I make a lot of stuff out of Madhur Jaffrey's World of the East, which is a vegetarian cookbook covering everywhere from Lebanon to the Philippines. If you have nonstick pans you can reduce the amount of oil a lot from her recommendations, but overall she's pretty reliable.
Most of my lentil recipes are from Fields of Greens, though. This cookbook was a present from my mother, and it's really aimed at a cook like her: someone who's experienced, has her own vegetable garden, cooks seasonally and (since all the vegetables are free from the garden) can afford to splurge on things like fancy cheese. The recipes are uniformly good, but can be over-elaborate, and you can cut the amount of butter in any of the baked-goods recipes in half without doing any harm (in some cases that's actually an improvement!)
The lentil recipes are all pretty simple, though.
Moroccan Lentil Soup
1 cup lentils, about 6 ounces 6 cups cold water 1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil 1 medium-sized yellow onion, diced, about 2 cups Salt Cayenne pepper 1 small carrot, diced, about 1/2 cup 1 celery rib, diced, about 1/2 cup 1 small red or yellow bell pepper, diced, about 1/2 cup 1 tsp. cumin seed, toasted & ground 1/2 tsp. ground coriander 1/8 tsp. turmeric 4 garlic cloves, finely chopped 1 tbsp. grated fresh ginger 1/2 pound fresh tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped, about 1 cup, or 1 8-ounce can tomatoes with juice, chopped 2 tbsp. chopped cilantro
Sort & rinse the lentils & place them in a soup pot with the cold water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until tender, about 20 minutes.
While the lentils are cooking, heat the olive oil in a medium-size saute pan and add the onion, 1/2 tsp. salt, and a few pinches of cayenne. Cook over medium heat until the onions are soft, 7 to 8 minutes, then add the vegetables, another 1/2 tsp. salt, and the spices. Cook for 5 minutes, then stir in the garlic & ginger & cook for another minute or 2. Add the vegetables & tomatoes to the lentils & their broth. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, allowing the flavors to blend and deepen. Season to taste with salt and cayenne. Garnish each serving with a sprinkle of cilantro.
Notes:
I usually get bored and cook the onions over higher heat for less time.
There are a couple of other lentil soup recipes in Fields of Greens, but this one is my favorite. It's still yummy if you omit the celery and/ or bell pepper; if you do this and use canned tomatoes, then the recipe only uses things that keep indefinitely (like lentils and cumin) and vegetables that store for a long time (especially if you freeze your ginger), so it's great for the end of the week when you're running out of fresh stuff to cook with.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2004-09-01 01:11 pm (UTC)Most of my lentil recipes are from Fields of Greens, though. This cookbook was a present from my mother, and it's really aimed at a cook like her: someone who's experienced, has her own vegetable garden, cooks seasonally and (since all the vegetables are free from the garden) can afford to splurge on things like fancy cheese. The recipes are uniformly good, but can be over-elaborate, and you can cut the amount of butter in any of the baked-goods recipes in half without doing any harm (in some cases that's actually an improvement!)
The lentil recipes are all pretty simple, though.
Moroccan Lentil Soup
1 cup lentils, about 6 ounces
6 cups cold water
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 medium-sized yellow onion, diced, about 2 cups
Salt
Cayenne pepper
1 small carrot, diced, about 1/2 cup
1 celery rib, diced, about 1/2 cup
1 small red or yellow bell pepper, diced, about 1/2 cup
1 tsp. cumin seed, toasted & ground
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
1/8 tsp. turmeric
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tbsp. grated fresh ginger
1/2 pound fresh tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped, about 1 cup, or 1 8-ounce can tomatoes with juice, chopped
2 tbsp. chopped cilantro
Sort & rinse the lentils & place them in a soup pot with the cold water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until tender, about 20 minutes.
While the lentils are cooking, heat the olive oil in a medium-size saute pan and add the onion, 1/2 tsp. salt, and a few pinches of cayenne. Cook over medium heat until the onions are soft, 7 to 8 minutes, then add the vegetables, another 1/2 tsp. salt, and the spices. Cook for 5 minutes, then stir in the garlic & ginger & cook for another minute or 2. Add the vegetables & tomatoes to the lentils & their broth. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, allowing the flavors to blend and deepen. Season to taste with salt and cayenne. Garnish each serving with a sprinkle of cilantro.
Notes:
I usually get bored and cook the onions over higher heat for less time.
There are a couple of other lentil soup recipes in Fields of Greens, but this one is my favorite. It's still yummy if you omit the celery and/ or bell pepper; if you do this and use canned tomatoes, then the recipe only uses things that keep indefinitely (like lentils and cumin) and vegetables that store for a long time (especially if you freeze your ginger), so it's great for the end of the week when you're running out of fresh stuff to cook with.