Lentils--Healthiest, cheapest food around
Okay, so, for the last few years now I've been a priest in the church of lentils. Lentils, if you don't know, are small bean-like legumes called "pulses." They come in a variety of sizes and colors, with the most common being the brown lentil.
Here are the nutrition facts for a cup of dry brown lentils.
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/legumes-and-legume-products/4337/2
As you can see, only 2 g of fat (almost no saturated fat) and only 4 g of sugar, but 59 g of fiber and 50 g of protein. Add to this that for about $1 to $1.50 depending on the store you can get two cups worth of lentils. That's basically 100 g of protein for a buck.
Now, it's true, lentils aren't explosions of flavor when cooked, but the great thing about them is that between their blandness and their ability to soak up liquid, they're great at taking the flavor of whatever you cook them in. Hence why they're perfect for soups and chilis.
When cooking lentils, you probably want to precook them in boiling water until they're tender (don't worry if the water turns muddy--that's natural, just strain the lentils after they're done) before adding them to your recipe.
Below are a few of my favorite recipes involving lentils.
Sloppy joes with lentils:
http://www.budgetbytes.com/2011/06/sloppy-joes-plus/
Lentil burritos (my own recipe--and my favorite lentil dish)
-1 cup dried lentils
-1 can (or equivalent amount from a bag of dried beans if you don't like canned stuff) of black beans
-1 can refried beans
-1 cup medium picante salsa (or any salsa you want, but I find the medium picante is the best)
-a few pinches of fresh oregano leaves-chopped
-garlic--at least three cloves, chopped fine
-1 onion, chopped fine
-1 tbsp chia seeds (this is optional because they're expensive and it doesn't change the flavor, however I recommend them because they add Omega-3, extra fiber, extra protein, and many other vitamins)
-a dash or two of ground mustard
-paprika--as much as you feel comfortable adding
-cumin (a healthy amount--at least a tablespoon)
-1 package Old El Paso Original seasoning (this is the least healthy part of the recipe--so you may want to replace this with extra cumin and some chili powder, but I love the flavor so I'll take the MSG and other stuff)
-1 cup of chicken or vegetable broth
-enough olive oil to thinly coat a large panSo, what you do first is precook your lentils--cover them in water in a pot, and cook them at medium-to-high heat for maybe a half hour to an hour, or until they're soft and tender. Unlike with some dishes, it doesn't matter if they're cohesive or turning to mush, because this is a recipe that allows for mush. After they're cooked, drain the muddy water and strain the lentils. While you're pre-cooking you should be chopping your onions, garlic, and oregano and maybe opening your cans. Oil your pan, heat up the oil, then start sauteing your onions. Add a little bit of the garlic, but reserve the rest for later (this is important--the garlic must be the last thing added). Once your onions begin to smell sweet and have absorbed the golden tinge of the olive oil, you can ruin the beautiful translucent broken-glass topography by dumping your lentils all over it, and then adding your broth. Stir. Once the broth starts to simmer, add your oregano, your spices, the chia seeds, and the seasoning packet. Stir again. Now you can add your black beans and salsa. Guess what? You're stirring again! Now add your refried beans--oh you better believe you're going to stir again. If the mixture is a little soupy, just let it simmer down and reduce--once you're almost ready to eat, add the rest of your garlic and cut the heat. The hope is that the garlic will still keep a bit of its raw edge and mesh well with the oregano and cumin flavors.
Mujaddara (Lebanese dish)
This one is really simple, but the trick is to have LOTS of onions and to cook them until they're caramelized.
-1 cup brown lentils
-1 cup white rice
-3-5 yellow onions
-olive oil
-whatever spice you want--cumin and ground cloves work well, as does red pepper flakes
-salt to taste
Precook your lentils and chop your onions. Don't worry about chopping the onions fine as they'll shrink down as you cook them. Also don't worry if 5 chopped yellow onions looks like a mountain in the pan--again they'll cook down. Coat your pan with olive oil and start sauteeing the onions. Keep cooking and stirring them until they're a deep, sweet brown. At the same time you should start cooking your rice in a rice cooker. Once the rice, lentils, and onions are all done, stir them together in your pan. That's it.