Legumes I Actually Want to Eat Everyday on the Slow Carb Diet – Spiced Bacon Lentils

Legumes I Actually Want to Eat Everyday on the Slow Carb Diet – Spiced Bacon Lentils

Spiced Bacon Lentils for the Slow Carb Diet

Getting on board with eating legumes 2-3 times a day has been the hardest part of the Slow Carb Diet for me so far. It’s not that I don’t like legumes, I actually love black beans. I just don’t have the time to cook them from scratch normally, and they aren’t available in the can in Australia so due to the inconvenience factor, I’ve been forced to branch out.

I created this recipe for lentils that is just so damn good, I make a huge batch and use it for a few days, just reheating in the microwave to go with my meals. The lentils have a bit of an Indian twist on them because of the spices, but I find they go quite well with the bacon. You can vary the spice and garlic levels to suit your own preferences.

Spiced Bacon Lentils

(Makes 4-8 servings depending on how much you like to eat with your meal. This usually lasts me 2 days worth of lentils, even with my boyfriend stealing some.)

Ingredients

  • 2-3 cans lentils
  • 1 cup of bacon, diced (or organic bacon crumbles – I believe these are available at Costco)
  • 1 Tbs ghee or macadamia oil
  • 1 large onion, diced
  • 2-6 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
  • ¼ t ground turmeric
  • 1 t ground cumin
  • ½ t ground ginger (or use fresh ginger if you have it on hand)
  • ¼ t cayenne (This will give the dish some heat. Add less if you’re a bit of a wuss when it comes to spicy foods. 1/8 t is good for a bit of spice. If you hate things spicy, just add a bit of paprika instead.)
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 c water or chicken stock (make sure there is no sugar added if you’re using a store bought stock!) Note : I highly recommend using stock because it produces extra creamy and flavorful lentils. If you use water, you’ll need to add salt to the dish. I use a vegetable seasoning salt intended for stews to give the lentils some extra depth.

Directions

  1. Add ghee or macadamia nut oil to the pot. About 1Tbs should be fine, but you can add more as needed at any point during the cooking process. Add chopped onion to pot. Cook on medium until onion is translucent. About 6-10 minutes.
  2. Add garlic and reduce heat a bit so as to not burn the garlic. Stir until garlic becomes fragrant. About 1-2 minutes. ** I use about 6 cloves because I love garlic, but that may be bit intense for some people. If you aren’t so keen on the dragon breath, 2 or 3 cloves should do.
  3. Add chopped bacon or bacon crumbles.
  4. Once the bacon is cooked through, add all the spices and heat until they become fragrant. About 1-2 minutes.
  5. Rinse the canned lentils and add to the pot. Stir.
  6. Add 1 cup or chicken stock or water.
  7. Simmer over low-medium for about 15 minutes or until liquid reduces.
  8. If you used water instead of chicken stock or you didn’t include bacon, you’ll probably want to add salt.
  9. Once most of the liquid has reduced, remove the bay leaf and enjoy.

Tip- I keep a big batch of these in the fridge to have with breakfast. They mix quite well with frozen spinach thawed in the microwave.

Continue reading here: Cauliflower to go with any Slow Carb Meal aka “Faux Rice”

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