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Lentils Side Dish
Lentils are our favorite vegetarian protein. They are an excellent food for many reasons, especially nutrition, cost and versatility. On our vegetarian days, we often have a main vegetable such as asparagus, cauliflower or artichokes with these lentils as a side dish.
Lentils technically do not need to be soaked before cooking, but I find with that the puy lentils turn out nicely if soaked briefly. You can skip this step. You can easily substitute brown lentils or yellow/red lentils. Both require less cooking time so adjust as desired.
What you need
- 1 cup french green (puy) lentils
- 1 small to medium onion, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 pinch saffron
- 2 dry bay leaves or 1 fresh
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- Olive oil
How to make it
- Rinse and soak lentils for 30 minutes up to 2 hours
- Heat olive oil in a medium pan until shimmering
- Add chopped onion with bay leaves and cook on medium heat until just beginning to color
- Add garlic and cook not more than 30 seconds
- Add lentils, water, saffron and salt
- Bring all to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook covered about 45 minutes
- When lentils are tender, remove cover and continue cooking to evaporate any excess liquid
- Serve as a side dish to accompany vegetables
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