To presoak or not to presoak?

[MinorChef]

Help me please! I'm fairly new to the world of home cooking and have a recipe for a lentil shepherds I'd like to make. It doesn't say if I should presoak the lentils and wondered what the wise world of mumsnet would suggest. Any suggestions? (I couldn't find beluga lentils in Asda so bought red split lentils). Also do I need to precook the quinoa in the topping? It needs to be baked for 45 minutes so I don't know if that's long enough anyway...

www.bosh.tv/recipes/lentil-shepherdless-pie-with-bol

red split lentils don't need soaking.
they are 'naked' and cook quickly.
any lentils with their hull I would soak.

Red split lentils are very different to beluga and will turn into a mush when cooked while beluga retain a lot of bite and are much more 'mince' like for a shepherd's pie. I would probably get the packs of pre-cooked ones that merchant gourmet or similar do in the supermarket, or use a can. You definitely need to boil the quinoa first if you're using it for the topping, takes about 20 mins. Good luck! Hope it turns out delicious.

Thank you! Fingers crossed, I'm making it for my in laws. Appreciate the advice!

good luck!
actually I use red lentils a lot. often to bulk out meat dishes or as substitute. they are less 'farty' than other lentils and very unoffensive taste wise.