Black Beluga Lentil "Tartar"
I just came home from the supermarket. It’s really no surprise at all, but as I’m arranging my groceries in my cabinets, I realize that I have gone over the top with legume shopping. I always have quite many of them and I’m about to add some more. I see beans, chickpeas, mung beans, lentils in all colors and sizes, which must mean that my intentions towards healthy eating are very, very good. At the same time, I wonder why I have so many of them still waiting to be cooked. Is it just because I tend to buy too many of them or because it’s been a while since the last time we had lentils for lunch? I’m afraid it’s the latter.
Even though legumes are always a part of our weekly menu, it seems that our routine has been a bit distracted lately. Some unexpected obligations and some recent trips have disorganized us and thrown us off balance. The classic legume soup, with beans or lentils, is one of our favorite winter dishes and obviously very healthy and nutritious.
Since I found myself surrounded by so many packages of legumes, with lentils outnumbering them all by a significant amount, I decided to make a dish with lentils for the day. The week has just started and it’s a perfect opportunity to approach it in a healthy way.
I’m thinking of making something different this time; a salad that I like to make often in the summer when lentil soup feels a bit too warm. Black beluga lentil tartar with smoked trout! A legume dish with a perfectly gourmet look!
I chose to work with black organic lentils for a more impressive result. Black lentils are just another lentil variety but their black and shiny color makes them look like black caviar. That’s how they obtained the glamorous name “Beluga” (from the famous and expensive Russian caviar).
The good thing about black lentils is that their boiling time is just 15 minutes! Thus, most of their nutrients remain unaffected. Besides that, they don’t differ from the rest of the more humbly colored lentils. All of them are rich in protein, iron and fibers.. But beluga lentils excel at creating beautiful dishes.
This salad is the definition of antioxidant! Fresh and colorful vegetables with lentils and smoked trout. Ingredients may vary; you can add or skip any ingredient you like depending on what your taste buds desire. It will still be super healthy and flavorful.
It will look wonderful regardless of how you choose to serve it. It can be served as a salad in a bowl but it will be upgraded to a super gourmet dish if you give it a “tartar” shape with a ring mold. Its appearance and taste will definitely steal the show!
Ingredients
Ingredients:
250gr black beluga lentils
15-20 cherry tomatoes, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
3 tbsp caper, desalinated
1 tbsp chives, chopped
½ bunch of parsley, chopped
1 smoked trout filet cut in small pieces
For the dressing:
½ cup olive olive
Juice from 1 lemon
2 tbsp white vinegar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
Salt, pepper
Method
1. Cut the cherry tomatoes into very small pieces. Spread them on absorbent kitchen paper that will absorb any excess of liquids.
2. Place the caper in a bowl filled with water for 1 hour to desalinate it.
3. Rinse the lentils. Boil them for about 15-20 minutes. Try them out and make sure they are boiled well but they do not break apart, we want them whole and a bit crunchy.
4. Drain the lentils and let them cool down. Prepare the dressing. Mix the olive oil with the lemon juice and vinegar. Determine the quantities depending on your taste. Add and mix the mustard, salt and pepper. Our sauce has to be quite thick.
5. Mince the green pepper, chives and parsley. Cut the trout filet into small pieces.
6. In a bowl, mix all the ingredients together along with the drained lentils. Pour the sauce over and stir well and carefully without breaking the lentils apart.
7. Place the mixture into one or more ring molds on the serving plates and refrigerate them until the mixture stiffens enough. Remove the ring mold right before serving and sprinkle some olive oil on the dish.
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