Lentils/ was Wot's For Dinner???? - Laurel's offering

[Guest guest]

> There's more than one kind of lentil? I didn't know. I was given

> several ziploc plastic sacks

> full of brown lentils.

 

A few ;-) I keep in the brown lentils and also the red lentils - the latter cook

very quickly

and go into a puree almost by themselves. The brown (and also the so-called

green), as

you will know, keep firmer and are good for dishes which require a certain

variety in

textures as well as on their own with the usual 'suspects' (ya know, onions,

garlic, ginger,

chiles, etc.).

 

Best love, Pat

[Guest guest]

At 09:46 AM 5/2/2006, Pat wrote:

 

> red lentils - the latter cook very quickly

>and go into a puree almost by themselves. " *******

 

 

 

Red lentils. They cook quickly? How quickly? I boil

brown lentils for about forty-five minutes. Red lentils

cook more quickly than that? They go into a puree?

Would this be a suitable base for making a sandwich

paste? a filling for puff pastry, choux pastry, pasties,

turnovers? Do they readily accept spices? More or

less so than brown?

 

Laurel

[Guest guest]

> Red lentils. They cook quickly? How quickly? I boil

> brown lentils for about forty-five minutes. Red lentils

> cook more quickly than that?

 

Well, one always has to qualify cooking times with beans and lentils - because

the age of

the lentil can make a difference. However, that said, I use hulled and split red

lentils for

most dal dishes (to go with Indian food) and these (often called orange) lentils

cook up in

20 minutes.

 

>They go into a puree?

 

Pretty near. There is discernible texture, but they go pretty mushy and are

meant to do so.

 

> Would this be a suitable base for making a sandwich

> paste? a filling for puff pastry, choux pastry, pasties,

> turnovers?

 

They'd be a bit wet, I think. They're usually used for dal, as I say, or

Indian-style soups,

etc. I'd puree the green or brown lentils for what you're talking about, but

perhaps others

here have more experience. I don't use lentils in pastry (because I don't make

puff, choux

or that sort of pastry anymore for obvious reasons - too high in fat and

difficulty in

making it vegan anyway without special ingredients) so can't say :-(

 

>Do they readily accept spices?

 

Indeed they do.

 

>More or

> less so than brown?

 

Hmmm, never made the comparison from that point of view, but it is obvious that

a lentil

that goes into a mushy texture will have the spices dispersed through them more

evenly

than would those which hold their shape. But whether this make enough difference

to

adjust the spices accordingly, for some, I couldn't say. I use a lot of spices

in my day to

day cooking and always adjust when needed . . . But try them and see what you

think ;-)

Do I get the idea you're excited about the idea of quick-cooking lentils? Yeah,

I think I do!

 

Best love, Pat