Skip to main content

Lentils with Swiss Chard and Feta

Steamy

This time of year, my 6 swiss chard plants are yielding a full bunch of chard every few days. I've been making lots of spinach recipes and subbing chard, and serving assorted things with a side of chard, but it's exciting when I find an actual chard recipe that I want to try. 

This recipe for Swiss Chard with Lentils and Feta came up in my Pinterest feed, and I'm actually pretty sure that I tried it once before, but I decided to try it again because I couldn't remember whether I liked it. (This is why I keep track of recipes on this blog.) Having now made it and enjoyed it, I think that I did in fact make it before but I executed it better this time, elevating it to a status worthy of saving on the blog.

One change that I unintentionally made is that after realizing my only onion was rotten, I substituted green onions. The original recipe said to saute the onions and cook them with the lentils, so I did that with about 1/3 of the green onions (the whitest parts) and just stirred in the rest at the end. This double-layer of green onion added really great depth and also some much-needed crunch from the fresh ones, so I'm keeping it.

I also prepared the lentils in the Instant Pot, and I'm sure they came out with better texture (and less boiled-over mess) than when I made them in a pot before.

I served it with this crusty bread, and it was perfect together, but it's also good enough to eat without bread.


The Recipe: (adapted from Chowhound)
2 tb olive oil
1/2 bunch green onions, chopped
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 c dried brown lentils
2 c water
1 bunch swiss chard, chopped
4 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 c feta cheese, cut into small cubes
salt and pepper to taste
  • Preferably in the instant pot: Saute the garlic with the whitest parts of the green onions (about 1/3 of the green onions) in 1 tb olive oil. Add lentils and water and pressure cook for 15 minutes. Natural release.
  • In a large saucepan, saute the chard in 1 tb of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. 
  • Add the cooked lentil mixture. Mix in vinegar, salt, and pepper. This mixture can be set aside and kept warm or refrigerated and reheated later.
  • When ready to serve, toss in the remaining green onions and the feta cheese.

The Verdict:
Overall grade: B+
Overall reason: It gets two pots dirty (or instant pot + pot) and it's not the type of food I often crave, but it is really delicious and healthy.
Time to prepare: 1 hour
Husband quote: "I like the cheese. It's a salty cheese."

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Kitchen renovation!

BEFORE: AFTER: Still to come: a beautiful new induction range and some wood shelving on the left side, above the backsplash. And maybe the shelving unit on the wall facing the cabinets should be green, but we're going to live with a while before making that decision.
2 comments
Read more

Red lentil dal

Cucumber salad is key. This dal is perfect. Most of us took seconds, and I'm really excited to eat the last portion that's sitting in the fridge right now. The accompanying salad is really great for adding texture, crunch, and acidity to the meal. I wouldn't skip it. I got it from  Tea for Turmeric  and prepared it pretty much as written, but doubled and with none of the optional ingredients. This recipe doesn't mention any seasoning/dressing on the salad, but adding lemon and salt to it really brightened things up. The Recipe: (from Tea for Turmeric) 2 c red lentils splash of avocado oil 2 tsp cumin seeds 2 small onions, finely chopped 1 inch ginger, grated 4 small tomatoes, chopped 2 thai chilies, minced 2 tsp cumin powder 2 tsp coriander powder 1 tsp cayenne 1 tsp turmeric 2+ tsp kosher salt 2 tsp lemon juice 1/2 c cilantro, chopped For serving: basmati rice and plain yogurt Salad ingredients: 1/2 english cucumber, sliced 10 cherry tomatoes, quartered 1/4 onion, slic...
Post a Comment
Read more

Vietnamese Curry Stir-Fry

  When I get the recipe just right, I'll go to the effort of adding fried shallots on top. I'm back to my on-and-off mission of trying to make a stir-fry as delicious as the shrimp I used to get at  Pho Grand  in St. Louis during college. It was called "cari tom" but it definitely wasn't a coconut milk type of curry, and they ALSO have a separate listing on their menu for "cari tom dac biet" which includes "coconut milk sauce" in their description. So I'm pretty sure it was just a stir-fry that had curry flavors in it? I got myself a big container of Vietnamese curry powder and I'm going to keep experimenting. This is the closest I've come so far. Changes for the future: - More oil and sugar, restaurant style - A blend of fish sauce and soy sauce, instead of just soy sauce - Fried shallots on top The Recipe (adapted from  Veggie Anh ): 3 tb fresh lemongrass, chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced 1 Thai chili, minced 1 pinch salt 2 tb avoc...
Post a Comment
Read more