1. Pick through the lentils. Remove discolored, shriveled lentils and any foreign material. Rinse well.
2. Place the beans in a bowl with 8 cups water and soak for 4 hours at room temperature or overnight. For a quick soak boil for 10 minutes and let stand for 2 hours.
3. Drain beans and place in a 4 quart pot with 8 cups water.
4. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 45 minutes.
5. Remove from heat, drain and set aside until ready to use.

1. In an 8-quart pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add crumbled sausage and brown in oil.
2. Add contents of gumbo mix seasoning packet and stir for 1 minute. 
3. Add drained, cooked beans and chicken broth to pot.
4. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer covered for 45 minutes. 
5. Stir in rice packet and chicken. Simmer, cover and cook for 50 minutes.
6. Add spinach or other greens. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. 
Serve, if soup is too think, add 1-3 cups broth or water to thin. 

This soup will thicken considerably if made ahead. Add broth to thin out soup consistency.

To boost vegetables, add 2 cups fresh or frozen chopped okra or fresh or frozen wax beans, with rice packet in the mix.

To go Vegetarian, omit meat, and substitute 1 chopped bell pepper, 1 medium chopped onion, 1 small chopped zucchini for sausage. Sauté vegetables in oil with seasoning packet.

To cut saturated fat and sodium, halve the amount of sausage and prepare with low-fat, lower sodium chicken sausage as substitute for sausage or ham, or substitute 1 pound extra lean ground turkey or pork plus either 1/2 - 1 teaspoon chipotle chile pepper spice or 1/2 teaspoon chili powder, or go Vegetarian. Prepare with chicken without skin rather than duck. For the Inventive Variations suggestion on the package and website, substitute vegetable oil for the butter.

To cut sodium, prepare with low sodium broth. To cut sodium further, substitute water for half of the broth.

You will use chopped peppers, onion, zucchini, and vegetable broth to replace the meat in this delicious variation.
What you need:

1 Tablespoon Oil
1 Bell Pepper, Chopped
1 Medium Onion, Chopped
1 Small Zucchini, Chopped
10 Cups Vegetable Broth
10 Ounces Fresh or Frozen Chopped Spinach or Other
Greens (Okrais traditional, but Spinach, Swiss Chard or
Turnip Greens are good substitutions)
Optional addition of cut up butternut squash

Preparing the beans:
1. Rinse, drain and pick over.
2. Place in a bowl with 8 cups water and soak for 4 hours at room temperature or overnight. For a quick soak boil for 10 minutes and let stand for 2 hours.
3. Drain beans and place in a 4 quart pot with 8 cups water.
4. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer, covered, for 1 hour or more.

Preparing the soup:
1. Sauté bell pepper and onions in oil over medium heat in an 8-quart pot.
2. Add contents of Louisiana Style Red Bean Gumbo Mix seasoning packet and stir about 1 minute.
3. Drain beans and add to pot with broth.
4. Bring to a boil and simmer covered for 45 minutes.
5. Add contents of rice packet, greens, zucchini, and chicken.
6. Simmer for 1 hour covered.
7. May add broth to thin soup, if needed.

Recommended slow cooker: 4-6 quart

Prepare the beans the night before:
1. Rinse, drain and pick over beans.
2. Place in a bowl with 8 cups water and soak at room temperature overnight.

Preparing the soup in the morning (or the night before):
1. Crumble and brown sausage in oil over medium heat in large skillet.
2. Add contents of seasoning packet, stir 1 minute, and transfer to bowl of slow cooker. (May cover and refrigerate overnight.)

Cooking:
1. Rinse, drain and pick over beans. Place into slow cooker with sausage mixture and add chicken broth.
2. Cover and cook on HI 6-8 hours.
3. Add rice, greens and chicken and cook 1 hour on HI.