3 Lentil Recipes To Enjoy With The Family

Discover the best lentil recipes here that you can enjoy with your whole family. You will love them! 

Do you eat legumes at home? Lentils are among the most valuable legumes from a nutritional point of view. What is more, they are versatile : they can be incorporated into any type of dish. However, many households do not consume or consume very few lentils. For all these reasons, here we are sharing three lentil-based recipes with you that will undoubtedly please the whole family.

Keep in mind that it is advisable to consume legumes at least twice a week, especially because of their high intake of quality protein. And more specifically in the case of lentils, you will also get the following nutrients:

• Slowly absorbing carbohydrates, especially in the form of starch, followed by oligosaccharides
• Good quality protein, especially lysines
• Soluble and insoluble fibers
• Polyunsaturated fatty acids
• Minerals (calcium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc)
• Group B vitamins (niacin, thiamin, B6 and folate)

Lentil-based recipes for the whole family

Get started in the preparation of lentil dishes. We emphasize that lentils are a very versatile and nutritionally interesting food, two reasons why it is worth incorporating them into the weekly family menu.

In addition, these legumes are very economical! And as if that wasn’t enough, they go well with any type of food (meat, vegetables, etc.). You can incorporate them into a delicious stew as well as a healthy mixed salad. The options are many: just let your imagination run wild.

Here we have selected three recipes that are easy to prepare with children. Some lentil dishes are as good hot as they are cold, so they can be perfect for a picnic or a day at the beach. What are you waiting for to prepare these recipes?

1. A soup made from lentils and coconut milk

This lentil-based recipe is arguably one of the most exotic we’ve discovered. Coconut milk gives this soup a unique creamy texture. Do not miss this recipe!

Ingredients

• 2 medium onions
• 2oo g of red lentils
• 20 g grated ginger
• 400 ml coconut milk
• 300 ml of vegetable broth
• 1/2 kg of tomatoes
• 2 cloves garlic
• 200 g Greek yogurt
• 1 lemon for its juice
• 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
• Mint
• Salt and pepper

Preparation

• Prepare the vegetable broth and set it aside for later.
• Chop the onions and set them aside for later.
• Wash the tomatoes well, peel them and cut them into small cubes. Save them for later.
• Crush the garlic. Save it for later.
• Heat a drizzle of olive oil on a pan.
• Brown the onions and garlic in the pan.
• Add the grated ginger and mix everything together.
• After a minute, stir in the tomatoes, vegetable broth, coconut milk and lentils.
• Salt and pepper as you wish.
• Bring everything to the boil, then lower the heat and let it cook for about fifteen minutes.
• Stir in the Greek yogurt and the chopped mint.
• Finally, add the lemon juice and, if you wish, decorate your dish with a few mint leaves.

2. Eggplants stuffed with lentils

Eggplant is mostly water, which is why it is commonly found in weight loss diets. Combining eggplants with lentils makes for a nutritionally rich dish that’s ideal to take to the office.

Ingredients

• 150 g of cooked lentils
• 2 eggplants
• 1 onion
• 1 clove of garlic
• 1/2 red peppers
• 1 medium-sized carrot
• 100 ml of vegetable broth
• Tomato sauce
• Nutmeg, cumin and turmeric
• Salt and pepper
• Parmesan cheese

Preparation

• Cut the eggplants in half and make incisions in the pulp to create a sort of grid.
• Place the eggplant halves on a baking sheet, salt and pepper to taste, then cook them at 200 ºC for about 30 minutes. They must be well cooked.
• Cut the vegetables into small cubes and brown them on a pan.
• Add the tomato sauce and spices to the pan. Cook everything for a few minutes, then add the lentils. Let everything cook until you get a thick sauce.
• When the eggplants are cooked through, remove them from the oven. Remove the pulp from the eggplants and add it to the pan.
• Taste the lentils and adjust the salt and pepper content if necessary.
• Stuff the eggplants, then sprinkle them with Parmesan. Once it’s done, bake the stuffed eggplants for a few minutes, while the cheese melts. Voila: your lentil-stuffed eggplants are ready!

3. A lentil salad

This salad is ideal to take with you to the beach, to a picnic or to the office. This recipe is complete, tasty and very nutritious. Have you ever had your mouth water?

Ingredients

• 200 g cooked lentils
• 1/2 green peppers
• 1/2 red peppers
• 1 shallot
• 1 tomato
• Basil leaves
• extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Preparation

• Wash the peppers well, remove the seeds and cut them into small cubes.
• Chop the shallot and dice the tomato.
• Place the cooked lentils in a bowl and stir in the vegetables.
• Salt and pepper to taste, then add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. You can decorate your bowl with some basil leaves. Your salad is now ready to be tasted!

You have just discovered three delicious lentil recipes. You no longer have an excuse to avoid incorporating legumes into your weekly menu. As you will have noticed, lentil recipes can be very varied, so you will never get tired of them! Vary recipes and reap the benefits of lentils.