Middle-Eastern Sprouted Lentil Salad

Ever since I first had a Middle-Eastern-style lentil salad in a restaurant, it reminded me of Indian-style sprouted lentils. I was hooked! Even its appearance was a little like the popular Maharashtrian Usal, (‘Us’ as in ‘’pussy-cat’, ‘al’ as in ‘dull’ – ‘Us-al’). All across Maharashtra in western India, various sprouted legumes are used to make Usal. The colorful lentil salad immediately made me think of the chopped onions and tomatoes I love topping my Usal with. It was this mental connection that made me want to try making this salad with sprouted lentils. So I did, and it has now become my standard procedure.

Why sprout the lentils? Sprouting is believed to ‘unlock’ the nutrients stored in the seeds -to enable the young germinating seedlings to grow. This also seems to facilitate easier ‘processing’ and absorption of the released nutrients by the human digestive system. Needed by the seed, bonus for us all!

I steam the sprouted lentils for 10 min – they cook fast! When cooled, I add pickled red radish, along with some of the pickle juice, tomatoes and carrots. It is when the next few ingredients are added that the salad takes on a middle-Eastern vibe. I use lime/lemon juice, fresh mint, Zataar, sumac and fresh parsley – to bring the salad to life!

This Middle-Eastern-style sprouted lentil salad can be a meal in its own right. However, it is actually better to pair it with pita bread, and perhaps some hummus and Feta cheese. The wheat and lentils together provide complete protein, and the hummus and feta add even more middle-Eastern flair! And yes, go ahead, lick your fingers too! Why waste even that last little lick of good flavor?

Sprouted Lentil Salad

Steam the sprouted lentils, cool and mix with tomatoes, pickled radish, parsley and mint, and a middle-Eastern herb dressing to make a tasty and nutritious salad. Eat the salad by itself, or alongside pita, Hummus and Feta cheese.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

soaking lentils and sprouting 1 day d 12 hours hrs

Total Time 1 day d 12 hours hrs 35 minutes mins

Course Main Course, Salad, Side Dish

Cuisine Mediterranean

Servings 4

Calories 234 kcal

Equipment

• Steamer pan. If you do not have one, it can be improvised fairly easily. See instructions in recipe notes.

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 cup dry green lentils must start to soak the lentils at least 36 hours before the meal is to be served; can also use brown lentils instead (whole masoor)
• 1 cup tomatoes – diced finely preferably use ripe but firm-textured tomatoes; use a sharp knife so the tomatoes do not get smashed while cutting
• 1 cup carrots – shredded coarse shreds, or coarsely chopped in a chopper OK too
• 1/2 cup pickled radish – diced small ideally, pickle should be marinated for at least 24 hours, to have absoerbed the flavors of the pickling juice
• 2 tbsp radish pickle-juice juice in which radish is pickled
• 1/4 cup fresh mint – chopped omit if not available
• 1/4 cup parsley – chopped omit if not available; replace with fresh coriander leaves (cilantro) – different flavor, but still excellent
• 2 tsp fresh lemon juice fresh is best; bottled is OK if fresh is not available
• 2 tsp sumac ground sumac berries
• 1 tbsp Zataar seasoning middle-Eastern spice mix
• 1 tsp salt adjust per taste preference
• 1/2 tsp black pepper freshly crushed preferred
• 1 tbsp olive oil extra virgin; cold-pressed preferred
• 1/8 tsp citric acid (if you need to make radish pickle)
• 1/4 cup white vinegar (if you need to make radish pickle)

Instructions

 

• Rinse and soak the lentils overnight (about 8-10 hours) in 2 cups of water
• Drain the water using a strainer, rinse thoroughly, and set aside to sprout. (see Directions for sprouting in Recipe Notes).
• Lentils sprout fairly quickly; in about 24 hours, the sprouts are likely to be 1/4 inch long.
  
• Transfer the sprouted lentils to a large mixing bowl and cover with water, to soak again, for 15-20 min. During sprouting, the lentils dry out a little: soaking allows them to re-hydrate and cook faster.
  
• Meanwhile, prepare the steamer pan: Add about 3 cups water to the pan, place the steamer tray, cover and slowly, bring the water to a boil. Lower the heat until the sprouts are ready for steaming.
  
• Drain the water from the sprouts, transfer to a heat safe plate (stainless steel is best) and place the plate on the hot steamer tray. Cover and steam for 10 min. Let stand undisturbed for about 5 min., then remove plate from the steamer and place on a cooling rack to cool.
  
• While the lentils are being steamed, prepare the carrots, tomatoes, parsley and mint. Also dice the pickled radish (directions for making pickled radish in Recipe notes) and keep freshly squeezed lemon/lime juice ready.
  
• When the lentils have cooled to room temperature, gently transfer to a large mixing bowl. The cooked lentils are a bit delicate and tend to get mashed easily – that will ruin the "look" of the salad. When ready to serve, add all the salad ingredients except oil, and gently mix.
  
• Serve by itself, or accompanied by pita bread, hummus, and feta cheese.
  

Notes

Pickled radish:

You can make this the day you soak the lentils. Soak, scrub and cut 4-5 baby red radishes into quarters; prepare the following mixture: 1 cup water, 1/4 tsp salt, 4-5 whole black peppercorns, 1/8 tsp citric acid. Bring the mixture to a boil, pour this hot liquid over the cut radish in a heat-safe bowl.  Microwave the mixture for 1 min and set aside to cool,  marinate and absorb the flavors.

Sprouts:

If you don’t have a sprout maker, no worries. All you have to do is tightly wrap the soaked and rinsed beans in a clean dishtowel, place the towel-wrapped lentils in a colander, cover with a lid and set aside for 24 hours (avoid peeking for at least 12 hours ). Use an old/dark-colored towel, because the lentils will likely cause stains on the towel while wrapped for sprouting.

Steamer assembly:

If you don’t have a steamer, you can improvise. Place a small cooling rack (stainless steel preferred) in a large pot with a lid. Add enough water to just cover the cooling rack. Cover and bring to a boil. Transfer the lentils into a shallow container/plate (stainless steel preferred), that fits inside the large pot. Place the container on the rack when you can see steam coming out from the boiling hot water in the pot.

Other tips/tricks:

Do not mix the salad until you are ready to eat: just as you would with any salad, which must be tossed just before being served. If you mix it too early, the salad will wilt and lose crispness, and will also likely become too watery (because of the salt).

Nutrition

Calories: 234kcalCarbohydrates: 36gProtein: 14gFat: 4gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 619mgPotassium: 772mgFiber: 17gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 6331IUVitamin C: 22mgCalcium: 78mgIron: 6mg

Keyword fresh mint, green lentils, radish, sprouted lentils, Sumac, Zataar

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