A large bowl of salad is a great work lunch. You can finish it fast and get back to your desk.It is also a great way to attain good health.The below recipe got me hooked to it, the first time I had it.This is one of the most common lentil salad you can see in your local market. It is inspired from Moroccan lentil salad recipe. There are few core ingredients for this recipe. Lentils, kale & dried berries , you can add any other crunchy fresh fruits such as apples and pears.
This is one of my go to recipe these days when I want to eat something filling and fresh. Fresh kale adds great punch to the large salad bowl, especially when I m not in a mood to make a kale smoothie or air fryer kale chips. Another great recipe is kale and mushroom stir fry which is a powerhouse of superfoods.
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Benefits of kale
- Powerhouse of vitamin A, folates and B.
- Raw kale helps avoid cancer.
- Helps decrease inflammation and stress in the body.
- Helps lower blood pressure.
Ingredients
- Lentils, I prefer French brown lentils or black lentils. Raw(need to be cooked)/canned.
- apple
- cucumber
- Red bell pepper
- pomegranate seeds
- Kale
- currants/dried berries
- toasted pecans or walnuts
- For salad dressing -
- lemon juice
- extra-virgin olive oil
- salt as per taste
Instructions
- If you are using raw lentils then cook lentils in a large pot of heavily salted water.Use double the amount of water to lentils and drain lentils and remove excess water, once they are cooked. Alternatively, You may use canned lentils.
- Combine lentils with remaining salad ingredients to a bowl.
- In a small bowl, add lemon juice and olive oil to make a dressing. Add this to your salad bowl.
- Add salt just before serving.
- Serve your lentil kale salad fresh.
Substitutions
You can use red kale, tuscan kale or lacinato kale for this recipe if you do not have curly kale or baby kale leaves.You can substitute kale with watercress leaves, arugula leaves or baby spinach. Walnuts ,raw almonds can be used in place of pecans. If you do not have black beluga lentils, you can use green moong lentils, French green lentils or red lentils for the recipe.
Variations
You can also add fried onions, green onions or red onion for an extra punch. Refer to this low air fryer onions recipe. Pumpkin seeds and sun-dried tomatoes are a great addition too.For a vegetarian option, you may add some feta cheese to your large mixing bowl. Adding a dash of maple syrup to this side dish makes it a great recipe, if you like it sweeter.
Storage
Store your salad bowl in refrigerator for 1-2 days, although eating it fresh is the best. Alternatively, you can make a batch of boiled lentils and store it in refrigerator for 2-3 days or freeze it. Microwave it for few minutes. Serve after you add fresh raw ingredients & salad dressing whenever you wish to eat.
Related links
FAQ
Around 20 minutes in a pot.
French lentils is one third of size of green lentils but they are a variety of green lentils.
Yes, they are full of protein, fiber and iron.
vegan lentil salad recipe
Equipment
- saucepan to cook lentils
- salad bowl or mixing bowl
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked lentils ½ cup raw lentils yield 1 cup cooked lentils
- 1 cucumber diced
- 1 apple diced
- ½ red pepper ½ red pepper yields ½ cup red pepper
- ½ cup pomegranate seeds
- 2 tablespoon dried cranberries any dried berries, roughly chopped
- 6-7 pecan roughly chopped
For dressing
- 1 tbsp. olive oil optional, I did not use it.
- 1 tbsp. lemon juice
- Salt as per taste add salt just before serving
Instructions
For the dressing
- Mix all ingredients with a spoon.Keep it aside.
For the salad
- If using raw lentils then Cook lentils with double the amount of water ,drain excess water once the lentils are cooked. You may use canned lentils.
- Add all raw salad ingredients to a bowl
- In the mixing bowl, lemon juice and olive oil.
- Add salt just before serving.
Conclusion: Bean salads are a delicious recipes which can be eaten at any time of year. They are rich in Dietary fiber and aids weight loss too. Bonus : They have low cooking time and keep you full for a long time.
bon appetit !
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