CrockPot Honey Lentils Recipe

Day 337.

I can not figure out what to call this. It's a lentil dish with honey and soy sauce--two condiments I would never ever ever in a million years think to put in a lentil dish. The combination is sweet and tangy and different. I liked the flavor, but couldn't really pinpoint what I liked about it. There were a few times that I got an overwhelming earthy flavor (read: dirt) but I was assured that my taste buds were wigging out because this most definitely did not taste like dirt to the others at the table.

They liked it.

I was chatting with Mir yesterday (thanking her for the awesome Internet shopping deals), and she sent me her newly-vegetarian daughter's favorite lentil recipe. She got it from MaryP. at It's Not All Mary Poppins. I had to change some things so I wouldn't have to put on real clothes and stop cyber-shopping, but this is most definitely Mary's recipe. Thank you!

The Ingredients.

--1 1/2 cups lentils (I used brown)
--3 cups water
--1/2 red onion, diced
--1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
--1/2 cup shredded carrot
--1 tsp salt
--1 tsp dried mustard
--1/4 tsp ground ginger (fresh is shown in the picture, but it was all black and nasty when I peeled it)
--2 T soy sauce (La Choy or Tamari Wheat Free are GF)
--1/3 cup honey (and maybe another 1 T later to taste)
--1 dried bay leaf or 2 fresh

The Directions.

I used a 4 quart crockpot.

The awesome thing about lentils (actually, there are a few awesome things) is that they are cheap, full of fiber, and you don't have to pre-soak them. You really should rinse them off, though.

Put the lentils into your crockpot. Add the water. Chop up the onion, and add along with the carrots (I cheated and used a bag of shredded carrots leftover from the chicken adobo). Drain and rinse the garbanzo beans and add. Stir in the dried mustard, salt, and ginger. Add the soy sauce and honey. Stir to combine. Float the bay leaf (ves) on top.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-5. I started ours on low for 3 hours, then switched it to high for another 3 when I realized that I added wrong in my head (that actually happens a lot with me.)

Taste. If desired, stir in an extra tablespoon of honey.

Serve with white or brown rice if you're a vegetarian, or a rib-eye if you're not.

The Verdict.

I liked these! The flavor was really quite different, and I don't know how else to describe it. The kids had some bites along with a box of mac-n-cheese (the Annie's gluten free kind), and Adam and I had a bowl with a grilled cheese sandwich.

Lentils are quite filling; this made enough for quite a few lunches this week. I really appreciated that this recipe called for water instead of broth, and that I had everything in the house already.

Thank you Mir and Mary!

another fantastic lentil dish:
Morrocan Lentil Soup