Category: Lentils

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The Reality of Reality TV (Recipe: Seared Scallops with Curried Lentils)

Scallops-lentils
I turned on the TV the other night to discover a new season of Hell’s Kitchen had begun.  After watching Chef Ramsey spew his usual venom for a few minutes, I turned it off.   

For the previous two seasons, I’d known at least one contestant on Hell’s Kitchen.  Two seasons ago, it was Andy Husbands, the chef/owner from Tremont 647.  We met as volunteers for Operation Frontline (now Cooking Matters), and then I worked for him when he first opened his restaurant.  Last season, Jason Santos reached the final-two.  He also worked for Andy at the same time I did.   Two days after each episode, Andy would post on his blog a behind the scenes perspective of the show.  And Jason posted amusing status updates on his Facebook page… teasing us with things to come.  (I also know Ben Knack tangentially – we're practically related – but that's another story)

With no friends on the show, the appeal was gone.

Instead, I went to kitchen and cooked scallops for myself.  I had no worries of anyone throwing scallops at me screaming “They’re raw, you donkey!!”  Without the pressure of cut-throat competition, I achieved a beautiful sear on both sides, cooked to my preferred medium doneness. (Would Chef Ramsey have approved??)

Honestly, I don’t understand how the contestants struggled with undercooking the scallops, whichon on the show had been sliced in half, so they would cook even more quickly.  Even with whole scallops, by the time the deep brown caramelization envelops the scallop; they are well on their way to medium.  With an additional 30 seconds in the pan, letting residual heat do its thang, they’re perfect.

Scallops are so sweet and delicious; they require little adornment beyond salt and pepper.  But to keep things interesting, I served them with curried French green lentils.  Fresh arugula provides a fresh, bright balance to the scallops and coaxes out the spice in the curry.

From the garden: celery, leeks, scallions

Seared Sea Scallops with Curried French Lentils

2 tbs. butter
1 shallot, small dice
1/2 carrot, small dice
1/4 celery rib, small dice
1/2 leek, small dice
2/3 cup French green lentils
1 1/2 tsp. curry powder
2 scallions, cut into rounds
1 pound sea scallops
1 tbs. plain oil
Salt and pepper, to taste

Over medium heat sweat shallots, celery, carrots and leeks in 1 tbs. of butter.  Add curry powder and lentils.  Add salt and pepper and 2 cups of water.  Bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 40 minutes, or until lentils are tender.  You may need to add up to 1 cup more of water. When lentils are cooked, stir in scallions and remaining butter.

Season scallops on both sides with salt and pepper.  Heat a large sauté pan over high heat.  When the pan is hot, add the oil.  Add the scallops and cook for approx. 3 minutes or until golden brown.  Turn scallop and cook for 1 minute more.

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Rich Man, Poor Man (Recipe: Lentils and Foie Gras)

Chefs have long paired pauper ingredients with luxurious ingredients to create a new level of refinement and balance. Cabbage and Truffles; Potatoes and Caviar; and Hot Dog Rolls with Lobster Salad.

For the same effect, Jean Georges Vongerichten poaches foie gras in lentils for an alluring juxtaposition of luxury, richness and texture. I happened to have more foie gras in the freezer….

(As a side note, I wanted to let you know that despite what it may seem with the regularity of foie gras posts, I do have a more balanced diet. But since they come in 1 pound lobes, I invariably have a left over chunk to indulge with at a later time).

His recipe called for poaching a full lobe in the lentils. To me this seemed overly decadent and not the best way to lure out the foie gras’ refined flavor. I prefer foie gras when it’s seared to crusty brown. But in a nod to the Jean-Georges, I melted a small piece of foie gras in the lentils to infuse some of the distinct flavor.

Lentils, red wine sauce and salmon on its own is a wonderful flavor pairing. The foie gras adds a new dimension, though this meal would be fabulous without it.

Seared Salmon with Lentils and Red Wine Reduction

1 tbs. plain oil
4 – 6 oz. salmon filets
1 cup pinot noir or other red wine
1/2 lemon juiced
1 large shallot, minced
1/4 cup chicken broth or water
butter
salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste

Lentils
1 tbs. butter
1 shallot, small dice
1/2 carrot, small dice
1/4 celery rib, small dice
1/2 leek, small dice
1 sprig thyme
1 cup French green lentils
1 oz. foie gras
2 scallion, cut into rounds

Cook the lentils: Over medium heat sweat shallots, celery, carrots and leeks in 1 tbs. of butter. Add lentils, salt and pepper and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Add the foie gras and simmer for 5 minutes more. When lentils are cooked, stir in scallions.

Cook the salmon: Season salmon with salt and pepper. Let salmon rest, skin side down on a paper towel to make sure skin is dry.

Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add oil. Carefully, place salmon, skin side down in the skillet. Do not poke or prod, when the skin is crispy, the salmon will easily come off bottom of pan. Flip over, and continue cooking until desired doneness. Remove salmon from pan, and keep in a warm place while preparing sauce. If you are serving foie gras, you can sear it in the hot, salmon pan at this point

Make the wine sauce: Pour off excess fat from the salmon/foie pan. Return pan to heat, add shallots, and cook for 1-2 minutes or until soft. Add wine, and let it reduce to about 1/4 cup. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil and reduce by half again. Turn the heat off, and whisk in butter, 2 tbs. at a time – for a total of 1 stick of butter (or more depending on your taste). Adjust seasoning with salt, pepper and a small squeeze of lemon juice.

Serve lentils with salmon, wilted spinach and seared foie gras. Drizzle sauce around the plate.

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Crop Rotation (Recipe: Lentils with Spinach and Scallops)

Legumes – things like lentils, peanuts and chickpeas – are plants grown specifically for their seeds. They are also an integral part of crop rotation – a farming practice of planting different crops in one location as a way to replace nitrogen and other nutrients that other crops deplete. This practice minimizes the need for fertilizers and helps ward off insects and fungus.

Plants get nutrients from the soil. And unless we amend the soil, it will degrade every season as plants pull more and more from the soil. Amendments can come in the form of artificial fertilizers and organic compost. We can also add nutrients back by planting particularly nutrient dense crops, such as clover, wheat grass and legumes. Instead of depleting the soil, they add nitrogen and other important nutrients back into the soil… and planting these crops across a tapped area of soil can help it recover, so that future crops will grow better.

For me, lentils are a protein- and nutrient- dense food that is also very economical. They come in a variety of colors and shapes – red, green, brown and the rounder French (green) lentils. The French lentils are better for holding their shape, the red are great for their wonderful color and in soups since they puree easily.

In the past few weeks, a bevy of recipes have popped up on the blogosphere…
Barley Pilaf with Lentils from The Perfect Pantry
Palak Dal from Closet Cooking
Crock-Pot Curried Red Lentils from Eat This.

Last week, I made a variation on Mulligatawny soup from We Are Never Full, and garnished it with seared scallops and spinach.

Mulligatawny Soup
1 tbs. butter
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 inch piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled, chopped into a few chunks
½ stalk of celery, chopped finely
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
2 tbsp. curry
1/2 cinnamon
2 tsp. ground coriander seed
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. black pepper
1 can tomatoes
1 1/2 cups of red lentils
6 to 8 cups of chicken stock
Juice of 1 lemon or lime
½ lb. scallops
½ lb. spinach
Sour cream or plain yogurt to garnish

1. Melt butter in a soup pot over medium heat. Add onions, garlic and ginger and sauté until they soften and become fragrant.
2. To the pot, add the spices, carrots and celery. Cook for 1 minute more, just to toast the spices and help them release their flavor.
3. Add the lentils, tomatoes and chicken stock. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to simmer and cook for 30 minutes or until lentils are tender.
4. Meanwhile, season scallops with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet over high heat. Add a tablespoon of oil. Add the scallops and cook for 2 minutes or until they start to brown. Flip them over and then cook for 2 minutes more. Remove the scallops from the pan.
5. Return the scallop pan to the heat. Wilt spinach. Season with salt and pepper and lemon juice.
6. When lentils are tender, puree in the blender or with an immersion blender. Adjust seasoning with salt pepper and lemon juice. Garnish with scallops and spinach.