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Wednesday 11 May 2011

Green Lentils With Roasted Beets and Preserved Lemon

So one month on and I finally got to use my preserved lemons in a recipe! This recipe was fairly easy. There is a bit of prep work and peeling beetroot is never simple, but if you are going to use canned beetroot don't even bother. It really pays of. The result is a delicious lemony and hearty salad with the slightest touch of sweetness from the beetroot. 

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Peel and cut the beetroot into big chunks and make sure you use gloves. Toss the cubes with a teaspoon of oil, season with salt and pepper and bake 30 to 35 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, place the lentils, carrot, onion, bay leaf, parsley, thyme and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a small pot and add water to cover the lentils by about 3/4 of an inch. Bring to a boil, then simmer, covered, until the lentils are tender, 20 to 25 minutes. Discard the herbs, drain well and transfer to a large bowl.

To make the vinaigrette, combine the lemon juice, zest, shallot and 1/4 teaspoon salt and let stand for 15 minutes. Whisk in the olive oil and season to taste with pepper and more salt if necessary.

To assemble the salad, quarter the lemon and scrape out the soft pulp. Finely chop the pulp and stir 2 teaspoons into the vinaigrette. Finely chop the lemon skin and add it, along with the vinaigrette, roasted beets, parsley and chopped mint, to the lentils. Toss and serve on a platter. 




















Ingredients

  • ·         5 small beets, peeled
    ·         1 teaspoon olive oil
    ·         Salt and freshly ground black pepper
    ·         1 cup French green lentils
    ·         1 carrot, peeled and finely diced
    ·         1/2 small onion, finely diced
    ·         1 bay leaf
    ·         4 sprigs parsley
    ·         2 sprigs thyme
    ·         1 preserved lemon  or 2 teaspoons lemon zest
    ·         1/3 cup chopped parsley
    ·         2 tablespoons chopped mint sprigs for garnish

    FOR THE VINAIGRETTE:
    ·         2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
    ·         1 teaspoon lemon zest
    ·         1 shallot, finely chopped
    ·         salt and pepper
    ·         olive oil

    II: 8


1 comment:

  1. I've read an interesting fact about beets: this is one of very few foods that attract people on a heredatary level.
    This recipe here is a living proof.

    ReplyDelete