Lentil experts of Mumsnet, can you help me out?

[Ottika]

I am new to lentils and would prefer to try a few pre made soups and sachets before committing to cooking my own.
I also often get a little bit of, er, gas when eating beans or pulses.

I read that soaking the lentils overnight actually reduces the element that causes gas, and also helps the body to retain more nutrients (sounds like a winner!).

So, if I start out with a healthy pre made soup or a microwave Merchant pack to see if I like them, can I presume those lentils were soaked prior to packaging? One would imagine they would be? I can't find any info about this online, and don't wish to spend the next week competing in the fart olympics..

Thank you.

I’m not a lentil expert but I make batches of slow cooker red lentil dahl using Taming Twins recipe and it’s lovely! Highly recommend it, easy to make, freezes well and doesn’t make me gassy

I don’t think there’s any foolproof way with lentils, when I first started out eating them I use to soak them but I can’t say it made much difference 😄. You just need to regularly consume them, starting slowly until your gut gets better at digesting them.

They probably weren’t soaked because lentils don’t really need it from a cooking perspective (unlike beans where it speeds things up a lot). I wouldn’t soak red lentils by the way, otherwise they will probably get mushy before you even cook them.

I use red lentils a lot and I don't think you need to soak them overnight. But it does help if you rinse them for a few minutes until the water runs clear. If you don't, you'll get a white scum on the top that has to be skimmed off.

I've never soaked red lentils and they seem fine for me (whereas chickpeas are...not). As others have said you probably need to work up to it - maybe start by mixing some into a bolognese or shepherds pie half and half with meat or veggie mince?

I think what bothered me the most was reading that 'phytates' (which are removed by soaking) reduce the iron and nutrients.

I have heard that starting small can help the gut so the soup sounds like a goof first call.

Hope someone can elucidate about the iron absorption though!

Try Tesco Lentil and Bacon soup, one of my favourites.
When cooking your own, start with red lentils as they take the least amount of cooking and go with lots of vegetables. Make soup and maybe then move onto things like a Dahl.
I cook up batches of Continental lentils and freeze them to add to dishes later. I also add cooked Continental lentils to a salad for a protein boost and they add a lovely nutty flavour.

Lentils only need to be soaked for 30 minutes to cook evenly, of at all. Overnight soaking makes them taste watery so I imagine merchant grains hasn't done this.

You're overthinking this, the only thing you have to worry about is frequency, try 3 servings per week to start, and drink plenty of water!

I am only concerned about iron because I am planning to reduce meat.

Thanks everyone!

How does water help?

Merchant puy lentils, with some feta mixed in, and some lemon, herbs and seasoning, and some fresh tomato and diced cucumber mixed in too. Make it, bung it in the fridge, and have a bit each lunchtime over the course of a few days. Delicious, easy, healthy and totally recommended!

I have the same problem.
Look up the Fodmap diet. Legumes/lentils are high in fodmaps & some people are sensitive to them.
You can reduce the fodmaps by eating tinned legumes after draining & rinsing them. Obviously you can't do that to red lentils.

Pair with tomatoes or another food with vitamin c to help absorb iron, and avoid pairing iron with calcium.

I am fine with other fodmaps, no issues to speak of. Just beans and lentils!

Love this idea, will try with cream cheese I think! Every time I buy tomatoes recently, no matter where from, they are overly large, wrinkled and taste bland. Not sure what's happened to them.

I eat mung beans as a substitute for lentils. Green or brown lentils are tastier than red IMO. Buy them in the World Foods section of the supermarket.

Winter savory is said to help with abdominal gas.

Try the green lentils in a tin and cook exactly as you would mince.

I add a tin to mince curry

Me too.
I'm sensitive to particular fodmaps - oligosaccharides & fodmaps. The attached info. Are ways of reducing them.

@Ottika Meant to quote your question about water...fibre in food absorbs a lot of water inside your digestive system, so if you eat a lot of fibre and don't drink enough you'll be constipated.

Drink more than you think you'll need! If you're in this for gut health not just the taste of lentils I like Regucol powder from Holland and Barrett.

The grassiness is to do with getting used to them, according to Zoe research.

Thank you!

Red lentil Dahl and then merchant gourmet ready made puy lentils with goats cheese in a salad are two good entry level options

Red lentils you can pretty much bung a handful in anything. They cook down to nothing in about 20 mins.

My only tip - if you didn’t already know - is to rinse any type of lentil in a sieve before you cook them. Make sure you pick through them to take out any tiny stones.