I’ve made this lentil salad countless times over the past ten years. A friend of mine shared this with me – it was originally published in her daughter’s food blog, but that version was quite different. It included bacon AND a ham hock. Both good, but I prefer this lighter version. The red wine vinegar and Dijon make the flavors pop, but the generous seasoning of salt an pepper make a difference as well. Ron can’t eat legumes, so when I make this I’m eating it for days. It’s wonderful with slices of apple and hunks of sourdough. It’s great even for breakfast with a poached egg on top!
Lentil Salad
Ingredients
Lentils
- 1 T bacon grease or olive oil
- onion small yellow or 1/2 sweet onion, diced
- 6 cups water
- 1 pound lentils either green or brown, rinsed and drained
- 1/4 cup chopped parsley
- 2 teaspoons thyme
- 1 ham steak
Dressing
- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
- 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- 1/2 cup chopped red onion
- 1 cup celery diced
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Instructions
- Cook the lentils and toss with the ham – Sauté the diced onion until very tender. Add 2 t thyme and the lentils, and stir to coat. Add 6 cups water and 1/4 cup parsley, and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer until lentils are tender, about 30 minutes. Drain lentils. Chop the ham into 1/2 inch (or smaller) cubes. Toss the ham with the drained lentils.
- Make the dressing – Whisk oil, red wine vinegar, and Dijon mustard in a small bowl to emulsify.
- Dress the lentils and serve – Pour the dressing over the lentils and ham. Add the red onion, celery, and remaining 1/4 cup parsley. Toss to combine. Season generously with salt and pepper and serve at room temperature.
French green lentils are preferable because they’re small and they retain their bite, but brown lentils are good too. The green lentils are higher in protein, and the brown lentils are higher in fiber (so I’m told), but they both work in this salad. I wouldn’t use red lentils because they tend to fall apart as you cook them, and the texture is really nice in this Lentil Salad. Toward that end, don’t dice the celery too small – you want the crunch to contrast the earthiness of the lentils. It’s perfect. Trust me – if you make this salad once, you’ll make it over and over again.
This looks yummy. Do you use dried thyme here?
Hi Amy. Yes I use dried thyme. Please don’t judge! 🙂 I actually prefer dried thyme and oregano to fresh.