Gingered Lentil And Celery Salad Recipes

BRAISED CELERY WITH LENTILS AND GARLIC

Steps:

• Heat ¼ cup oil in a large high-sided skillet over medium-high. Add celery and toss to coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until celery is very lightly browned, about 5 minutes, then add garlic and toss to coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is deep golden brown and celery is tender and golden brown, 5-7 minutes. Mix in 1 tsp. kosher salt, then add wine and herbs (if using) and stir to combine. Cook until wine is reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Add broth and bring to a boil; stir in lentils. Cook until lentils are warmed through and flavors have come together, about 5 minutes. Taste and season with more kosher salt if needed. Fish out herb sprigs if using and discard.
• Heat remaining 1 Tbsp. oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium. Crack eggs into skillet and cover with a lid (or a baking sheet if you don't have one), reduce heat to low, and cook just until egg whites are set but yolks are still runny, about 3 minutes.
• Divide braised celery mixture among bowls. Top each with an egg and some celery leaves; sprinkle with sea salt and pepper. Serve with crusty bread, if desired.

LENTIL SOUP, DATE BALLS, CELERY SALAD

Steps:

• Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl. Set aside
• Put the tomato paste and 7 quarts (6.6 kilograms) cold water in a large nonreactive stockpot over high heat. Whisk occasionally as the water comes to a boil, then reduce the heat to maintain a gentle boil and cook for about 1 hour, or until it has reduced by about one-quarter. (Remove from the heat if the onions aren't ready.)
• Meanwhile, rinse the cilantro and parsley well and set aside. Cut the onions into large chunks. Put the chunks in a food processor and pulse until they are becoming a mush. Add as much of the herbs as fit into the food processor. Pulse the machine, adding small amounts of cold water if necessary to allow the blade to spin. As the herbs decrease in volume, add the remaining herbs and the celery leaves and continue to pulse. Stop from time to time to scrape the sides with a rubber spatula and mix the herbs to redistribute them. Run the machine for up to 10 minutes, until the mixture is almost liquefied.
• Transfer the mixture to a large saucepan and stir in the spice mix.
• Add the remaining 5 cups (1.2 kilograms) cold water to the onions and bring to a gentle boil over high heat, then reduce the heat and boil gently for about 1 hour or until the liquid is reduced by half.
• Stir the onion mixture into the stockpot, return to a simmer, and cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, skimming any impurities that rise to the top, until the soup has reduced by about one-third to just over 4 quarts (4 kilograms).
• Cut a lengthwise slit down one side of each date, open it as you would a book, and remove the pit. Cut the dates lengthwise in half, then cut each half lengthwise into 4 strips. Using your fingertips, shape each strip into a rough ball. If you keep the skin side facing out, the ball will be less sticky and will hold together better.
• Pour a shallow pool of olive oil into a small bowl. Rub a little of the oil on the center of one palm, put a date ball on it, and use the index finger of your other hand to roll the date into a smooth ball. Put the ball in the bowl of oil, and repeat with the rest of the dates, adding more oil to the bowl as needed to keep the date balls covered. Set aside.
• Put the lentils in a saucepan, add 6 cups (1.4 kilograms) cold water, and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook the lentils for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring them from time to time.
• Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with cold water. Taste a lentil. When they have started to soften but are still firm in the center, drain them in a fine-mesh strainer, rinse them with cold water, and submerge them in the bowl of cold water until ready to use.
• Remove the tough outer celery stalks and reserve them for another use. Pinch off the leaves from the inner stalks and place the leaves in a bowl of ice water. Cut the stalks into 1/8-inch dice; you need 1 cup (120 grams). Put the diced celery in a small bowl, toss with the olive oil and parsley, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Once the soup has reduced, add the lentils; keep warm over low heat.
• Whisk together the flour, water, and yeast in a small bowl and let sit at room temperature until foamy and bubbling, about 10 minutes.
• Whisking constantly, add the flour mixture to the soup, then stir with a flat-bottomed wooden spoon, scraping the bottom of the pot, as you bring the soup to a simmer over medium heat. (High heat could cause the flour to stick to the bottom of the pot.) Simmer the soup gently, stirring often, for 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt, remove the soup from the heat, and stir in the lemon juice.
• Drain and dry the celery leaves. Using 2 soupspoons, form the celery salad into a quenelle or football shape and place toward the rim of each soup bowl. Stack about 8 date balls alongside each quenelle. (If you end up with extra date balls, keep them in the refrigerator and add them to salads.)
• Carefully ladle the soup around the garnishes so that a bit of the celery salad and the date balls remain visible. Drizzle some of the olive oil that remains in the bowl of celery salad over the soup and garnish with the celery leaves.

LENTIL AND CELERY ROOT SALAD

Steps:

• Cook celery root in pot of boiling salted water until tender, about 45 minutes. Drain, cool and peel. Cut enough of root into 1/4-inch cubes to yield 1 1/2 cups.
• Cook lentils in pot of boiling salted water until just tender but still firm to bite, about 20 minutes. Drain; cool.
• Whisk oil, vinegar, garlic, rosemary and nutmeg to blend in small bowl. Season with salt and pepper; add cheese.
• Mix celery root, lentils and dressing in bowl. (Can be made 4 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. Toss occasionally.)

LENTIL SALAD WITH BEETS AND GINGER

Steps:

• Place lentils in a heavy saucepan, cover with cold water to a depth of one inch, bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer until the lentils are tender, about 40 minutes. Drain the lentils and set aside, covered.
• While the lentils are cooking, cut the beet tops down to within an inch of the bulbs. Place the beets in a saucepan, cover with water and simmer until they are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain, peel and dice the beets, discarding the stems and roots.
• Heat the oil in a small skillet and add the ginger. Saute for a minute or so, then pour this oil over the drained lentils. Add the diced beets and fold them in.
• Beat the mustard and vinegar together and pour over the salad. Fold all the ingredients together. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve warm or at room temperature.

GINGERED LENTIL AND CELERY SALAD

Steps:

• Bring a pot of water to a boil. Peel the carrot and cut it lengthwise into 8 strips that are 1/8-inch thick and about 5 inches long. (If it is hard to get strips that long, shorter ones can be used.) Plunge the strips into boiling water for 1 minute, cool immediately under cold water, pat dry and set aside. Put the tomatoes in a fine sieve over a bowl and push them with the back of a spoon to press out excess liquid; set tomatoes aside.
• Put the lentils and the white onion in 2 quarts of cold water over medium heat and cook gently for 45 minutes. Drain, remove the onion and let the lentils cool. When cool, put lentils in a mixing bowl with the celery, red onion, ginger, lemon juice, soy and olive oil. Mix, adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, and chill.
• Put the cucumber, vinegar and mustard in a blender; season lightly with additional salt and pepper, and puree. Set aside.
• Line the inside of a round cookie cutter 2 1/2 to 3 inches in diameter with a carrot strip. Put the cookie cutter on a serving dish and use it as a mold. Spoon in the lentils and pat firmly. Gently smooth the tomatoes on top in a thin layer. Repeat with the remaining carrot strips and lentils, placing 2 rounds on each of 4 serving plates. Spoon the cucumber vinaigrette around the cakes, garnish with sprouts and parsley, and serve.