If you happen to have them on hand, you’re in luck. A bag of lentils in the pantry can provide several satisfying meals.
Last week, I made a lentil salad that has served as supper, a side dish for lunches and more suppers, and ended up as a simple soup in the end, when I whizzed a little chicken broth in the last bit of the salad and heated it up.
You’ll find the garlicky, mustardy salad recipe below, together with optional additions to render it more interesting. The salad is quick, nutritious and economical.
If you ate lentils as a child — perhaps under protest — you might have disagreeable memories of what seemed like brown mush. But today, as an adult, you can, and should, change that opinion.
Let’s look at lentils, which have nourished humans for thousands of years. Believed to have been grown in the Middle East’s fertile crescent for more than six thousand years, lentils were also grown in Egypt and elsewhere precisely for their nutritional, nourishing value.
High in protein and fiber, yet low in fat, lentils are also powerhouse sources of folate, iron, phosphorus and potassium. Some sources say they’re second only to soybeans as a source of vegetable protein, although it’s my belief that our native tiny tepary beans may surpass them.
Red lentils are best for dishes where their tendency to “mush out” is desirable. Use red lentils for thick, satisfying soups and stews or in highly seasoned Indian dals, where cumin, coriander and other spices enliven their earthy flavor. Yellow lentils share red lentils’ traits in both cooking and eating.
Brown lentils are the blue jeans of the lentil world – commonplace and familiar. They’re easy to overcook, which would explain that brown mush you may remember. But they don’t have to be mushy.
Properly cooked, brown lentils are a lovely addition to soups and vegetable stews, contributing their nutrition as well as imparting sturdy qualities to what could otherwise be a pallid, thin dish.
Green lentils – such as the French Le Puy and Spanish pardina – tend to keep their shape when cooked and are what I chose for today’s salad.
I found a lot of misinformation about cooking lentils online when I did a little research for this column. I’d like to correct some of this misinformation.
First, lentils don’t need to be soaked. Sort through them to be sure there’s no inedible debris — stones, pieces of dirt, hulls — and rinse them well by placing them in a sieve and moving them through cold running water with your fingers. Like many other legumes, lentils have varying degrees of saponins — a compound that tastes soapy — in their skins and it’s important to rinse it away. It’s the saponins that make legumes foamy.
Second, because lentils cook quickly, there’s no benefit to cooking them in your electric pressure cooker. Just put them in a saucepan on the stove, cover with water, add aromatics such as garlic and bay leaf if you like, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a lively simmer and cover the pot; your lentils will be done to al dente tenderness in 20 to 40 minutes. Drain and rinse, remove the exhausted aromatics, and the lentils are ready for use.
If it’s important to you that the lentils should retain their shape, add a little salt or a dash of vinegar to the cooking water. If you’d prefer that the lentils be soft, save those seasonings for the finished dish.
Third, because lentils are so high in fiber, they can give your tummy trouble if you’re not using to eating a lot of fiber in one huge whack.
Best, in this case, to treat lentil salad as a side dish rather than a main dish.
Lentil salad with garlic and mustard
Makes about 6 servings
Cooked lentils will soak up a lot of dressing as they stand, so be generous with it. The mustard in the dressing not only contributes its flavor, it also helps emulsify the dressing so it doesn’t separate. Serve this salad warm or cold, as a main dish or a side dish. Refrigerate any remaining salad for another day, or whiz it with some vegetable or chicken broth to make a soup.
Ingredients
1 cup green lentils, such as le Puy or pardina
1 ¾ cup water
4 cloves garlic, divided use
1 bay leaf
½ teaspoon salt, divided use
2 green onions, thinly sliced, green and white parts
Finely chopped parsley, if you have it
Optional add-ins: chopped dried tomatoes; cheeses such as feta or jack; olives such as kalamata or green olives; cubed firm tofu; chopped sweet bell pepper; chopped red onion; fresh herbs such as basil or mint; chopped hard-cooked egg; cooked proteins such as chicken, beef or pork
½ cup olive oil
¼ cup sherry vinegar, cider vinegar, balsamic vinegar or wine vinegar; fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard
Black pepper, to taste
Preparation
Pick over and rinse the lentils well. Place them in a saucepan with the water, 2 cloves of garlic, the bay leaf and ¼ teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 25 minutes, or until lentils are tender (almost al dente, like pasta) but not mushy. If your lentils have lingered on your pantry shelf for a long time, they may need to cook a little longer.
While the lentils cook, place the green onions, the remaining 2 cloves of garlic finely minced, parsley and any additional add-ins in the bottom of a medium bowl.
Whisk together the olive oil, vinegar or lemon juice, mustard and remaining salt and pepper until the mixture is smooth. Set aside.
When the lentils are tender, drain and rinse them well. Remove exhausted aromatics. Add the lentils to the bowl and pour half the dressing over them. Using a spatula, fold the salad to incorporate the additional ingredients evenly. Let the salad stand for 15 minutes and re-dress if desired.
