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Thursday, May 2, 2013

Warm lentil and onion salad

My stepmother S makes a simple lentil salad that I love. I think it is Indian-influenced (she is half Indian). It is Puy lentils, with crispy fried onions and dollops of thick yoghurt on top.

This recipe reminded me of S's lentil salad. I didn't feel like making exactly either of those, but something closely related, simple, but with enough complication to be exciting.

To cook the lentils:
1 cup green or brown lentils
1 large clove garlic, peeled and sliced into three
2 bay leaves
1 tbsp olive oil
water

To toast in a dry pan:
2 tsp coriander seed
1 tsp cumin seed
2-3 tbsp sesame or sunflower seeds

For the onions:
1-2 tbsp olive oil
2 small onions, peeled and finely sliced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped

For the dressing:
juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 tbsp tahini
1-2 tbsp olive oil
1-2 tbsp water
2-3 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1-2 tsp salt

Also:
zest of 1/2 a lemon
2-3 tbsp mint leaves, chopped
1 cup cooked, defrosted chickpeas
fresh tomatoes, chopped

First, put the lentils on: put lentils, garlic, bay leaves and olive oil in a small pan with enough water to cover the lentils by about 1cm. Cover the pan and simmer until lentils are done (20-30 min / will vary depending what kind of lentils).

As soon as the lentils are on start the other preparations. Dry fry the cumin and coriander until fragrant, then tip them out into a bowl and set aside. Do the same with the sesame/sunflower seeds, transferring them to a different bowl. Then heat the olive oil in the same frying pan, add the onions and garlic, cover and cook gently until the onions first soften then start to go sweet, brown and crispy/melty.

To make the dressing, grind the toasted coriander and cumin and tip it into a serving bowl. Add the olive oil, lemon juice, tahini, salt, balsamic vinegar and water and mix to a good consistency. When the lentils and onions are done, add them to the serving bowl along with the chickpeas and lemon zest, and mix everything together thoroughly. Finally, add the mint and seeds, toss, and serve with fresh tomato and more balsamic to taste, on brown rice.


It is an ugly brown mess, but it is delicious. Good balance of fresh (lemon, mint) with deep and earthy (lentils, tahini), sweet (balsamic, onions), and toasty spices (coriander+cumin). Nice textures too - the crunch of seeds alongside the robust squish of cooked pulses. Best warm, fine cold the next day.
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