This new recipe was inspired by Kyle’s time as a line cook the summer after culinary school, almost 9 years ago. The restaurant where he worked had a summer menu staple, Creamy Parmesan Lentils. This side dish was frequently paired with the chicken and fish entrees that rotated through the summer menu. After tasting the lentils, Kyle definitely knew why that were so popular! This dish was rich (thanks in part to the generous amounts of Parmesan cheese) and satisfying without being overly decadent, great qualities for a summer side dish. Another bonus for this dish: the lentils were quite easy to prepare – the diners would have never guessed that what they were enjoying was a very simple dish with simple ingredients!
Time got away from him and the lentil dish was forgotten. While we were in quarantine, there was a lot of daydreaming about this rich lentil dish, so, it was time to set out and try to recreate the dish from all those many years ago. The basic gist of the recipe was easy enough to remember – saute some aromatics, cook the lentils, finish with a bit a cream and all the Parmesan, try not to eat the entire bowl at once. However, the exact proportions that were used at the restaurant were forever lost.
Kyle did a quick search on Google, but to no avail. So, it became a quest of trial and error, trying to work out a recipe that lived up to the original. The only major difference to the new recipe was bacon, because, well, bacon. Sauteing the onion, celery and garlic in the rendered bacon fat and garnishing the final dish of Creamed Lentils with some cripsy reserved bacon really put the flavor of the dish over the top.
Enter the Instant Pot. Kyle is a latecomer to the Instant Pot party. He was a pressure cooker guy since college. The pressure cooker really does have the same basic function of the Instant Pot, minus all of the fancy settings, so he never deemed it necessary to add one to his kitchen arsenal. Sadly, the pressure cooker recently went kaput, and it was finally time to purchase an Instant Pot. Since then one of his favorite things to cook in it are dried beans and legumes.
You can cook up a big batch and then use them throughout the week in various recipes. Cooking them in stock and infusing the beans provides them with more flavor and less salt than most canned beans. The recipe for Creamy Lentils with Parmesan was the perfect excuse to incorporate Instant Pot cooking into a legume dish that didn’t simply involve just cooking them in stock.
If you are worried about not owning an Instant Pot, don’t. The restaurant did not use one (or a pressure cooker) to prepare the Lentils with Parmesan so there is no need for you to cook them that way. The alternative is to cook your dried lentils in a separate pot according to the package directions, then add the garlic/onion/celery mixture and then finish them with the cream and Parmesan. You do not need to include stock in this version, it will end up with way too much liquid, you will instead end up with lentil soup. Instead, try doubling the amount of cream to get the right consistency.
This recipe would pair wonderfully with many different proteins especially Milk Braised Chicken and Halibut en Papillote. In reality, if you are not up to cooking up a full entree, a big bowl the lentils with Parmesan would be quite delicious on their own.
This is a great summer side dish and would compliment any meal. Now that we are slowly beginning to have opportunities to see more and more friends and family this summer, this would be a delicious way to add yumminess to any gathering!
- 2 ounces pork belly, or thick-cut bacon, diced
- ½ medium onion, chopped ( about 1 cup)
- 1 cup chopped celery, from 1 large or 2 smaller stalks
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 ½ cups dried lentils
- 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Cracked Black pepper
- 2 ounces shredded Parmesan Cheese (about ½ cup)
- ¼ cup Light Cream
- Parsley, for garnish
- Set Instant Pot to “Saute”, then add the pork belly (or bacon) and cook until crisp. Remove the pork from the Instant Pot, and reserve.
- Add the onion, celery and garlic to the rendered pork fat. Season with ½ teaspoon kosher salt and a few grinds of freshly cracked pepper. Cook until soft and fragrant, stirring regularly, about 5 minutes.
- Add the lentils and stock and stir, scraping up any browned bits that might have accumulated at the bottom of the pot.
- Lock the lid of the Instant Pot, then adjust your Instant Pot to Manual Pressure. Cook on High Pressure for 10 minutes.
- Quick Release the pressure, then add the Parmesan, light cream and reserved pork.
- Garnish with parsley and serve
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