This salad is delicious. My mom got a hold of this recipe from her friend who took cooking lessons from Ina Garten in France. Its now in our family "Tried and True" recipe book, and the only credit I can find is "from a cookbook by Steven Raichlen." Thanks, Steven. This is a favorite!
The carrots, scallions (see note), and radishes all came from Woodland Gardens. I bought the lentils precooked in the produce section of Trader Joes to make it less time consuming.
St. Barts Lentil Salad
1 1/2 cups lentils (preferably Le Puy lentils - per my mom's notes, I used TJ's as stated above)
1 cup radishes, cut into matchstick slivers
2 whole tomatoes, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/4 in dice (I also cheated here - I just diced tomatoes without peeling and seeding... I was hungry and didn't want to wait!)
2 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4 in dice
1 stalk celery, cut into 1/4 in dice
1/2 small red onion, cut into 1/4 in dice (about 1/4 cup) *I used scallions today
1/4 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
3 TBSP finely chopped fresh tarragon (or other fresh herb or more parsley)
1 jalapeno chili, seeded and minced (I omit - personal preference)
1/2 tsp Tabasco sauce, or to taste
1 clove garlic, minced
3 TBSP fresh lime juice, or to taste
2 TBSP tarragon vinegar, rice vinegar, or red wine vinegar, or to taste
2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil
salt
freshly ground black pepper
Cook the lentils (unless you bought prepared lentils) in 6 cups boiling water until tender but not soft, about 25 minutes. Drain the lentils in a colander, reserving 1/2 of the cooking liquid. Refresh the lentils under cold water and drain well.
In a mixing bowl or salad bowl, combine lentils, radish slivers, tomatoes, carrots, celery, onion, parsley, tarragon, chili, hot sauce, garlic, lime juice, or season to taste. This salad should be highly seasoned.
YUM!
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