Recipes for Kim: Red or Green lentil bolognese
This bolognese recipe is part of a personal project, Recipes For Kim, where a reader has sent me a list of the ingredients in her kitchen cupboard and I promised to write some recipes around them. These aren’t costed, as this isn’t my kitchen cupboard!
Recipes for Kim: Red or Green Lentil Bolognese
Ingredients:
1 onion
1 carrot
Shake of oregano
100g red or green lentils
1 carton chopped tomatoes or passatta
1 beef stock cube
How To:
1. Peel and slice the onion and add to a large sauté pan.
2. Finely grate the carrot into the pan, chopped tomatoes or passatta, lentils and oregano, and simmer over a low heat for 20 minutes or until the lentils are al dente. You may need to add more stock or water as the lentils will absorb a lot of liquid.
3. Serve over spaghetti – or in Kim’s case, with orzo pasta – with cheese on top.
Jack Monroe. Follow me on Twitter @MsJackMonroe. Find me on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/agirlcalledjack
A Girl Called Jack is available to order here: http://www.amazon.co.uk/A-Girl-Called-Jack-Monroe/dp/0718178947
Categories: Recipes & Food
COOKING ON A BOOTSTRAP 
A cool way to eat faki/fakes without having to chop half the produce aisle to make a kettle of soup! I like!
Oh, don’t know how much you’ve discussed the third member of the Fasola Trinity (1. Gigantes, 2. Fakes (Lentils), 3. Stragalia (chick peas aka garbanzos))….I know you rely on canned stuff for time and cost savings where you live, but Mama finally divulged the secret to cooking raw chick peas quickly: soak overnight in some salted water and add a dash ofbaking soda(bicarb) to the pot when boiling. I have ditched canned chick peas forever now.
Lentil based spag bol is a really good, soundly nutritious and filling meal. Done it loads of times here in the penniless household! I usually use wholemeal pasta for extra virtue points, but the ‘basics’ stuff is so cheap it’s always kept in stock ‘in case’. By the way, mixing grains (in the form of pasta) and pulses (in this case lentils) provides plenty of wholesome plant-based protein.
Made this last night as I am learning a new life since becoming a single mum on benefits – IT IS WONDERFUL!!! Added some extras like garlic with the onions, a tin of mixed beans plus black pepper… Such a tasty treat & I am so appreciative & grateful for you & this blog, it’s teaching me a new way of life. THANK YOU =D x
The beans are a genius idea Zaza. I made this with 100g of green lentils and added 100g of black eyed beans – an ever reliable substitute or addition to meat. Bit of mature cheddar on top and I was in heaven!