Lentil Techniques

These lentils turned out good: firm and flavorful.

I cooked the lentils in a lot of water, the way you make pasta (although I put the lentils and water together in the pot, then brought it all to a boil). Tonight I cooked 1/2 cup lentils (with a crushed garlic clove and a sprig of rosemary for flavor) in perhaps 4 or 5 cups of water, for about 11 minutes (not the 30 minutes instructed on the package; I checked on them often and stopped boiling them while they were still firm). I used green lentils because that's what I had on hand. Drain and let cool. Meanwhile I made a mustard vinaigrette (heavy on the vinegar) and dressed the spinach and quartered grape tomatoes separately (the original recipe didn't have tomatoes). Added dressing to the lentils to taste, then assembled the salad.