Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint

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Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint – a delicious protein packed salad that can be served warm or cold, great as a side dish or vegetarian main course.

Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint

I love lentils, they are an excellent source of protein, iron and fiber; and they are so versatile. I usually use lentils in soups, this time I wanted to use them in a salad. Since the weather has turned cooler, I wanted to make a salad that could be served warm.

I had some fresh mint in my refrigerator that needed to be used up and I knew that it would go well in a lentil salad. So, I decided to adapt this recipe from the nytimes.com, which also includes feta cheese and red bell pepper.


Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint

The main change I made, was to roast the red bell peppers using my new favorite technique of roasting over the open flame of one of my stove’s gas burners.

I successfully used this technique to roast eggplants for my Roasted Eggplant Dip and to roast a jalapeno for my Peach and Roasted Jalapeno Gazpacho.

Roasted Red Pepper

It was so quick and easy to roast the red bell peppers using this technique. First, I placed the peppers, one at a time, directly on the open flame of the gas burner. I used tongs to grasp the peppers by their stems in order to turn the peppers and ensure they got an even char.

Once each pepper was evenly charred, I placed it in a resealable plastic bag to cool down. When the peppers were cool enough to handle, it was easy to remove their charred skin using my fingers. (For step-by-step photos of this roasting technique, please see my post for Roasted Red Pepper Hummus.)

I chopped up the remaining flesh and added it to my cooked lentils along with the chopped mint, some red onion and feta cheese. I tossed it all in a cumin spiced lemon vinaigrette. The resulting Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint was so delicious and full of flavor.

Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint

This flavorful Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint can be served warm or cold and is an excellent side dish to a variety of entrees. We enjoyed it with chicken, it would also go well with beef, seafood or some grilled veggies.

This Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint is full of protein and would be great in the lunchbox along with a green salad or as a vegetarian main course.

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Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Yield: 4 - 6 servings

Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint

Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint - a delicious protein packed salad that can be served warm or cold, great as a side dish or vegetarian main course.

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ cups brown lentils
  • 1 yellow onion, peeled and halved
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 1 large sprig of thyme
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice (from about 1 lemon)
  • ½ teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 red bell peppers
  • ½ cup chopped red onion (from about ½ red onion)
  • ½ cup chopped fresh mint
  • additional salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Place lentils in a medium sized saucepan, cover with water and set aside to soak for 30 minutes.
  2. Drain the lentils and return them to the saucepan. Add the onion, garlic, thyme and bay leaf and cover by 2 inches with cold water and place over high heat.
  3. Bring the lentils to a boil, lower the heat to a simmer and cook until the lentils are tender, but not mushy, about 30 minutes.
  4. While the lentils are cooking, char the red bell peppers. Place the red bell peppers, one at a time, over the open flame of a gas burner, using tongs to carefully grasp stems and turn peppers to get an even char, about 3-4 minutes per pepper.
  5. Transfer charred peppers to a resealable plastic bag and let cool slightly.
  6. When peppers are cool enough to touch, remove from bag and transfer to a cutting board.
  7. Using fingers, rub off charred skin of peppers, discard skin. Also remove stems and discard. Chop remaining flesh, set aside.
  8. When the lentils are done cooking, remove from heat. Discard the onion, garlic, thyme and bay leaf and drain the lentils. Place the drained lentils in a large mixing bowl.
  9. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, cumin and salt to form a dressing.
  10. Pour the dressing over the lentils and toss to combine.
  11. Add the chopped red bell peppers, mint and feta to the lentils, toss to combine.
  12. Season the lentil salad with additional salt and freshly ground pepper, if desired. Serve warm or refrigerate until ready to serve. Lentil salad can be served warm or cold.

Notes

You can also roast the red bell peppers in the oven or on the grill.

http://joylovefood.com/lentil-salad-with-roasted-red-peppers-feta-and-mint/

 
Lentil Salad with Roasted Red Peppers, Feta and Mint - a delicious protein packed salad that can be served warm or cold, great as a side dish or vegetarian main course.

This recipe has been shared with My Legume Love Affair hosted by Herbs, Spices and Traditions, The Well Seasoned Cook and Lisa’s Kitchen.

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  15. Lou Lou Girls says:

    This looks so incredible! Pinned and tweet. Thank you for being a part of our party. I hope to see you on Monday at 7 pm, because we love to party with you! Happy Halloween~Lou Lou Girls

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