Lentil Primer

Curried Red Lentil and Tomato Soup

Although many of us take beans for granted—barely giving them a thought when planning our grand and even our everyday menus, could we really do without the manifold members of the legume family? String beans, sugar snap peas, snow peas and yard-long beans—eaten pods and all; fresh shelled green peas, fava beans and lima beans; and a plethora of dried beans—kidney beans, navy beans, cranberry beans, Great Northerns, pink beans, garbanzos, black beans, pinto beans, green and yellow split peas, and yes—the tiny, toothsome lentil.

In the dried bean category, it is perhaps the destiny of the delicate, earthy lentil—a bean among beans—to raise legume consciousness to new levels in America. Along with the gorgeous and tasty black bean of South America, lentils, originally from Southwestern Asia, are on the rise. They appear in innovative cookbooks and restaurants up and down the West Coast with recurring frequency. One of the reasons for their increased popularity, I believe, is ease of preparation. Most dried beans need to be presoaked; lentils don’t. Lentils go from the package to the table in a little as 20 minutes, depending on the variety used. That puts them right in the rice and pasta category for ease and speed.

A Hindu proverb says, “Rice is good, but lentils are my life.”Lentils are, in fact, nutritional dynamite; 112 grams of protein per pound as compared to 59 grams per pound for T-bone steak. Now, the usability of bean protein has been in question in many minds since the 1971 debut of Frances Moore Lappe’s, Diet For A Small Planet, in which she espouses a very complicated formula for combining the various proteins contained within the plant kingdom to achieve “protein complementarity”—all eight “essential” amino acids in one meal. (Actually there are 23 essential amino acids, but the human body produces 15 of them on its own.) The theory states that in order to get “complete” protein in a vegetarian diet, one is supposed to eat beans at the same time as either cereals or grains, nuts or seeds, rice, or dairy products—in certain important proportions. This may be technically correct, but unfortunately it has caused enormous concern in people’s minds—all this worry about whether we’re getting enough protein.Actually, protein deficiency is extremely rare in this country and over consumption of protein is rather the problem. Information from scientists of late claims that the body has a reservoir of available amino acids held within the bloodstream; these can be pulled to produce complementarity at any time. Eaten with or without their complements, as part of a varied diet, adequate protein levels are easily maintained.

On a national scale, Washington State ranks first in the production of lentils and dry edible peas; Idaho ranks second. Together, they produce the Chilean green lentil (which are actually brown), the smaller Red Chief lentil, which is bright orange in the dried state and vivid gold when cooked, Brewers, Pardinas, French Greens, Estons, Lairds, Emeralds, and Richleas They also produce enormous quantities of green split peas and a lesser quantity of yellow split peas. All of this production takes place along a 50-mile-wide strip that runs 200 miles north to south from Spokane on the Washington side of the Washington-Idaho border to Grangeville on the Idaho side. This area is known as the Palouse region. The dry climate makes it possible to dry the crops in the field before harvesting; all natural; no chemicals or drying houses. Oregon and North Dakota also produce lentils.

Season

Seeded in April and harvested in August, lentils are dried—making them a year-round staple.

Selection

Green lentils are available in every supermarket.Red lentils are more likely to be found in a health food store or specialty food market.Ask for local Red Chief lentils; imported Persian red lentils are not as tender as Red Chiefs and take twice as long to cook.Red chiefs are sold whole and are quite a bit larger than Persian red lentils, which are usually sold split.Lentils should appear dry and free of extraneous debris.

Storage

Store dried lentils in an airtight container in a cool, dry location.

Preparation

Lentils do not need presoaking. Just rinse, check for foreign debris, and cook.

Cooking

The mild, earthy, almost nutty taste of lentils complements many other foods. Use in conjunction with onions, tomatoes, cream, yogurt, cheese, Italian or Polish sausage, fresh pumpkin, toasted walnuts, garlic, pasta, rice, oregano, basil, bay leaf, cumin, cinnamon, chili powder and chili peppers to name only a few.

Green lentils are more assertive in taste than red lentils and hold their shape nicely when cooked. Red lentils tend to disintegrate at the surface by the time they are fully tender at the center. Thus, you need to time the cooking with some exactness or use as a puree.

Acidic ingredients, such as tomatoes or lemon juice, should be added only after lentils are cooked to the desired tenderness. A squeeze of fresh lemon juice near the end of cooking brightens the earthy flavor associated with some lentil varieties.

Lentils, peas, and chickpeas should be cooked al dente, tender but not mushy.

Don’t cook lentils in aluminum or cast iron pans. These metals inhibit cooking and affect the color of the lentils.

To cook 1 pound of green lentils, combine with 5 cups of water in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer. Cover and cook for 30 minutes. If you want a puree, cook for 45 minutes. Season and use as desired.

To cook 1 pound of red lentils, cut the water to 4 cups and cook for 10 minutes if you want to retain some shape; 20 minutes if you want a puree.

Don’t salt the water when you cook lentils; it toughens the outer coating.

Great Partners

Bacon, bay leaf, bell peppers, butter, cardamom, carrots, celery, chile peppers, cilantro, cinnamon, cream, cumin, curry, garlic, ginger, goat cheese, ham, honey, leeks, lemon, lime, olive oil, onions, orange, parsley, peanuts, prosciutto, pumpkin, sausage, smoke, sweet potatoes, thyme, tomatoes, vinegar, walnuts, red wine.

Additional Pairings

Food Pairing

Khymos

Culinary Artistry

The Flavor Bible

LunaCafe Recipes

Curried Tomato & Red Lentil Soup

Honey-Glazed Sausages with Orange Cilantro Butter (PNP)

Lentil Soup with Ancho Chili Peppers & Cilantro (PNP)

NOTEPNP = Pacific Northwest Palate: Four Seasons of Great Cookingby Susan S. Bradley

Additional Recipes

·French Lentil & Sausage Soup with Swiss Chard (Blue Eggs and Yellow Tomatoes by Jeanne Kelley)