Recipe: Yellow lentils with spinach and ginger

Dietitian's tip: Rice and lentils are mainstays in southern India, where pungent spices give distinction to many dishes. If you can't find the yellow lentils, use yellow split peas.

   

Ingredients

Directions

Toast only the white sesame seeds before using. Place the sesame seeds in a small, dry saute or frying pan over medium heat. Cook briefly, shaking the pan often and watching carefully to prevent burning. Remove the seeds from the pan as soon as they begin to turn brown. Set aside.

In a large saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallot, ginger, curry powder and turmeric and cook, stirring, until the spices are fragrant, about 1 minute.

Add the lentils, stock and coconut milk. Raise the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover partially, and simmer until the lentils are tender but still firm, about 12 minutes. The mixture should be brothy; add a little water if needed.

Stir in the spinach, cover and simmer for about 3 minutes longer. The lentils should still hold their shape. Uncover and stir in the salt. Serve hot, garnished with the cilantro and toasted white or untoasted black sesame seeds.

Nutritional Analysis

(per serving)

Calories	239	Monounsaturated fat	3 g
Protein	14 g	Cholesterol	0 mg
Carbohydrate	36 g	Sodium	169 mg
Total fat	5 g	Fiber	9 g
Saturated fat	1 g

MAYO CLINIC HEALTHY WEIGHT PYRAMID SERVINGS

Vegetables	3
Protein and dairy	1
Fats	1

• Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight Pyramid tool
• Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight Pyramid: A sample menu

DIABETES MEAL PLAN EXCHANGES

Starches	1
Milk and milk products	1/2
Nonstarchy vegetables	2
Meat and meat substitutes	1
Fats	1

• Your diabetes diet: Exchange lists

DASH EATING PLAN SERVINGS

Vegetables	1
Nuts, seeds and dry beans	1
Fats and oils	1

• DASH diet: Guide to recommended servings
• Sample menus for the DASH eating plan

RELATED

MayoClinic.com Bookstore

• 'The New Mayo Clinic Cookbook,' Concise Edition (Softcover)