We had a can of lentil soup for lunch today. Along side the soup each of us had a nice homemade roll. The kids got koolaid to drink. (They sure thought they were living high getting koolaid!) While we were eating the soup I came to the brilliant conclusion that I don't like lentil soup. I don't like lentils as a side dish. I just don't like lentils.
I ate the soup with a smile on my face. I have no intention of swaying the grand kids into not liking food. It did get me to thinking about lentils and other things I may have in my food storage. Now, most of the soup we eat is homemade but I do have close to 25 cans of soup for days that I just don't feel like cooking, which can also be the beginning days of TSHTF. I keep the soups rotated, which means we do eat canned soup every once in a while. This can of lentil soup needed to be eaten.
Of course, eat a can, replace it with two. But I won't be replacing it with lentil soup! I have dry lentils in my food storage. Why? I can't for the life of me understand why I thought it would be a good idea to spend money on them. It was probably one of those purchases where I thought it would be nice to have a wide variety of foods. Sure, if you like eating them. But I don't. When TSHTF and someone comes along wanting to barter for food, the first thing to go will be lentils.
Note to self. If I don't like it now I won't like it then. While it's important to have a variety of food so you don't get into a food rut and not want to eat, don't store what you don't like.
Is it something you would notice if it was part of a stew or mixed-bean soup? I don't like onion soup but onions as one ingredient of many is fine.
ReplyDeleteI'll eat them and if they were part of a soup with lots of other ingredients it would be ok. I just won't be buying any more!
DeleteGot it re: not liking lentils. Not my favorite either. They are 30% protein. I store them because they provide 20 amino acid, more than other legumes. When used as sprouts, they synthesize 2 more amino acids making them fairly important for food storage if the meat supply isn't steady. If they aren't cooked almost to the point of disintegration, they taste green and nasty to me. If salted before they are completely cooked, the skins toughen and they never absorb other flavors that help them taste more cooked. In soups, bacon bits or ham flakes (left overs from the big ham!) added near the end of cooking makes a big difference in the taste.
ReplyDeleteSee if you can stand them sprouted. Try sprouts raw, cooked or mixed with ground wheat in breads before you give up on them altogether. I usually eat the red lentils (which may be cheating), cooked in chicken broth with lots of garlic and some ginger. The resulting texture should be about like bean dip. It makes a good dip or spread when cooked like this.
I think of lentils like a empty shell that needs to be filled. That is the taste needs something...
ReplyDeleteMy preference is meat/fat/tomatoes/hot peppers/spices in that order or all of the above. I love baked beans but wouldn't think of eating them without similar supporting "actors" to prop them up.
I agree that lentils are good for you! Perhaps trying out more recipes where they are a supporting item rather than the main flavor would be a good idea. They'd work well as part of a "fireless cooker" meal which I'll post on tomorrow.
ReplyDeleteI'm about the only person in the family who likes lentils, so when I make a bunch I eat really good for a few days. Soups and stews I can't get enough of, I just have to freeze half of whatever I make.
ReplyDeleteI'm positive I have things I don't like in storage but I would rather have it I suppose. Canned pumpkin tastes nasty unless it's in a pie, but it's great for you and I can stomach it. I'm often surprised at how much I like things I don't like when I'm starving (relatively speaking).
Have you tried sprouting your lentils? You can then use them as a salad ingredient or even cooked in stir frys, or in soups. I haven't personally tasted lentils after sprouting, but I have read they contain much more vitamins and nutrients than the dried bean cooked.
ReplyDelete