: 250ml for soaking and 500ml for the saucepan
- 250ml pure grape juice, with no added sugar
- 0–60g sugar, according to the juice’s sweetness
- 1 cinnamon stick and a thin strip of washed orange peel, without white pith
- Up to 150ml extra hot water, only if needed to finish cooking
- Soak the pearls in 250ml water for 1 hour unless the packet directs otherwise. Keep the soaking water.
- Heat the remaining 500ml water with the juice, cinnamon and peel. Add the pearls and their soaking water and maintain a gentle simmer.
- Cook for approximately 25–35 minutes, stirring frequently to prevent sticking. Taste a pearl: it should be soft with no hard centre. If the mixture thickens too soon, add extra hot water gradually.
- Remove the cinnamon and peel. Taste and dissolve sugar a little at a time, using only what is needed. The dessert should still be fairly fluid, as it thickens when cold.
- Divide between small containers, cool promptly and refrigerate within 2 hours. Chill for at least 2 hours before serving.
Panelinha also illustrates using grape juice and soaking the pearls. This recipe keeps one clear liquid formula: do not automatically add wine, condensed milk or an equivalent measure of sweetener. Wine makes a different recipe, and cooking it does not guarantee an alcohol-free result.
Storage and serving
Keep perishable dishes covered at 0–5°C. Cool cooked food promptly in shallow containers and refrigerate within 2 hours. Eat within 48 hours, following any shorter ingredient storage instructions. Combining leftovers does not restart their storage time. Reheat only what you need, once, until piping hot throughout.
Serve small portions and replenish them from the fridge. Stir chilled sagu gently to redistribute the pearls. If it becomes too thick, loosen only the serving you need with a little drinking water; do not leave the dessert at room temperature for hours to soften.
