The last time we talked, I mentioned that I was tossing pickles and crackers into a bowl of lentils and calling it comfort food. More than one person has asked for a recipe, so let’s talk lentils! (I was trying to come up with a word that rhymed with lentil for the title of today’s post, and the first thing that came to mind was Yentl. Now that I’m sitting here with a dog on my lap, I’m realizing we have dental, gentle, mental, rental, and fentanyl, which doesn’t really rhyme at all, but what good am I if I’m not current on the opioid epidemic in America?)
Recipe for Comfort Lentils:
- Make a cup or so of brown lentils. (I normally dump a little more than a cup of dry lentils into my Instant Pot and then cover them with about two cups of vegetable broth. Cook for 16 minutes, and then let the pot sit (unreleased) for about 10 more minutes. Release the pressure. You now have perfect lentils.)
- Cut up a few pickles. (I go with Claussen whole dills because they’re firm, and floppy pickles are bullshit.) Throw those cut up pickles into your lentils.
- Grab some crackers. I use saltines, but I can see where Ritz might be better because Ritz are always better. Crush them in your right hand and let the crumbs fall into the lentils. You are a superhero.
- Stir and eat. Try not to think about the government. See if you can remember all of the lyrics to Miss Saigon. (You can’t, but it’s fun to try.)
If you have a little more time to prepare something even better, then make the lentils my brother-in-law makes every week. He made them at Christmas and I couldn’t get enough, so now *I* make them every week. It’s like that hair commercial where you tell a friend and they tell a friend and so on, and eventually everyone in the world has great hair. Ah, but instead of great hair, we all have great lentils.
Okay.
Recipe for Bob’s Lentils:
- In a small bowl, mix 2T of Dijon mustard, 2T of olive oil, 2T of apple cider vinegar, 1T of maple syrup, and 1t of salt. (T = Tablespoon. t = teaspoon.) Whip and whip and whip until it’s all mixed together. Go ahead and add pepper and garlic if you want. I never do.
- Cook up about a cup and a half of green lentils. (They’re a bit firmer than brown.) See my Instant Pot instructions above if you need a reminder.
- While the lentils are cooking, cut up about 1/4 cup (or more. I do more.) of carrots, pickles, celery, and cauliflower. I always forget the cauliflower.
- When the lentils are done, throw them into a big bowl with the vegetables. THEN, dump the dressing on top and mix it up. Dear Lord. Maybe put it over rice if you want. I don’t. I’m also thinking cutting up an apple and throwing it in might be fun. If you do that, let me know how it goes.
Here is a photo of today’s cut up vegetables. Once again, I forgot the cauliflower.
Here is a photo of the completed lentil salad. The salad is so much better than this photo makes it out to be. Trust me.
Try not to think about the government.
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If I maintain (correctly in my view) that pickles are merely cucumbers soaked in evil and leave them out of any lentil dish I may prepare, will the lentils still taste good?
That looks SO good! I’ll be trying it.
This looks delicious! Thanks for sharing.
I have never had a lentil, what do they taste like? Are they are weird texture?
Yentl is a favorite of mine!
OK, after I posted Yentl was a favorite of mine, I started to sing the song, “Papa can you hear me….” I want to watch again now :)
Yeah…so… I like lentils. I like dill pickles. I’m just not sure about combining those two. Surprising truth about me, a person who loves musicals and all of that stuff, is that I have never seen Yentl as a whole. Only bits and pieces.
I should fix this.
I thought your lentils/pickles/saltines thing sounded very weird. However, Bob’s salad sounds delicious and I will be making it this weekend for work lunches next week.
I love my Instant Pot so much.
I’m excited to try your recipes. Have you tried French (du Puy) lentils? They’re great, especially in this recipe which I have made 6 times since November: https://www.mynewroots.org/site/2010/06/the-best-lentil-salad-ever-2/. I laugh whenever I see the word “Yentl”. My husband once stumped me on a “strip” variation of the game of Hangman (there was a movie title theme) with what he recalled was the name of Barbra Streisand’s film. Somehow he had thought the name was “Yeti” and I unjustly lost a layer of clothing.
Lentils are my go-to winter comfort food. Never plain, always in Indian food or soup. But Bob’s lentils sound fabulous. Must pick up lentils tomorrow…
In 1983 I took my daughter to see Yentl. She was about the age of your Meredith at the time. Maybe younger. My father-in-law lamented that I was going to turn her into a (expletive deleted) “wimmins libber”. For seeing a movie about a girl who wanted an education. Too bad grandpa isn’t around to admire our shirts commemorating our participating in the Women’s March.
Also, lentils are so good. I mix mine with carmelized onions and brown rice for a fabulous and easy middle-eastern dish. Never tried pickles with ’em, but I will now.
Those recipes involving pickles…my wife squealed with glee. She’s currently pregnant. Did I mention I’ve also started taking anti-anxiety medication?
Oh dear. Angie, I am so on board with *everything* you suggest. And I love lentils. And pickles. And saltines (and ritz!). But your combination… I don’t know. Am going to have to sit with this one for a bit. Hmmmm. You’ve thrown me for a loop. xo