Whole Grains with Red Lentils

As I have gone gluten free, and as I am eliminating all refined carbs from my diet for better health, I’ve been experimenting with mixing different grains together for more variety.

Today, I added red lentils to my mix of grains, for a heartier dish with a bit more protein.

Unlike most beans (legumes), lentils don’t need to be pre-soaked and cook about the same length of time as other whole grains. They also are packed with vitamins and protein, and are quite cheap to buy. These red lentils, from a local bulk food store, cost only $0.59 per pound. Brown lentils cost even less and are found everywhere. I prefer the red lentils because the kids don’t notice those. (<—sneaky momma trick)

I am not a big “recipe” person. I tend to eyeball everything. In this case, I mixed together brown rice, quinoa, wild rice, and lentils in a 2 cup measuring cup. This is the proportions, but those aren’t as important.When starting out, you may want to add less lentils to get your family into the idea of eating them, especially if you’re trying to make them in such a way that they don’t notice.

Set 4 cups of water (lightly salted) to boil on the stove. Alternately, use some broth. Once it is boiling, add the grains and lentils. Bring it back up to a boil then turn it down for a simmer for about 20 minutes, or until nearly all of the water is absorbed.

As it’s boiling, sometimes (when adding lentils, for example) you’ll get some odd foam stuff on the top of the water. Just use a cooking spider (the utensil you see pictured) or a slotted spoon to get the bulk of that off.

Turn it off, leave the lid on, and let it sit for about 15-20 more minutes (for example, while you do other things). This will help the rest of the liquid absorb while not burning the bottom.

After all the water is gone, fluff with a fork and serve.