Pulse Fans?

[Chil1234]

Not the 65bpm type pulse but lentils, chickpeas and all of those. In the usual pre-holiday effort to save cash we've gone semi-veggie and I've got a cupboard full of cheapo kidney beans, pinto beans and split peas. I usually soak/cook/freeze the larger pulses in advance so that they're ready to go for veggie chilli or making hummus etc. Last night was beanburgers - lovely.

So that things don't get too samey anyone got some favourite pulse-based dishes they'd like to share?

Sorry, Chil, I can't really help you - but wanted to bump your thread hoping for a few ideas myself. Have been thinking the past couple of days that I should up our usage of pulses.

all sorts of beans smashed up with olive oil, lemon etc make a lovely spread or dip. Add garlic, herbs, chilli, cheese, other bits and bobs as you need to use up fancy. Have on toast, crackers, with crudetes etc.

Refried beans for mexican.

Beans, esp cannalini or borlotti are a toothsome contrast in pasta. I have know friends be sceptical about the carb on carb aspect of this, but they have converted!

Mashed as above but warm instead of mash, works particularly well with butter beans.

Dressed with oil and lemon etc with bits of peppers, cucumber etc they make a lovely salad. Works with beans or larger lentils/split peas. Serve at room temp.

Lentils cooked in a spicy tom sauce. Use in lasagne or mousaka. Or layer with fried /chargrilled slices of aubergine and natural yog. Top with feta (cheep "salad cheese" will do). My favourite. The yoghurt goes like cream cheese. Delish.

Little balls of deep fried tasty lentil mixture...ditto beans. Guess they are falafel? Well ime they work with any bean. Can have with pitta and salad, or spag and tom sauce (eh beanballs?)

Usuall suspects eg dahl, home baked beans, soups etc.

Crunchy roast chick peas like the ones you find in bombay mix. Toss cooked chick peas in olive oil and roast in a med low oven, about gmk four for an hour or so.

I think alot of the variaty can come from how you flavor them, earthy and smoked paprika one day, in a lemony dressing the next etc.

Will come back if i can think of more.

I soften some onions,garlic and chilli in some oil, add half a jar of passata, reduce for 15 mins then add 300g of black/green lentils and around 1.5l boiling water. After about 40mins of simmering the lentils should be soft, I then add 150g of short pasta and the rest of the passata, salt and pepper. Simmer for around another 10mins until the pasta is cooked adding more water if it becomes too dry.

My husband loves this dinner and he's a massive carnivore.

Give it a go, it's really easy.

Thanks for the ideas. I'd forgotten about dhal! Got some fresh coriander so that's a good one for later.

Both the bolognese sauce and the lentil pie base can be cooked in bulked and frozen for use at a later date. We regularly use these, very cheap and cheerful:

Lentil Bolognese:

1 onion
1 carrot
1 celery
1 red pepper, deseeded
2 tbsp olive oil
100g red lentils
400g can tomatoes
600ml vegetable stock/chicken stock
2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp cinnamon

Prepare the fresh veg by roughly chopping, heat oil in a large pan and fry chopped veg for about 8 minutes until soft. Stir in lentils, tomatoes, stock, oregano and cinnamon. Bring to the boil then reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Season, simmer for a further 5 minutes then serve with pasta. I whizz my sauce up slightly with a hand blender so my kids can't start picking out the veg they don't like.

Lentil Shepherd's Pie

1 onion
2 carrots
2 cloves garlic
100g mushrooms
1 tbsp olive oil
150 red lentils
1 400g chopped tomatoes
1 veg stock cube
2 large potatoes
1 swede

Preheat oven to 200oC/gas 6. Peel and dice onion and carrots, crush garlic and chop mushrooms. Heat oil in a large pan, gently saute the onion, carrot, garlic and mushrooms until softened. Add the lentils and chopped tomatoes and stir. Dissolve the stock cube in 350 ml water and cook gently for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until the lentils are cooked and soft. Peel and cube potatoes and swede. Place swede in a pan of water, bring to the boil and cook for 7-10 minutes. Add potatoes and continue to cook for 15-20 minutes until both are cooked. Drain and mash until smooth. Place the lentil mix in an overnproof dish, top with mash and add grated cheese if desired. Cook for 15-20 minutes until golden brown on top.