The Best Lentil Salad, Ever

I’ve been running around like a chicken with my head cut off. Too much to do right now, but thankfully it’s slowing down. If you see me volunteering for anything, just don’t let me do it. I’ve always had a ton of friends visiting, which is awesome. Friends have come from Livelong, Saskatchewan, Houston, Sudbury and Vancouver.

This recipe was brought to my attention by my friend Maggie. I’ve known Maggie for about 14 years, but I’ve never actually met her in person. In about 2000, I started getting into a crafty chatboard (reminder those things?) called Glitter. Glitter is now dead and I haven’t crafted in years, but I stay in touch with many of the women that I met on that site. I’ve livejournaled, Facebooked, tweeted and Instagrammed with them, and sent them emails and cards. I’ve met a few of them in person, and when you meet, it feels almost surreal, because you know so much about each others’ lives. I’ve learned so much from so many of the Glitterati I’ve met online and I’m so grateful that they are in my life.

Now onto the recipe.

This salad is from http://www.mynewroots.com
I’m not entirely sure how I feel about “My New Roots” because there are some pseudo-sciencey things in it, but she has some great recipes too. I have a library hold on her cookbook and I’m looking forward to checking it out.

For this salad, you need Du Puy lentils, which are a special kind of chewy lentil known as the poor man’s caviar. They’re also known as French lentils. You can buy them at the Italian Centre. I ended up buying a few packages at the Caribbean grocery store near my dance studio, so you might want to try those kind of places too. If you use another kind of lentils in this recipe, they will just fall apart. This salad has a long list of ingredients, but most of them are spices.

Ingredients

2 ¼ cups Du Puy lentils
1 medium red onion, diced
1 cup dried currants (you can use raisins or other dried fruit)
1/3 cup capers (I got mine at the Italian Centre)

Dressing:
1/3 cup olive oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
1 TBSP maple syrup
1 TBSP strong mustard (I used Dijon)
2 tsp salt
2 tsp pepper
1 tsp ground cumin
½ teaspoon turmeric
½ tsp ground coriander
½ ground cardamom
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
¼ tsp ground cloves
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cinnamon

Optional add ins:
Greens, arugula, walnuts, dried chickpeas, seeds, goat cheese, feta cheese, fresh herbs like parsley, cilantro or basil, sprouts, crisp veggies

Directions:

1. Rinse lentils well, drain. Place in a pot and cover with 3-4 inches of water, bring to a boil, reduce simmer. Check lentils for doneness after 15 minutes, but they should take about 20 minutes in total. They should be al- dente. Overcooking them will kill the dish.
2. While lentils are simmering, make the dressing. My New Roots suggests making it in a jar with a lid and shaking to combine, but I just made it in a bowl.
3. Finely dice red onion- this salad is best if all ingredients are the same size. If using raisins or dried fruit, chop them to make them smaller and do the same with the capers if they are large.
4. When lentils are cooked, remove from heat, drain and place under cold running water to stop them from cooking. Once cooled slightly, but still warm, place in a serving bowl and toss with dressing. Add onion, capers and currants. Add add-ins just before serving. This salad can stay in the fridge for a few days.

These lentils are very flavourful and delicious. I ate them with arugula, feta and pumpkin seeds. Later on, I added blackberries, lettuce, and dried, roasted chickpeas. This was a great salad, but IT MAKES A TON. I actually ended up freezing it for a few days and then thawing it and eating it again. I didn’t even manage to eat it all. So I’d say it’s great for a family or a group of people, but maybe not the best for one person. You could also break it into smaller portions and freeze it and then thaw as needed. That’s probably what I would do next time.