Pamela Toman

Tag: lentils

Turkish-style Carrots and Lentils

Easy peasy. I prefer French green lentils, but regular green (aka brown) lentils work fine too, and they're much easier to find. Black lentils are also reasonable to use.

Serve on its own, or possibly with a heavy grain like farro or barley. I served the first attempt with a green salad and focaccia (with Michael).

Ingredients Step
1 c. lentils (green/brown/black)
3 c. water		 Bring to boil, then reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 15 minutes. When done (they may still be slightly undercooked), strain into a colander set over a bowl -- we want to retain the cooking liquid.
oil
1 onion, sliced thin into half moons		 Heat oil in large skillet. Cook until onion is tender.
½ c. mint Chop.
1 t. ground coriander Stir into onions.
4 cloves garlic, minced
1½ lb. carrots, sliced thin (about 4 cups)
salt to taste		 Cook, stirring for 2-3 minutes, until carrots begin to soften.
⅓ c. passata
⅔ c. water
1 t. sugar
parcooked lentils
enough water to cover the lentils (ideally the lentil cooking water)
salt to taste
half the mint		 Stir in. Bring to a simmer. Simmer uncovered 15-20 minutes, until lentils are tender and most of the liquid has evaporated. Taste and adjust salt, then remove from heat.
half the mint Sprinkle on top. Serve.

Source: Martha Rose Shulman (NYT Cooking)

Turkish-style Carrots and Lentils was published on 14 November 2024.

Recipe uses: lentils, onion, carrots, passata, mint

Lentil Pierogi

It's a good amount of work to fold dumplings. But then again... dumplings.

It is worth the extra step to fry them.

Start with the filling so it has a chance to cool completely:

Ingredients Step
¾ c. brown lentils
2 bay leaves		 Boil in a large pot for 30-40 minutes. Season at the end. Drain the lentils and discard the bay leaves.
2 T. butter
1 onion, diced		 Cook in skillet until soft.
3 garlic cloves, sliced
¾ t. coriander, ground
½ t. cumin, ground		 Add. Cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
½ c. sundried tomato, rinsed if needed and chopped finely
1 T. soy sauce		 Add. Stir to combine. Remove from heat, then add lentils. Season with salt and pepper. Cool completely, then use as filling in dumplings.
Boil in well-salted water containing a splash of oil. Once the filled pierogi float, set a timer for 1-2 minutes more and then remove them to drain.
1 T. butter Heat butter in skillet. Fry pierogi.
parmesan Serve with parmesan.

You'll also need a dough:

Ingredients Step
450 g. AP flour
1 t. salt
¼ c. / 60 ml EVOO
1 c. warm water		 Combine the dry ingredients, combine the wet ingredients, and then mix both together. Knead 4-5 minutes, until smooth and supple. Invert a bowl on top of the dough and let rest 15 minutes.
Divide the dough into 3 pieces. Roll each to ~⅛" thick. Cut out 2.5" circles, then roll each circle even thinner. (Don't stack them; they'll stick together.)
Fill pierogi into each dough circle by tablespoonfuls. Press edges to seal. (Using water shouldn't be necessary — the dough should want to stick to itself.)
2 floured towels Transfer each filled pierogi to a floured towel covered with another floured towel. Then boil in salted water with a bit of oil until they float, plus 1-2 minutes more.

Source: Michal Korkosz in Fresh from Poland

Lentil Pierogi was published on 23 December 2023.

Recipe uses: lentils, sundried-tomato