In my quest to make dinner in advance, I decided to choose something pool-friendly and focus on seasonal tomatoes and herbs. And so, this lentil salad was born.
I used to eat lentils all the time about 10 years ago, and I have no idea why they fell off my meal plan list. Maybe I got a little tired of them? They are such a superfood, easy to cook, and cheap! Remind me to make more in about a month : )
I had a tomato recently that was so very delicious, that I knew they had to be involved. I bought these, but any minute now our garden tomatoes will be ready for all the dinners!
Lentils don’t need to be soaked and they cook in 15-20 minutes. Then everything else just gets tossed together. The herbs are from my garden. I used basil, dill, parsley, and thyme, tossing in some candied chopped walnuts as well!
I try to buy feta cheese in block form and crumble it myself because I think it has a much nicer texture. The same with goat and blue cheese – precrumbled never has as much flavor or texture. Although the convenience factor is a plus, it’s really easy to crumble some yourself. Arugula adds a “salad” component and will stand up to a few days in the fridge. (Chopped kale would also work well!)
I’m still loving this dressing, which went great on the salad combined with lemon zest and lemon juice. You can use any balsamic-ish dressing you like, or just olive oil and vinegar.
Toss ‘er up and serve warm or chilled. I liked it slightly re-heated for lunch the next day.
Simple Herby Lentil Salad
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup dry lentils cooked
- 1.5 cups cherry tomatoes halved
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts toasted or candied as a bonus!
- 1/2 cup fresh herbs minced
- 1 cup arugula
- 4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
- Juice and zest of 1 lemon
- 2 tbsp dressing of your choice or 1 tbsp each olive oil and vinegar
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- After you've cooked your lentils and done the prep chopping, mix everything together and serve warm or chilled.
Enjoy as a picnic, for lunch, as a dinner side, as a dinner main with salmon on top, hot or cold, or for breakfast!
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog says
I actually didn’t discover the deliciousness of lentils until I got into the whole health thing, but it’s one of my favourites now. Lentil salads are so bomb! 🙂
Charmaine Ng | Architecture & Lifestyle Blog
http://charmainenyw.com
Amy says
This reminds me of your old lentil salad recipe that I make regularly: www.katheats.com/home-roasted
KathEats says
Haha that looks good! I love it when old me inspires new me 🙂
Matt says
Umm hellooooooo, I know why lentils fell off your diet! You’re not making the same mistake again I hope?!
KathEats says
Hahaha! As long as there’s no garam masala or ginger, I’m good : )
Kori says
I was going to say the same thing, hahahaha! A certain sweet boy knocked those lentil cravings to the sidelines. Although perhaps not as nice of a texture, Kroger often sells canned organic lentils for only $1, so this salad could come together even quicker! Lovely recipe!
Stephanie @ Whole Health Dork says
This looks really similar to a recipe my mom would make when I was younger. I always really liked it and have no idea why I haven’t made it for us! It seems like it would be great for when it’s hot because the you don’t need to put on the oven and if you don’t want to turn on a burner inside, you could use a side burner on the grill (if you have one). Thanks for the reminder! We’ll have to add this in to this week’s meals!
Clarice says
What is that cute plate that looks like it’s sewn from denim or some other fabric? I can see that it’s shiny and actually a plate, but where did you get it? So cute!
KathEats says
I am not sure because it was a gift! It does have a linen pattern 🙂
Sara says
Hi Kath! Long time follower (from back in the days when you and Emily would do long runs at like 5am every day – haha) and I’m actually going to be in Cville this weekend for my bachelorette party! Do you recommend any restaurants for our main dinner out? A few ideas being tossed around are: Maya Restaurant, The Local, The Whiskey Jar, Oakhart Social, and Mas Tapas. Have you been to any or heard good (or not good!) things? Really appreciate your insight (or anyone else’s if they’re familiar with those restaurants). Keep up the great blog – I obviously still love reading it and am so excited for you and your growing family!
KathEats says
Hi Sara! Those are all great choices!! Maya or the Local would be good for making reservations. Mas is great too, but there can be long waits for groups. Whiskey Jar is great for drinks. I also love the Margarita flight (which I’ve gotten virgin recently) at Zocalo! People love Fitzroy and Skybar for drinks too. Great ice cream on the mall from Splendora’s and Chaps (birthday cake flavor!) and we have a new donut shop to check out – Sugar Shack!
Sara says
Just wanted to thank you for your recommendations! We ended up at Maya and it was delicious 🙂
KathEats says
Yay! I love their food!
Hofterzielbeek says
Oh my goodness! This Herby Lentil Salad is so good that, I am eager to try them. Thanks for sharing this recipe.
Erin says
I love lentils and this looks amazing! I like the tip about buying a block of feta – I always forget that.
Kelly says
This looks so good! I just bought some lentils to make kitchari so this will be a great way to use them up. And I love the suggestion of arugula!
Amanda says
Can’t wait to try this! Our garden is producing great tomatoes and herbs this summer, so this recipe is perfect!
Ruth says
Delicious and oh so simple! Definitely adding this to our meals this week so that I have a fast and yummy option for lunches. Your recipes are so wonderful because you maximize the most out of a simple ingredient list. Thanks, Kath!
Rhonda @ Change In Seconds says
Loved the recipe, very delicious!
Donna says
I’m making this for lunch today, but I’m using a quick fix. Aldi has precooked lentils in a bag – microwave 90 seconds. Perfect every time and no added ingredients. I might substitute the precooked farro in this recipe, too!
Kath Younger says
Perfect quick solution!! We just got an Aldi here but I haven’t been yet.