Dressed Lentils

Lentils tend to be an overlooked pantry item, but they really are nutritious powerhouses. Offering up a great amount of fiber and protein, they're a versatile recipe ingredient in addition to just tasting darn good! Cooked lentils and beans are a staple pantry item in my kitchen for all these reasons. Lentils are even quicker to cook from scratch because they don't need to presoak and they go from dry to cooked in just about 20 minutes. If you have the time, cook up a batch of lentils from dry for this recipe. If you don't, break open a can of cooked lentils, drain and rinse them before dressing them up. There's nothing wrong with either option, they're both equally nutritious! This recipe comes together in mere minutes and is easily adaptable to be allergy friendly, low in FODMAPs and vegan (depending on if you use a sweetener and which sweetener you use).

 

Ingredients

• Three cups lentils, cooked
• 1 bell pepper, diced
• ¼ cup onions, diced (use green onion tops to make it FODMAP friendly)
• ¼ cup fresh chopped parsley
• 1 teaspoon mustard of choice
• 2 tablespoons oil of choice
• 3 tablespoons vinegar of choice
• Salt and black pepper, to taste

Directions 

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together oil, mustard and vinegar.
2. Fold in lentils, bell peppers, onions and parsley.
3. Season to taste with salt and black pepper. If it feels a bit too punchy to you from the vinegar, add in a splash or two of sweetness to round it out. This can be anything from a pinch of sugar to a drizzle of maple syrup. Your choice!
4. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate overnight before serving.

Note: If you don't have fresh parsley at home, no problem. Add a few shakes of dried parsley, Italian herbs or even some thyme. Get creative with whatever you have in your pantry and feel free to mix and match (balsamic vinegar, apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, etc.) each time you make the lentils.

 

How would you serve up these Dressed Lentils? Let me know in the comments below and don’t forget to subscribe to my blog and check in for my regular posts over on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.