Lentils salad is my new favourite thing. Long hailed by vegans for their healthy qualities, lentil products lately have been on the rise. Dried lentils are a year-round staple in my pantry, essential for rounding out salads and hearty soups in the winter months. Regardless of the season, their quick-cooking, no-soak-required nature makes them ideal for healthy weeknight meals.
I like keeping green or brown lentils in our cupboard. These cook quickly and evenly without becoming mushy and are the most versatile for our recipes. Yellow, red, and orange lentils are fantastic, but since they tend to get mushy when cooked, they are usually best added to soups and sauces rather than cooked on their own. It’s also important to buy the freshest lentils you can find and then use them within a few months. Older lentils take longer to cook and tend to shed their skins during cooking. You may also see tiny white flecks where the lentil started to sprout. They’re still tasty and entirely edible, but just not as presentation-worthy.
Winter salads could be rich in taste, vibrant in colour yet nutritious and light. Like a canvas to a painting, lentils provide a neutral foundation for a creative explosion of additional flavours – in this case, lemon juice & fresh coriander, served with half-dry tomatoes & feta cubes, carrot & ginger dip and beetroot hummus dip. Delicious, extremely easy to make and incredibly tasty and light. A true celebration of winter veggies.
Ingredients
Serves 4 people
- 2 cups of green lentils
- 125g feta cheese
- 125g half-dry tomatoes
- juice of half a lemon
- Salt
- black pepper
- olive oil
- Fresh coriander
Carrot Dip
- 3 carrots (475g), peeled, coarsely chopped
- 125ml water
- 75g tahini
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 small shallot, quartered
- 2 dates, pitted
- 1.5cm piece fresh ginger, peeled, sliced
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon garam masala
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus extra to taste
- 1/4 cup freshly chopped coriander leaves
- 2 small beetroots
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas
- 2 cloves garlic
- salt, pepper to taste
- juice of half a lemon
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Beetroot Dip
- 2 small beetroots
- 1 cup cooked chickpeas
- 2 cloves garlic
- salt, pepper to taste
- juice of half a lemon
- 1/4 cup olive oil
