Braised Puy Lentils

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Simple braised puy lentils are easy to make but so delicious and comforting. Enjoy these French lentils as a main, with sausages, or serve cold as a salad. You will return to this recipe again and again.

Servings:

Author: Helen Best-Shaw

Prep Time10

Cook Time30

Ingredients

1 medium onion - 2
1 stick celery - 2
1 medium carrot - 2
2 cloves garlic
1 tbs olive oil
½ tsp dried oregano
½ tsp dried thyme
200 g Puy lentils - 1
1 stock cube / pot vegetable or chicken
720 ml water

Optional for extra / different flavour

2 tbsp wine
1 tbsp grain Dijon mustard
1 tbsp tomato puree / paste

Metric - USA Cups

Instructions

Prepare the vegetables -
Onion – peel and finely dice
Celery – trim and finely dice
Carrot – trim, peel and finely dice
Garlic – peel and chop
1 medium onion, 1 stick celery, 2 cloves garlic, 1 medium carrot
Sauté the vegetables - Add the olive oil into a shallow skillet, that has a well fitting lid and gently sweat the onion, celery and carrots over a low heat until fragrant, stirring to avoid catching. They should become soft and tender without colouring. This will take about 4-5 minutes.
Add the garlic for the last 2 minutes of cooking.
1 tbs olive oil
Add the lentils and herbs - Add the puy lentils and herbs, stir in and sauté for another minute.
½ tsp dried oregano, 200 g Puy lentils, ½ tsp dried thyme
Add the stock - Make up the stock in about ⅔ of the water. Add the stock. I don’t season at this stage, as depending which brand of stock you use, you might not need additional salt. Also many people say that it makes the lentil skins tough.
Cover with the lid and simmer for 15 minutes until the lentils have started to soften. Check and stir halfway through.
1 stock cube / pot vegetable or chicken, 720 ml water
Finish cooking - Towards the end of cooking you can add some more stock needed (if the lentils are dry and are not cooked), or a glug of red or white wine.
Once cooked the lentils should be soft, but retaining some bite, and not dry. Add more liquid if needed.
2 tbsp wine
Season and serve - Stir and season to taste if needed. I like to garnish with parsley to serve.

Notes

Ingredients notes:

Puy Lentils / French lentils – These lentils are smaller and rounder than green lentils. They have a classic dark green skin with black speckles. Once cooked (with no need to pre soak) they have a rich nutty flavour and will retain some bite and texture. See the close up photo below. I find they are not always labelled as Puy lentils (also some people confuse with mung beans – they are NOT the same thing).
To save time on chopping you can buy bags of frozen ready prepared onion, carrot and celery. It will be with the frozen vegetables and called soffritto, mirepoix or classic vegetable mix. I often use it when in a hurry and usually have a bag in the freezer. Simply pour into a hot pan and fry from frozen. In terms of convenience it is worth every penny!

Variations
I love an adaption or two when I am cooking. Try some (but not all at once) of these variations in this recipe.

Add some wine towards the end of cooking. Either red or white is delicious.
Use a leek instead of the celery.
Add a generous spoon of grain Dijon mustard with the stock.
Add a spoon of tomato puree along with the stock for a richer sauce.

Storage / Leftovers
This recipe makes six portions. If you are cooking for fewer people here is how to store leftovers for another meal.

Leftovers make a delicious salad, I like to stir through some rocket / arugula leaves and creamy goats’ cheese. You can add some more stock, heat in a pan and whizz into soup.

Fridge – Once cool, pack into containers, seal and keep in the fridge for up to 3 days

Freezer – Once packed into containers, freeze. Store for up to 6 months.

Reheating – Defrost in the fridge overnight, or on the kitchen worktop for a few hours. Reheat in a pan on the stove top, or in a safe container in the microwave.

Hints and tips
The cooking time and the amount of stock needed will vary according to the shape and size of your pan and the age of your lentils. I find this recipe needs about three times the volume of liquid to lentils.

Puy lentils do not need pre soaking. However if you find a packet that has been at the back of the cupboard for years, then I would soak them overnight and reduce the initial amount of stock by a third.

As vegetables do not come in standard sizes use what you have, the exact amounts do not really matter.
Always add a little less liquid than you think you need, check half way through cooking and add more if necessary.

• Please note that the nutrition information provided below is approximate and meant as a guideline only.

• Unless stated otherwise cup conversions have been made with an online tool. For accuracy please check with your favoured conversion tool. We recommend buying inexpensive digital kitchen scales.