Since cold weather is on the way, Kristi and I wanted to share one of our favorite meals. In fact, these lentils just might be our absolute favorite meal.
Kristi has never really been a person who liked beans. I am a different story. Beans have been a staple food in my life for over 30 years. While Kristi could never really get past the texture of beans (she has to smash them with a fork in order to be able to eat them), she still made for me because she knew how much I loved them. She did actually come to like her charro beans, but these lentils have actually become a favorite meal for both of us.
The best part about these lentils is that they take only a few minutes to prepare (10 minutes at most), and they take a fraction of the time that pinto beans take to cook. Kristi usually puts them on to cook about 1 to 1.5 hours before we’re ready to eat. Here’s how to make them:
Ingredients:
- 1 pound of lentils
- 2 tsp of cumin
- 1 tsp of cayenne pepper
- 2.5 tsp of Johnny’s Seasoned Salt (we use the kind with no MSG)
- 1/2 onion
- 1/2 bunch of cilantro (about 3/4 cup)
- 5 cloves garlic
- 64 ounces of chicken broth
Directions:
- Rinse the lentils and put them in a 3 quart pot with 32 ounces of chicken broth.
- Add the cumin, cayenne pepper, and seasoned salt to the beans and stir well.
- Place the onion, garlic, cilantro, and about 1 cup of chicken broth into a blender and blend well.
- Add the blended veggies to the pot of lentils, and stir well.
- Add enough broth to fill the 3-quart pot.
- Bring to a boil, allow the lentils to boil for a few minutes, and then cover and reduce the heat. Cook on medium to low heat for 1 to 1.5 hours, or until the lentils are very tender.
We like to eat our lentils with quinoa, but I am sure that it would taste fantastic with rice. This is a great cold weather meal!
