Info
- Course: Side Dish
- Skill Level: Moderate
- Cost: Moderate
- Favorited: 97 Times
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Pondicherry Lentil Salad
Cookbook
I named this salad after a town in South India that was heavily influenced by French colonization. I love the easy mix of Eastern and Western flavors that this recipe exemplifies. The salad is made with small black lentils similar to French puy lentils but can be made with any black lentils. Here I use lentils that are named beluga, after the caviar, because of their appearance and minuscule size, especially when compared to other lentils. I love the crispness of the apple and peppers mingling with the soft texture of the lentils. This is a great salad to take on a picnic, and especially handy if you’re serving vegetarians who need a bit of substance to their meal. The ginger and coconut roasted in sesame oil give it a richer flavor than most run-of-the-mill lentil salads.
Yield : Serves 6
Ingredients
- 2 cups beluga black lentils
- 1 Fuji apple, cored and diced
- 1 yellow bell pepper, diced
- 1 large jalapeno pepper, diced
- 1/8 cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- Juice of 1½ ripe lemons
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup loosely packed, chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1 tablespoon sesame oil
- 1½ tablespoons minced fresh ginger
- ¼ cup shredded unsweetened coconut
Directions
1. Wash the lentils and soak them for 2 hours in tepid water; drain.
2. In a deep pot, add 8 cups of water to the lentils, bring to a boil, cover, and cook on low heat for 20 to 25 minutes. Rinse the lentils with cold water and drain. Make sure the lentils are cooked but firm, not mushy.
3. In a large bowl, mix together the lentils, apple, bell pepper, jalapeño, olive oil, vinegar, lemon juice, salt, and parsley. Stir and set aside in the fridge.
4. Just before serving, heat the sesame oil on medium-high heat. When hot, roast the ginger and coconut for a few minutes until golden and toasty. Sprinkle this garnish over the lentils and serve immediately.
© 2007 Padma Lakshmi
Nutritional Information
Nutrients per serving
227 kcal
3 % daily value
64 % daily value
2 % daily value
439 mg
42 mg
7 g
6 g
8 g
23 g
0 mg
400 mg
6 g
13 g
18 % daily value
