Lentils

bouicca21

Just checking whether you need to boil lentils (like kidney beans) before putting them in the slow cooker. It’s red lentils today but the question also applies to green ones.   I also wonder about other pulses, dried chick peas for example.  Or is it just kidney beans that are potentially toxic if not boiled?

SootySweep1

Hi
No, You don't need to soak or preboil lentils orange or green.
I  can't offer much advice in terms of pulses though.
Jen xxx

PipneyJane

Regardless of whether they are split or whole, you do not have to boil lentils first.  Also, they don't have to be soaked prior to use.  

Re: dried chickpeas, they do need soaking or they'll take forever to cook.  However, they aren't related to kidney beans, so the 10-minute-boil-to-break-down-the-toxins is not required.  The same goes for black-eyed beans, black turtle beans and dried peas  All the latter cook perfectly well in the slow cooker, although I find that I have to cook them on high or they take days to soften.

HTH

Pip

PS:  Pinto beans are a cousin of kidney beans and do need the 10 minute boil.

[Deleted User]

Hi,

I always rinse lentils first, gets rid of any stoor and prevents scum.

bouicca21

Knew this was the right place to ask!  Many thanks.

3secondmemory

PipneyJane said:

Regardless of whether they are split or whole, you do not have to boil lentils first.  Also, they don't have to be soaked prior to use.  

Re: dried chickpeas, they do need soaking or they'll take forever to cook.  However, they aren't related to kidney beans, so the 10-minute-boil-to-break-down-the-toxins is not required.  The same goes for black-eyed beans, black turtle beans and dried peas  All the latter cook perfectly well in the slow cooker, although I find that I have to cook them on high or they take days to soften.

HTH

Pip

PS:  Pinto beans are a cousin of kidney beans and do need the 10 minute boil.

I soak the chickpeas and other beans in cold water the night before I’m going to use them. It cuts the cooking time in half. 

 

Rosa_Damascena

3secondmemory said:

PipneyJane said:

Regardless of whether they are split or whole, you do not have to boil lentils first.  Also, they don't have to be soaked prior to use.  

Re: dried chickpeas, they do need soaking or they'll take forever to cook.  However, they aren't related to kidney beans, so the 10-minute-boil-to-break-down-the-toxins is not required.  The same goes for black-eyed beans, black turtle beans and dried peas  All the latter cook perfectly well in the slow cooker, although I find that I have to cook them on high or they take days to soften.

HTH

Pip

PS:  Pinto beans are a cousin of kidney beans and do need the 10 minute boil.

I soak the chickpeas and other beans in cold water the night before I’m going to use them. It cuts the cooking time in half. 

 

Add a dash of bicarb first.

-taff

I made jamie olivers lentil and bean italian thingy this week. I used up lentils with a BB date of 2013 and they were fine. I'm not howling at the mooooooon ...yet...

But it involved bay leaves, parsley stalks [ available in my garden], garlic and I chucked in a couple of sun dried tomatoes, added red wine vinegar,  olive oil and chopped parsely when drained, I probably added quite a bit more than his recipe though. They were astoundingly nice, even the OH ate them and he doesn't like nearly all pulses. I tried them again the next night with coriander stalks and chopped coriander, different and just as nice.

elsien

I cook a load of chickpeas in the slow cooker then freeze them in portions. Makes life a lot easier. 

goldfinches

Just thought I'd add my tuppence ha'penny to this post. 
To make green or brown lentils taste amazing: 225g green or brown lentils - wash and pick over, then place them in a saucepan with 420ml hot water and some salt. Bring to the boil, then cover and simmer very gently for about an hour, or until all the liquid has been absorbed and the lentils are mushy. Towards the end of their cooking time, heat 50g butter in a frying pan and soften 1 medium onion peeled and finely chopped, 1 clove of garlic crushed and 1 medium carrot scraped and finely chopped,  in it for 5 minutes then add 1 small green pepper deseeded and finely chopped and cook for a further 5 or 10 minutes. Tip the cooked lentils into a bowl and mash them to a pulp with a fork (not too smooth, you want some texture here) and then add in the softened vegetables. Now add some salt and pepper, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1/4 tsp mace, 1/2 tsp herbes de Provence and 2 tsps tomato puree and mix thoroughly. Divide into 12 portions and shape into rissoles, then dip into beaten egg and breadcrumbs and fry in about 5 mm of groundnut oil until golden, drain on kitchen paper and serve with tomato and chilli sauce.
This is a Delia Smith recipe from Frugal Food and I can vouch for it being delicious.
Having made it several times I would say the really essential thing is that you use butter as it gives a lovely flavour and that you cook the lentils with very little water so that when they're softened and you mash them the resulting pulp is quite stiff. Everything else that you're adding can be varied provided you stick to those two things.
I've made it as a full frying pan sized round before now rather than individual rissoles and that was very good and I've used panko crumbs to coat the rissoles as well as frozen home made hot cross buns whizzed in the food processor and they were both good too.

balabooberlies

I have had mixed success in slow cooker with red lentils.  Am trying to ease away from meat so am adding lentils to my bolognese sauce.  Sometimes they cook, sometimes they don't and still have a slight crunch. I always soak them but this seems to leech the colour.  Anyone know what I am doing wrong ?

bala