Name: High 5 Beluga Lentils with Vegetables
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 1 h 10 min
Ingredients: 2 cups green or black lentils; 1 cup mire poix (1/2 cup onion, ¼ cup each carrots and celery, small dice); 2 cups small diced vegetables of your choice, such as bell peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, yellow squash, etc.; 4 cups baby spinach leaves; Water, vegetable stock, or chicken stock (approx. 5-6 cups); Pure olive oil or oil of your choice (choose something with a high smoke point like sunflower oil, coconut oil, or pure olive oil, etc.); Original Unboring Salt or Power Lifter Salt or Tickled Pink Himalayan Salt Blend

High 5 Beluga Lentils with Vegetables

Recipe by Chef Laura RomitoCourse: Sides

Servings

servings

Prep time

minutes

Cooking time

minutes

Ingredients

2 cups green or black lentils
1 cup mire poix (1/2 cup onion, ¼ cup each carrots and celery, small dice)
2 cups small diced vegetables of your choice, such as bell peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, yellow squash, etc.
4 cups baby spinach leaves
Water, vegetable stock, or chicken stock (approx. 5-6 cups)
Pure olive oil or oil of your choice (choose something with a high smoke point like sunflower oil, coconut oil, or pure olive oil, etc.)
Original Unboring Salt or Power Lifter Salt or Tickled Pink Himalayan Salt Blend

Directions

METHOD
Wash lentils thoroughly. They often have little rocks or other natural debris mixed in so you’ll want to pick those out. Nobody likes to bite down on rocks. I like to soak lentils in warm water, swish the water around occasionally for about a minute, and then place them in a colander. Run more clean water over them until the water is clear (this usually takes about a minute)
Drain lentils thoroughly in a colander. Shake every few minutes until most of the water has drained out; plan about 5 minutes for this
place a heavy bottomed medium sauce pot on the stove over medium-high heat (the pan needs to have a tight-fitting lid and hold at least 1 -2 quarts of liquid)
let the pot heat up empty for 1 minute
add 3 T oil and let it heat up for 30 seconds
add the mire poix and saute until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes
add the remaining vegetables and season with a pinch of salt and pepper or High 5 Salt of your choice
add the lentils and a bit more salt and pepper or High 5; stir frequently, until the lentils are lightly brown and toasty, and begin to smell nutty. This should take about 3-4 minutes
add 1 T Original Unboring Salt or Power Lifter Salt (or use Tickled Pink Salt but only use 1 tsp) (you can also add ¼ t Fixer Upper… I would, but that’s just me 😉 ; stir to combine)
add water according to package directions and stir
bring to a boil and then lower heat to simmer; cover and cook for approx. 25 minutes (again, follow directions on the package; because you’ve already sautéed them they may take slightly less time to cook)
check after 20 minutes; if the lentils are chalky then add about a ¼ cup more water and cover again
taste again after 5 more minutes and adjust seasoning to taste (you can add more OUS or PL or TP or Fixer Upper)
if they are tender and there is extra water left in the pot, you can drain them in a colander
serve hot, or cool completely and freeze for up to 3 months

Notes

For all lentils, follow the recommendations on the bag/box regarding ratio of liquid to lentils (ie 1 cup of lentils to 2 cups of liquid; each brand is different).
For fun you can add 1 T fresh ginger and 1 t curry powder, or 1 T cumin and ½ cup salsa, or 10 shredded basil leaves and 1 cup of your favorite tomato sauce; add flavors in the last five minutes of cooking

High 5 Beluga Lentils with Vegetables