I am a lentil lover. If i had to choose what my last meal on earth would be, it would be red lentils. It's my ultimate comfort food. That story in the bible where Esau ave up his birthright to Jacob for a lentil dish? I so get it. And, lucky me, lentils love edible weeds as well! I have tried numerous wild leafy greens so far, and all of them make a perfect match with lentils.
Today, I harvested some ramsons, also known as wild garlic. The rainy, rather cold weather, inspired me to make a warming wild foods dish.
Here's the recipe:
Heat the oil and sauté the chopped onion, until soft. Add the lentils and the vegetable stock. Let simmer until the lentils are soft. Add the chopped nettle and garlic greens. After 5 minutes, turn off the heat, and add the chopped tomatoes and lemon juice. Enjoy!
Note: Even though, in regards to cooking time, there is no need to soak red lentils, I strongly recommend it. Soaking neutralises the phytic acid in legumes, so that we can absorb the minerals a lot better.
Today, I harvested some ramsons, also known as wild garlic. The rainy, rather cold weather, inspired me to make a warming wild foods dish.
Here's the recipe:
- 2/3 cup of lentils, soaked overnight (2/3 cup is the amount of dry lentils, before soaking)
- one onion
- some extra virgin olive oil (or coconut oil)
- 10 to 15 fresh leaves of wild garlic (ramsons)
- a small handful of stinging nettle tops
- 1 liter of wild vegetable stock (of which the recipe will be in my upcoming book, but you can use 'regular' vegetable stock as well)
- juice of half a lemon
- 5 cherry tomatoes (I had some leftovers, you can substitute by one big tomato)
Heat the oil and sauté the chopped onion, until soft. Add the lentils and the vegetable stock. Let simmer until the lentils are soft. Add the chopped nettle and garlic greens. After 5 minutes, turn off the heat, and add the chopped tomatoes and lemon juice. Enjoy!
Note: Even though, in regards to cooking time, there is no need to soak red lentils, I strongly recommend it. Soaking neutralises the phytic acid in legumes, so that we can absorb the minerals a lot better.