Weve always read we should soak wooden or bamboo skewers in water for half an hour or so before putting them on the grill. How To Cook Lentils The Healthy Eating Site. Cooking Lentils. Lentils are a healthy and versatile food. They are also inexpensive, making them a great staple for anyone interested in healthy, frugal living. They are probably the fastest cooking of all the legume family, and they dont require soaking making their preparation faster still. They are nutritious too. Rich in antioxidants, selenium, and B vitamins, all of  which boost the immune system. Like the other pulses, they contain anti carcinogenic phytochemicals. They are also packed with protein, high in iron and folate and very high in fiber, which is good for your digestive and heart health. Lentils come in a variety of types, usually described by the color. Red lentils are by far the fastest cooking and are often used in Indian cuisine. However the green and brown varieties of lentils are more nutritious than than red variety. How to Cook Lentils. Use the slow soak method if youve got a night to soak your beans. The slow soak method is a preferred method of preparing beans if youve set aside enough. Do You Need To Soak Lentils' title='Do You Need To Soak Lentils' />This basic recipe will get you started home cooking healthy lentils. You can easily add them to other dishes or add other ingredients to create soups and stews. Ingredients 1 cup dried lentils. What You Need to Know About Protein Ayurvedic View on How to Exercise in the Summer. Instructions Rinse the lentils under running water and pick through them to remove any bits of soil or rocks. Add lentils and water to a saucepan with a lid and bring to a boil. Turn heat down to low and cover to let the lentils simmer, but leave the lid ajar a bit so that they dont boil over. Check on them occasionally to make sure the water has not boiled down below the level of the lentils and add more as needed. When the lentils are tender and can easily be mashed with a fork, they are done. PUSkRTrqJjE/Vdo82ob2ksI/AAAAAAAAIlM/iJQkW-E4jdI/s640/Untitled%2Bdesign-3.png' alt='Do You Need To Soak Lentils' title='Do You Need To Soak Lentils' />It usually takes about 3. Add salt in about the last 1. Cooking often neutralizes the taste of the salt, so if you add it at the start you end up having to add more salt to get the same flavor. When they are finished cooking, take the saucepan off the heat and cover tightly with the lid. Leave to sit for 5 1. The lentils will absorb more of the water making them juicier and more tender. Its not essential to do this, but I really like the way they turn out when I do. Ive added the cloves to this recipe after a reader Cori at Well Being Universe suggested it to reduce flatulence. Ive tried adding ground clove when I cook my lentil soup and I love the taste. Other readers have reported that it does help with reducing flatulence, so give it a try. You can use either whole or ground cloves. Makes about 4 cups cooked lentils. Variations Add some diced potatoes or sweet potatoes, they will cook in the same time it takes the lentils to cook. Youll probably need to add more water to compensate for what the potatoes will absorb, but you can add it as needed while its cooking. Add spices in addition to the salt. Curry powder, ground cumin, garlic, cayenne or chili powder, and cilantro all go really nicely with lentils. Kitchen Tip Heres a tip from Cori at Well Being Universe see the comments, to reduce flatulence add 2 3 cloves to the boiling water when you are cooking your lentils. I cant wait to try this, I love the taste and smell of cloves and I bet it adds a beautiful, subtle flavor to the lentils. Update I love adding some ground clove to my lentil soup. I do it all the time now. Beans, Split Peas and Lentils Start Cooking. Beans, split peas and lentils often referred to as pulses are the edible seeds of legume plants. They are a great low fat source of protein and are high in fiber. This post covers how to cook dried and canned pulses, and provides links to some great recipes. Some beans go by several different names. For example the cannellini bean is also known as a white kidney bean and roman beans are also called cranberry beans, borlotti beans, shell beans, or Christmas beans. Many popular beans, like black beans, cannellini beans, red beans and chick peas can be bought in cans already cooked. The way that you cook dried beans is very different from the way you cook split peas and lentils its all about soaking. Split peas and lentils do not require soaking. They take a short amount of time to cook about 2. Dried beans on the other hand, do require soaking for at least 4 hours. It is best to soak them overnight. Types of Beans and How to Use Them in Your Cooking. Healthy Green Chicken Curry here. Beans, such as Roman beans, red beans, cannellini beans, and black beans, all shown above are sold dried in bags that can be stored up to a year in the cupboard, or in the freezer. As noted above, dried beans have to be soaked in water for several hours or overnight before they can be used. To soak beans overnight, use 3 cups of water for every cup of beans and soak at room temperature. Then, strain the beans with a colander, discarding the soaking water. For a faster soak, try boiling the beans in the water for two minutes, then letting them stand for one hour. Another option is to microwave the covered beans and water for 1. Some packaged beans have been pre soaked theyre typically labelled quick cooking. Pre soaked beans will take one to three hours to cook, depending on the kind of bean. Follow the package directions for stove top cooking times. Using a pressure cooker cuts down cooking time significantly. Heres a chart that shows how long it takes to cook various kinds of beans in a pressure cooker. Some take less than 1. Canned beans are a great timesaver theyve already been cooked. Some canned beans have unnecessarily high levels of sodium, though, so check the nutrition information. To use canned beans, drain and rinse them, then add them to salads, rice, pasta or couscous dishes. You can also add them to cooked dishes like soups and stews. The Mayo Clinic provides a handy reference chart for various types of beans and their uses. How to Soak Split Peas for Cooking also called field peasThese are dried peas that have been mechanically split along a natural seam, so that they cook faster. You can buy either green or yellow split peas. Either color can be used to make split pea soup. There are tons of variations and ways to make split pea soup your own. Split Pea Soup has chunks of turkey kielbasa in it. Startcookings gree Split Pea Soup. It is not necessary to soak split peas, but they do require rinsing and sorting. Split peas take 3. Getting your Lentils Ready for Cooking. Lentils take less time to cook than beans or split peas, typically around 2. Dried lentils dont require soaking, but they do require sorting and rinsing. Once youve measured the amount of lentils you need, put them in a strainer and sift through them with your fingers, looking for grit or small stones. Then run water over the lentils until its clear. Canned lentils are available, but you may find their texture too mushy. Theyre fine if youre using them in a soup or stew, but may be too mushy to use alone or in a salad. Some of the various kinds of lentils are French Green lentils Du Puy lentils These are prized for their texture they retain their shape and texture better than other varieties, so theyre great to use in salads or side dishes. Red These actually turn yellow when cooked. They are good in soups, particularly Indian dahl soup. Brown These are often available in cans. Theyre best in soups, because of their tendency to go mushy.