Red Lentils

Clutterfree

Hello,
I wonder if anyone can help me please?
I've never used red lentils before but I would like to stretch my mince a bit further (but without the family noticing them in there!).
I am cooking a spag bol today so would like to know how I add them to the recipe please?
Is it after I've fried off the mince and added the liquid? Or is it before I add the liquid? Do I need to soak them or anything first?
I start my spag bol on the hob, but then I transfer it all to my slow cooker so will the lentils be fine in there?
I am doing a batch this morning and have 800g of steak mince so how many lentils would I need please?
As I said I don't want the family to notice them so don't want to put in too many. I already "bulk" out the mince with celery, pureed carrots, diced carrots and mushrooms.

Sorry for all the questions but I am a complete novice when I comes to lentils!
Thanks for any advice!

knithappens

in have just started doin this, i put about a cup in, i use the slowcooker too and they are not noticable, my son will spot an union in a nano second ( fussy eater) but he has not managed to spot these lol

seabright

I put them in when it goes in the slow cooker. Give it a good stir to mix them in. I put them in anything dark-coloured (and savoury!) that goes in the slow-cooker - any kind of beef stew, for example.

Let us know what your family thought - hopefully they'll either say "delicious" or nothing at all!

SailorSam

I've got about half a dozen or more assorted bags of lentils, not just red and throw a handful of each in.

specsappeal

i only use lentils (red) when i am making soup but i would like to put them in my mince based meals too. However i dont have a slow cooker to i tend to cook my spag bog on the hob. can you also just throw the lentils in to the pan on the hob or should i boil them up first and then mix them in??

jackieglasgow

You can just throw them in, they don't take too long to cook at all.

jc2703

I throw a couple of handfuls in for 500g of mince of red lentils and no-one has noticed;) I will say though I tried the same thing with green lentils and DH spotted it straight away - he said it was the texture

J x

tim_n

green lentils are a bit gritty I've always found. Red lentils are fine though!

lolarentt

You can use aduki beans as well, they actually give the appearance of mince
Old thread:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=232805