Lentils of Invention

"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome."

      - Anne Bradstreet

Like so many bloggers, I've been rushing the all-too-slow change of seasons; I've been longing for spring.  I've made a variety of spring-like dinners, even on blustery days when something heartier might have been more appropriate.  G, on the other hand, is fond of winter and mourns the coming of warmer weather.  He likes cold  and snow and rib-sticking food.  Not a big eater of sultry-day salads and cold dishes, my G.  Right now we're experiencing neither the winter of my discontent, nor the warmer weather that brings on his.  We're in that awkward in-between stage.  I decided there was a need for a little something to suit this phase of the season.  Wanting  to use just what was already available at home, I found myself in luck; it was one of those days when there were good things in the house, including many fresh herbs.

I made this up to accompany a fillet of good-in-any-season sesame-crusted salmon and a rather summery yogurt salad.    The salmon is a simple standby that I make constantly.  No recipe necessary:  marinate some salmon fillet in lime juice, garlic, tamari soy sauce and and a bit of sesame oil  for an hour or however long you have.  Sprinkle with a thick layer of sesame seeds, and pat them down so they adhere well.  Broil until sesame is crisp and crunchy and brown, and salmon is done to your liking.  If the seeds start to get too brown or burnt before the salmon is done , switch the salmon from the broiler to the (hot) oven, and let it finish cooking.   We kind of like it crisp and even a little burnt on the outside, and just-cooked within. 

I've never really been a big fan of the restaurant trend of pairing fish with legumes.  But you know how I love to play with my own food prejudices, as well as those of others.  I remembered the untried bag of  Puy lentils in the closet, and thought they might make the right accompaniment to our salmon; the caveat was that the resulting dish had to be springlike enough for me, and hearty enough for G.  I combined the cooked Puy lentils with a vegetable sauté, cooked orzo, and a large quantity of fresh herbs.  I'm often a bit concerned when inventing food.  I've had more than enough instances when the dish I conceived fell far short of the original vision.  This time, however, something very satisfying was born.  It was good as a hot side dish, and just as good sprinkled with lime juice and eaten as a salad for lunch the following day. 

I do have to say that I think the nice people at Kalustyan's need a little refresher on Puy lentils.  My sack from that otherwise delightful locale suggested that I soak them for four hours and then cook the poor tiny little things for anywhere from 30 to 60 minutes.  Let's just say that no soaking was required, and even at the minimum 30 minutes, they were on the cusp of being a leetle too mushy. 

Forgive the messy, grainy photo.  Hopefully this situation is going to be remedied in the next post, when I display photos taken with the *new digital camera* given to me by the best of brothers on behalf of himself and my SIL during our lovely dinner the other night at the Modern.  I'm not promising miracles in the photo department, now.  Let's remember what I've said before -- not everyone is good at everything.  But here are some pretty good lentils, bad pic notwithstanding.

Aromatic Lentils and Orzo

1/2 lb. Puy lentils
2 bay leaves
1 1/2 cups orzo pasta

2 or 3 Tbsp. good olive oil (Spanish Arbequina is my new fave)
1 large fat leek, cleaned and diced (I use some of the green)
2 large shallots, peeled and diced
3 carrots, peeled, cleaned and cut into dice or small coins
3 stalks celery, trimmed and diced
1 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. ground coriander
pinch cinnamon
salt and pepper
fresh thyme

fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
fresh cilantro, finely chopped
fresh mint, finely chopped
1 or two cloves of garlic, microplaned

Cook the lentils with the bay leaf in water to cover by about 2 inches, until tender but not mushy.  Drain, reserving a cup or two of the cooking water.  Discard the bay leaves.  Cook the orzo to the same point -- tender but not mushy.  (Everybody's version of al dente is a bit different, I think.  I don't like squishy pasta, nor do I like it with too hard a spine.  Like Goldilocks, I like it to be just right.  So rely on your preference, but remember that when combined with other things, pasta soaks up liquid and becomes softer.) Set aside the lentils and the pasta. 

In a large sauté pan or wok, heat the olive oil until shimmering and ready-to-fry.  Add the chopped leek and shallot, and cook for a minute.  Add the cumin, coriander, and cinnamon, and allow the spices to fry a bit.  Then put in the carrots and celery, and continue sautéing for several minutes, until they're crisp-tender.  Add about 1/2 cup of the lentil water, mix and let it bubble up.  Turn off the heat, and stir in a nice handful of fresh thyme leaves stripped from their stems.  Add the cooked lentils and orzo, and toss everything together.  Season with Maldon or herb salt and freshly ground black pepper. 

Now add in the herbs, starting with a couple of tablespoons of each.  Add a microplaned clove of garlic and toss everything together well.  Add a little more lentil water just to moisten if it seems dry -- don't make it soupy; this is not a dish with a sauce.  Unless of course you want it to be, in which case, do as you will.  Didn't mean to sound bossy there.

Taste it.  Does it need more herbs, more garlic?  Does it just want some more mint, or is it calling out for more of everything?  I think I probably ended up adding about a 1/3 cup of each minced herb, but it was measured in handfuls, so it's hard to tell.  You'll have to play with this, since strong herbal flavors are a matter of taste.  When it's zingy and delightful, feed your spouse/parent/child/friend a big cooking spoonful of it, and beam as s/he says earnestly, "This is great."  Eat it, by itself or with other dishes, as soon as possible. 

Comments

[Bakerina]

Oh, god, Julie, this sounds wonderful. I love lentils, especially Puy lentils, and I love orzo. I could easily eat this on its own as a main dish. In fact, I could eat it for breakfast. You are a goddess.

I did laugh at your taking Kalustyan's to task for their lentil-cooking instructions! You're right: I've never soaked Puy lentils, and I've never needed to cook them for more than 25 minutes, tops. I felt the same way reading those instructions the way I do when I read some beautiful old heirloom cookbook, where all of the food is almost perfect, and then I read the noodle recipes, and invariably we are told to boil the noodles for 20 minutes, then turn them into a casserole and bake them for 1/2 hour! Such sadness. :)

I'm thinking of one of my favorite lines from The Young Ones: "Lentils are really great. No matter how many times you eat them, they never get boring." (Okay, it's funnier in context, but it still makes me laugh.)

[rowena]

Oooh! Well I am a lucky gal today because as I was going through my cupboards, I was wondering what the heck to do with the little box of orzo that I had bought to try a recipe out of Tessa Kiros' book.

Now I know.

I am looking forward to your pics with spanking brand-new technology! Hehe, come on now Julie, with the great recipes and food posts that you write, I'm sure you won't disappoint in the image department! :-D

[Julie]

Jen, I'm so glad you like the way this sounds, and I hope you give it a try at some point. I admit I'm also not above a few spoonfuls for breakfast...but then, I'm not one of those who can only eat so-called breakfast foods in the morning. The Kalustyan's directions made me think of heirloom cookbooks, but also just of outmoded habits -- vegetables cooked to khaki dullness, the dry grey-brown of meat that cooked forever. Fortunately, I had a childhood where I only encountered food like this at the houses of friends...

Rowena, you too...please let me know if this works for you -- and what modifications you make. Believe me, I'm excited about the new technology too -- I just have a feeling that there's going to be a learning curve...

[keiko]

Julie, this looks and sounds so yummy! I love Puy lentils, but my husband is getting bored because I cook them with meat, fish, rice... well, almost anything!