Shoestring Meals Budget friendly ideas for healthy eating

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Old 02-28-2011, 03:43 PM   #1  
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Default ideas for lentils and other legumes that guys want to eat?

what are your tips?
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Old 02-28-2011, 04:03 PM   #2  
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What specifically are you looking for?

I eat beans every day. There are some great ethiopian/indian recipes for lentils. Then there are 'americanized' versions of making sloppy joes with lentils. Hummus is great but so are just chickpeas on a salad. Black beans are versatile from black bean soup to tacos. Anything specific or you just want bean recipes because there are thousands of those
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Old 02-28-2011, 04:06 PM   #3  
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Lentils and sausage in tomato sauce.

Family recipe, but this is the closest that comes to it: http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2...ut-recipe.html

Three Bean Chili

Hope that helps!
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Old 02-28-2011, 04:50 PM   #4  
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i've made lentil soup with lots of veggies, chicken curry with lentils, and hummus. my guy doesn't like the lentils or hummus. so if i could find a way to make it that would appeal to him, it would be easier. then when i want lentils or beans, he's not a big fan of those either, i can just make 1 meal for the whole family.
I've made different versions of black bean and sausage soup. he's not a big fan, but he'll eat it. same for minestrone.

he doesn't need to lose weight, he could actually gain a few, but we're trying to eat healthier. so he's willing to try new things sometimes. lentils just seem to just not have enough flavor for him. he likes spicy, stuff that's grilled, meat. stererotypical guy food.

today i made lentils that taste like BBQ beans, but healthier.

boiled lentils in water with a block of curry seasoning. (on the stove)
then i added cumin, BBQ sauce, and hot sauce. it was really good to me. i sent it with him to work. i'll see if it comes back untouched.
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Old 02-28-2011, 05:13 PM   #5  
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This is a blog by a guy that cooks for himself and his son. I filtered on lentil recipes and came up with quite a few:
http://vegandad.blogspot.com/search/label/lentils
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Old 02-28-2011, 05:50 PM   #6  
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On Sunday I made a pot of lentil stew for my lunches this week:


2 onions sauteed in 1 Tbs Olive Oil
1 Tb cumin
4 cup water
1 lb bag green lentils
1 large can diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 large bag spinach , washed and corsely chopped.

After sauteing the onions and cumin, add the water and lentils.
Simmer for 15 minutes
Add the tomatoes, salt, and spinach
Simmer for 5 more minutes.

Yummy beyond belief

The original recipe called for a couple of sausage links, but I like it plain.

Last edited by BillBlueEyes; 02-28-2011 at 05:51 PM.
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Old 02-28-2011, 06:42 PM   #7  
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keep those ideas coming we could all use more legumes!

those cajun chickpea cakes look great too. http://vegandad.blogspot.com/2009/02...pea-cakes.html
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Old 03-07-2011, 01:04 PM   #8  
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French lentils. Mark Bittman's general description here.

Cut a piece of bacon into tiny pieces and cook. Add onion or shallots or scallions, and garlic. Add a tin of tomatoes if you want. Add rinsed french lentils and water (or stock, or wine, or whatever) to cover. Simmer until lentils are done and liquid is absorbed. Stir in a big dollop of dijon mustard. Taste for salt, acid--add lemon juice or vinegar if needed.
These get even better the next day.
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Old 06-22-2011, 06:33 AM   #9  
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Black bean burgers (homemade)

Lentil chili (http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Lentil-...II/Detail.aspx)

Dal (Indian lentils- absolutely delicious. You can get garam masala at most grocery stores, or an Asian/Indian grocery store. http://www.indianfoodforever.com/daal/masoor-dal.html)

happy cooking!
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Old 06-22-2011, 08:23 AM   #10  
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Seconding chick peas in salad. I'm fond of a half-tin of chick peas, a diced carrot, a chopped tomato or two, a few mushrooms, green olives and/or a sundried tomato, maybe a red pepper, sometimes a few raisins.

Take a chopped onion, sauté it in olive oil with ground cinnamon, cumin and coriander, add a drained tin of green or brown lentils, and put onto pasta for a nice hearty Egyptian Jewish dish. You get 2-3 portions out of the lentil sauce.

Red lentils are great in vegetable soup. Onion, butternut squash and red lentils is lovely, with spices of course (saffron is good), and you can add lots of vegetables for the same sort of idea.

Refried beans with kidney or pinto beans and a nice amount of onion, garlic and cumin - not as fattening as you'd think (they're only fried once), and super tasty.

Sauté a thinly sliced onion in olive oil, add a few tomatoes (or a tin if you like), simmer until cooked, add a tin or equivalent of cooked chick peas and a packet of spinach and cook until the spinach wilts. Good with rice. Another Middle Eastern one from a Claudia Roden cookbook.

Kidney beans in a chilli, along with the usual onion, garlic, tomatoes, green pepper, sweetcorn.

My version of chana masala - sauté garlic, ginger and a chopped onion, add Indian spices (cumin and garam masala, generally), a tin of tomatoes, a tin of chick peas, bit of lemon juice, bit of coconut milk/powder/block. Weirdly enough, it's lovely on pasta as well as the more obvious rice.

I'm vegan, my other half is an omnivore who is not generally that excited about pulses, and he will happily scoff down all of this with enthusiasm. Apart from the soups, he doesn't really like soup, and I've never actually served him the salad version. Lentils on pasta is one of our great standbys, and it's less than 400 calories including a 3oz serving of pasta.

Last edited by Esofia; 06-22-2011 at 08:24 AM.
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Old 12-05-2011, 01:06 PM   #11  
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....mmmmmm, lovin' the beans!!!

I cook from scratch quite a bit, and "discovered" this one day when cooking a pot of white beans for supper. I cooked the dried beans in water with a bit of salt and 8-10 fresh sage leaves, and a couple cloves of garlic. When the beans were done, I scooped a 1/2 cup of the drained beans for myself - I drizzled 1/2 teaspoon really good olive oil over it (and was sure to grab a cooked sage leaf too)...It might sound plain, but the distinct flavors were incredible! I also tried a basil olive oil once, and was blown away! Just the littlest bit of oil permeated the beans with flavor!

(I REALLY want to visit the Tuscany region)...someday...
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Old 12-05-2011, 02:05 PM   #12  
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Quote:
Originally Posted by indiblue View Post
Black bean burgers (homemade)

Lentil chili (http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Lentil-...II/Detail.aspx)

Dal (Indian lentils- absolutely delicious. You can get garam masala at most grocery stores, or an Asian/Indian grocery store. http://www.indianfoodforever.com/daal/masoor-dal.html)

happy cooking!

My best friend is Guyanese and she makes her dal pureed (to serve with roti) and throws in cumin and garlic toasted in oil right at the end. She's also not a calorie counter.

I make mine with cauliflower mixed in and eat with rice.
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Old 02-07-2012, 12:44 PM   #13  
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The culinary teacher where I work (former Disneyworld chef) gave me this recipe that has been in my rotation. It's delicious without the bacon. With, I thought had too many competing flavors. I freeze it in one cup portions to eat for lunch.

Lentil soup

1 bag lentil
5 slices bacon, small dice (if don’t want bacon, butter or oil instead)
3 cloves garlic
1 large onion, small dice
2 large carrot, small dice
2 ˝ tbsp curry powder
64 oz chicken stock or water (adjust if need more or less)
˝ tsp salt
˝ tsp pepper

Cook the bacon or melted the butter/oil, add onion, carrot, and garlic for 10 minutes.

Add curry powder and stir for 1 to 2 minutes

Add chicken stock or water, bring to boil then turn down to simmer about an hour or the lentils are tender.

Adjust salt/pepper as you like.
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Old 02-07-2012, 12:47 PM   #14  
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Best Lentil soup recipe ever!


Lentil Soup

2/3 cup onions, chopped
2 teaspoons fresh ginger root, minced
2/3 cup tomatoes, canned or fresh, diced
1 bunch spinach
1 lemon, juiced
2 tablespoons olive oil
2-3 cloves garlic, large, minced
3 teaspoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cumin
1 cup lentils, uncooked, rinsed and sorted
5 cups chicken broth
Franks red hot sauce; to taste (or any hot sauce)
1/2 pound chicken breast, optional

Directions:
Sauté onions, garlic and ginger in olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
Add lentils and spices and stir well.
Add chicken broth, lemon juice, and tomatoes. Stir loosely covered for about 30-40 min. or until lentils are tender.
Add spinach during last 5 minutes.
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Old 04-02-2012, 05:18 PM   #15  
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I love this ever since I found this recipe. I'm vegetarian but this is so tasty that meat eaters like it too. I usually serve it with a little sour cream and my DH puts Thousand Island dressing on top because he puts that stuff on everything green or salady. You can use whatever vegetable you like and of course for those who like it spicy, add what you like.

Mazidra
8 ounces dried lentils
4 cups water
1 McCormick’s Chicken or Beef flavoured bouillon
1 or 2 Garlic cloves, minced
1 Bay leaf
Salt to taste
3 large onions, sliced thinly
4 tablespoons olive oil
3 or 4 cups hot cooked whole grain rice

Suggested Toppings
:
Shredded lettuce
Diced tomatoes
Sliced green onions
Sliced black olives
Diced cucumber
Guacamole
Salsa


In large saucepan, combine dried lentils, water, bouillon cube, garlic, bay leaf and salt. Bring to a boil and turn temperature down; cover and simmer for approximately 30 minutes or until lentils are tender. Keep warm. In large skillet, sauté onions rings in olive oil until tender; mix with lentils.

To serve, place a serving of hot rice on plate, top with a serving of hot lentils. Add lettuce and vegetables. Add guacamole and salsa if desired.
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