How to cook with lentils?

[Cold Fission]

I need ways to get them in my diet.

 

I tried eating them after soaking them but it tasted pretty bad.

 

Does anyone know how to make lentil burgers?

 

I saw a picture on the wiki page for vegan and it looked awesome.

[chrisjs]

You have to cook them!

 

I've used them successfully in place of ground meat in recipes such as sloppy joes and tacos.

 

For burgers, I make this recipe though I replace the bread crumbs with additional oats: http://www.food.com/recipe/lentil-burgers-61322

 

Of course there's TONS of Indian dal recipes out there.

[vege]

THey are delicious raw, but you have to sprout them after soaking.

I personally cook them always. You can also cook after sprouting.

 

My favorite is: you put 1 cup lentils (brown) in water, cook them with some salt and little turmeric (1/2 teaspoon per cup of dry lentils, for better digestion), then drain the water. Then mash them a little with hands. Then put some garlic in some hot olive oil and fry for 20 seconds. Add cooked lentils. Fry 20 seconds or so. Add 1/4 cup of red wine (or white, not important / you can also skip the wine). Cook until wine evaporates. Then add one can of chopped tomatoes. Add dry basil. Add salt. Cook 5 minutes. And there you have your perfect vegan bolognese for whole wheat or kamut spaghetti:))))

1 cup lentils = 50 g protein

150 g whole wheat spaghetti = 22.5 g protein

Its' 72.5 g protein meal

[vege]

You have to cook them!

 

I've used them successfully in place of ground meat in recipes such as sloppy joes and tacos.

 

For burgers, I make this recipe though I replace the bread crumbs with additional oats: http://www.food.com/recipe/lentil-burgers-61322

 

Of course there's TONS of Indian dal recipes out there.

this is nice! So you freeze them and then you put them in hot oven while they're still frozen, right?

[Northstar]

I like to make brown rice lentil salad.

 

This is how I do it. Get your brown rice started first thing as it needs an hour to cook. Chop an onion and sautee in another pot to slightly golden and then add desired amount of lentils and water, a little turmeric is a good idea too like vege mentioned. I don´t cook with salt though and it is still fine, whatever you prefer. The lentils need about 25-30 minutes. In the mean time get all your veggies chopped and dressing made that you want in the salad. I like tomatoes, cucumber, carrots, maybe some mushrooms and green onions. For dressing I do about half cup of olive oil and quarter cup of balsamic glaze with a bit of mustard, and mixed seasoning but you can do whatever you like, get creative. Let your brown rice and lentils cool then mix everything all up together and enjoy. It will keep for days, I just finished one I made four days ago.

Edited August 1, 2010 by Northstar

[Ducati]

I need ways to get them in my diet.

 

I tried eating them after soaking them but it tasted pretty bad.

 

Does anyone know how to make lentil burgers?

 

I saw a picture on the wiki page for vegan and it looked awesome.

 

Try the red or yellow lentils. They taste the best. Also, look up Ethiopian recipes. They have some of the most fantastic foods based around lentils I have ever had.

[chrisjs]

this is nice! So you freeze them and then you put them in hot oven while they're still frozen, right?

Yeah. They come out a bit better pan fried but I do put them in frozen.

[vege]

Thanks Chris! I'll try that soon on grill pan!

[Cold Fission]

I HAVE TO TRY ALL THESE IM SO HUNGRY LOL!

 

This is the picture of the burger patties im talking about.

 

http://i25.tinypic.com/125non6.jpg

[DerStupid]

Is it bad to cook them too long? I like to take a lot of them and cook them way longer than specified so they become sort of a soup, and add things like potatoes and vegetables. Yummy.

I'm afraid what happens to the protein when cooking though.

[Cold Fission]

Is it bad to cook them too long? I like to take a lot of them and cook them way longer than specified so they become sort of a soup, and add things like potatoes and vegetables. Yummy.

I'm afraid what happens to the protein when cooking though.

 

I have no clue lol

 

I don't think i cook them right either.

[lobsteriffic]

Is it bad to cook them too long? I like to take a lot of them and cook them way longer than specified so they become sort of a soup, and add things like potatoes and vegetables. Yummy.

I'm afraid what happens to the protein when cooking though.

 

I don't know what happens to the protein, but I often cook (red) lentils until they are quite soft and soup-ish...like in dahls and stuff like that.

 

I love this recipe:

 

http://vegweb.com/index.php?topic=4917.0

 

I usually leave out the oil. You can adjust the spices/seasonings to your tastes.

[vegimator]

Cooking denatures protein, making it more easy to absorb. There's probably a point at which it starts breaking it down too much but I wouldn't worry too much about it with mushy lentils.

[LisaB]

I love this recipe. I crave it all the time.

 

Curried Lentil Soup

 

2 tablespoons coconut oil

1 large onion, chopped

2 large carrots, chopped

2 ribs celery, thinly sliced

4 cloves garlic, minced

3 teaspoon ground sweet paprika

3 teaspoon curry powder

2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 bag (16 ounces) lentils, picked over and rinsed

8 cups vegetable broth

2 cups water

1 pound fresh or frozen spinach

 

-Heat the oil and saute the onion, carrots, celery, and garlic.

-Stir in the paprika, curry powder, turmeric, salt, and pepper.

-Add the lentils, broth, and water and bring to a boil.

-Reduce the heat to a simmer and cover, stirring occasionally about 30 minutes until the lentils are done. Add the spinach until done.

[pkjane]

Dal baby..Dal tarka is amazing and can be made vegan.

 

also after boiling, strain and let cool

 

add 1 tbsp of olive oil

2 tbsp of red wine vinegar

1 clove of garlic

1 tbsp of chili powder

1 tbsp of cumin

fresh chopped cilantro

your cooked cooled lentils (roughly two cups)

toss in the bowl

6 servings of awesome NOMS!

 

I use this for soy beans tooo...mmmmmmmmm