Lentils


The Recycled Cook

By Adrian Sleeman

Amazing Lentils

So what else can we make with that delicious home made stock? I used to think that lentils was a dish exclusively designed for vegetarians, uninteresting and boring until, thanks largely to Jamie Oliver, I discovered that they could be a sensational way to use up leftovers and be a great staple alternative to rice, pasta or even potatoes.



 Ingredients:
  • 2 Litres of chicken or vegetable stock (home made if available)

  • A packet of ready to cook green "Puy" lentils (otherwise you will have to soak them overnight)

  • 1 medium onion, 1 celery stalk, 1 carrot, 2 cloves of garlic finely chopped
  • 2 bay Leaves, salt and pepper for seasoning, mixed spices (see tips).
  • A small tub of Creme Fresh or single cream (optional)
  • Some chopped fresh herbs for topping
 Method:

Once again start off with Olive oil in a large saucepan or Wok, (I Like to use a wok for this dish it just feels right somehow) chop and fry some onions, celery and garlic ("Sofrito"). Heat these gently until softened then take off the heat.

There are several kinds of lentil available, Red, yellow and greed (Puy) but for this dish I prefer to use the green "Puy" Lentls. Rinse your Puy lentils thoroughly
then add to the "Sofrito". Add the stock and stir then simer for around 40 minutes. If you like stir in some Creme Fresh and top with a sprinkling of fresh herbs. Just like the spices, experiment with different combinations.


This of course is just the basic lentil dish, make it exciting by topping with sausages, chicken or duck leg "confit"

Next Time: Making "Confit"









Chef's tip: Change the flavour of your lentil dish by adding some pre-mixed spices such as "Ras Al Hanut" (Moroccan), "Garamasala" (Indian) or "Cajun".

Disclaimer: The suggestions and tips on these blog pages are meant to be used in conjunction with common sense. Keeping your family healthy is the priority. Do not use food that is unfit for human consumption and always follow sensible food hygiene guidelines. http://www.nhs.uk/Livewell/homehygiene/Pages/food-leftovers-safety.aspx

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Home Made Chutney

Image
The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Home Made Chutney Another great way of preserving food is by making chutney or relish. Although we think of chutney as being Asian or South east Asian in origin they in fact came from Northern Europe as long ago as 500bc. The Romans embraced the method and eventually so did the British empire who took them to tropical regions where they have since been adopted by those countries. The name "Chutney" that we use today is derived from the Hindi word "Chattni" which means "to lick", they were usually sweetened with honey rather than sugar and were added to dishes as a sweetening agent rather than used as a relish as we do now.  Chutneys can be made from almost any combination of vegetables, fruits, herbs and spices and are usually grouped as either a sweet or spiced chutney.  Natural preservatives are used to keep the chutney from going mouldy, such as vinegar,  l emon juice or tamarind paste.  You can blend t...
Read more

Pickling

Image
The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Pickling Over the next few blogs we are going to look at the various ways we have available to us of preserving food, that will not only make the most of your fruit and vegetables but will also add that extra ingredient to add to your meals and give them that added zing. Red Cabbage pickle One of the easiest and most satisfying methods for preserving and enhancing fresh fruit and vegetables is the traditional art of pickling which seems to have found a new following amongst today's young chefs. I have been pickling fruit and vegetables for quite some time, it is one of the most satisfying and simple things to do in the kitchen and is far cheaper than shop bought.  If you are lucky enough to grow your own fruit and vegetables all the better but it is just as easy to do with the kind of fresh produce I spoke about in my last blog. Remember the allotments, they are a great source of ingredients for this. Our ancestors picked a...
Read more

Spanish Croquettes

Image
The Recycled Cook By Adrian Sleeman Spanish Croquettes Anyone who has been to Spain will I am sure be familiar with these lovely potato and cheese savouries called Croquetas. Strictly speaking I suppose these are Welsh Croquettes but I am sure nobody will mind. In keeping with the theme of this blog this is another way of using up leftovers, in this case I have used leftover mashed potato, cheese and ham. To make these as vegetarian dish simply leave out the ham and possibly add some cooked onion or red pepper instead. Mix the cheese ham and mashed potato in a large bowl then add some smoked Paprika or Pimienton.  This comes in a Sweet "Dulce" variety or a spicy "Picante" version which is  my preference. You shouldn't need to add egg to bind these as the natural starch in the potato combined with the cheese should be sufficient. Roll them in the palms of your hand into a ball and then form them into the traditional cigar shapes. You c...
Read more