ODE TO A LENTIL

A while back my friend Jessy and I spent an evening talking about one of our great unsung heroes, the inexpensive yet highly nutritious lentil. (Now you know how I spend my Friday nights.) Jessy is a glowing vegan raw foodist while I am beer-swilling, unapologetic carnivore, yet both of us can come together in appreciation for this culinary heavy-hitter; few foods are as versatile and easy to prepare, which makes them a useful food for just about everyone. Moreover they are absurdly cheap, cheap, cheap, even the organic ones, and easy to find in several varieties at even the most depressing suburban supermarket.

Lentils are one of the longest-standing cultivated plants known. According to acclaimed naturopath and nutrition writer Dr. Michael Murray, lentil seeds have been discovered at Near and Middle East sites dating back as far as 6000 BC and have been a continuous agricultural staple ever since. Today, they remain an important protein source throughout the world especially in developing areas where meat protein is too expensive for daily consumption or where religious practice forbids it from time to time. Yet for some odd reason, they are not a mainstay of the Standard American Diet; they show up periodically in a "soup of the day" or as part of vegetarian home cooking, but like other legumes they are used more as an occasional specialty ingredient. Perhaps, in a food culture that honors meat as the linchpin of the meal with everything else being planned around it, there's just no obvious place for the humble lentil except as a "meat substitute." Epithet.

What many Americans-- especially us carnivores-- fail to realize is that lentils pack a lot of nutritional benefits that meats do not, and at a fraction of the cost. In addition to being an excellent source of protein (most of you knew that already), lentils are also rich in cholesterol-lowering, blood-sugar-balancing fiber; in fact, cooked lentils contain as much fiber per gram as prunes and even more than apples! And unlike protein foods from animal sources, lentils contain almost no fat-- making them an excellent dietary choice for anyone worried about controlling their intake of bad fats such as oxidized saturated fats. Lentils also contain essential minerals such as phosphorus, iron, potassium, and magnesium and, when eaten soaked or sprouted, may even be a good source of folic acid.

All this aside, of course, lentils are delicious and easy to prepare in a variety of ways. Below, I've provided some tips for buying and using lentils:

• Lentils can be eaten sprouted (raw), soaked overnight and lightly cooked, cooked longer for soups, stews, and Indian-type dahl dishes, even cooked and mashed to make "burgers," and even ground into flour.

• Brown, green, and "French" lentils are the most commonly found varieties in American supermarkets, but black, yellow, red, and orange varieties are also available and may be sold whole or split. The smaller types, especially red and orange ones, are excellent for soup.

• Buy your lentils dry; they cook quickly enough that there's no real advantage to buying canned ones, plus the canned ones may contain funky additives and residues (residues from can manufacturing will not be included on ingredients labels) and may also have a gummy consistency.

• Look for stores that sell dried lentils in bulk. Buying in bulk is better for the environment because it saves packaging, what's more it saves you the cost of paying for packaging and you can get exactly as much as you want. Generally, stores with quick turnover will stock a fresher product.

• Store lentils in a cool, dry, airtight container. My own personal favorite container is the clean, de-labelled, would-have-otherwise-been-recycled glass jar; these protect your lentils from critters and allow you to see inside. When the jar is empty, you may even be able to take it directly to the bulk department at your favorite health food store and fill it on the spot, no plastic bags needed!

• Dry lentils will keep in an airtight container for 6 months.

• Rinse lentils well before using and pick out any stones or other debris.

• It's not necessary to soak lentils the same way you should soak other legumes, however, soaking them will speed up cooking time. Lentils make a particularly tasty salad when simply soaked overnight and then steamed for 5–10 minutes and marinated in lemon juice, olive oil, paprika, and chopped parsley.

• It's almost impossible to over-salt lentils; in fact, lentils simply cooked in well-salted water make a perfectly tasty dish, especially when accompanied with hot sauce.

• According to Dr. Jeffrey Bland, 6 cups of raw sprouted lentils contain 50 grams of protein-- enough to meet an adult's protein needs for an entire day. Sprouted lentils make a great addition to raw salads, smoothies, dehydrated crackers, and breads. They also contain phytonutrients not available in cooked lentils.

• If you make too much of your favorite cooked lentil dish, pop the leftovers in the freezer; lentils actually retain their shape and taste quite well when frozen.