French Lentils??? (wine, beer, health, soup)

[TN Lily]

I found a recipe for a lentil soup that I want to try. But it calls for French lentils. Can someone please enlighten me on these lentils? Are they that much different from regular lentils you would pick up in a grocery store?

Where would you buy these? My regular grocery store does not have them. I know amazon has them and they are expensive compared to regular lentils.

Thank you in advance.

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by TN Lily

I found a recipe for a lentil soup that I want to try. But it calls for French lentils. Can someone please enlighten me on these lentils? Are they that much different from regular lentils you would pick up in a grocery store?

They are considered the best by many chefs. They are a small peppery green lentil that has a bit of a different texture than the more common flat yellow and green lentil. Supermarkets that carry Red Mill brand specialty flours often carry the jars of Red Mill French Lentils. Personally, I buy them in the bulk section, rather than packaged. Check with your store manager... they might have them in a different place than you're looking.

Also a lot of health food stores carry them, because they are popular with vegetarians.

[Mooseketeer]

I assume they mean "Puy Lentils" ? They really are super yummy. My favourite recipe is to cook them with diced carrots, a small onion and some really good cubed bacon or pancetta.

Something like this :

BBC - Food - Recipes : Sweet onions with lentil stew
Puy recipes - Recipes - BBC Good Food


Perfect accompaniment to Duck Confit or wood Pigeon . If you have any meat juices from cooking a roast or something like that ,add it to it and it is gorgeous. A lot of French people cook the Pancetta in Duck Fat which makes it even more moreish ! They also really work with a sturdy fish like Cod for example.

Instead of cooking the lentils in water they can also be cooked in beer or wine for an extra depth of flavour.


They also make wonderful salads !

[elnina]

They are expensive for a reason - they taste really very good.

[OpenD]

Originally Posted by Mooseketeer

I assume they mean "Puy Lentils" ?

From Cook's Thesaurus: French green lentils = Puy lentils = lentilles du Puy = lentilles vertes du Puy

It's not just the taste, it's the texture. They're firmer than the other kind, and don't turn to mush if overcooked.

[TN Lily]

Thank you for all the replies.
I stopped at my local health food store and bought them. I'm looking forward to trying them in the soup recipe.