Lentil Cutlets

Lentils contain a lot of protein and carbohydrates, so it can replace meat and cereals in the diet. Dishes from it will not be superfluous on the lean and vegetarian table. However, lentil chowder and side dish of these beans can quickly become boring. A good idea would be to cook lentil patties, which will be a good alternative to similar products from meat products. All types of beans are suitable for making cutlets, they just need to be cooked properly. You can add the main ingredient with eggs, vegetables, cereals. The presence of many recipes of this dish allows you to significantly diversify the menu, even following a diet and without breaking the fast, the principles of vegetarian food.

Cooking Features

You can use different varieties of lentils for making cutlets, but the technology of cooking dishes will depend on the choice of the type of beans. It can also vary with the specific composition of the dish, the method of its preparation. Following the instructions accompanying the selected recipe, you will not make mistakes and get the expected result. The success of the culinary experiment will help and knowledge of several important points, which will be useful to the cook, regardless of what version of the dish he is going to cook.

There are two main methods of cooking lentil cutlets. In the first case, the lentils are boiled softly, turned into mashed potatoes using a pulverizer or blender. It is mashed and becomes the basis for chopped meat. Another option is to grind raw beans, combine with other ingredients that can bind the grains, and begin forming patties. The choice of cooking method depends on the recipe. If lentils are chopped raw, it must first be soaked in cool water for at least 6 hours.
Cooking time for lentils depends on its grade. To cook green lentils to the desired state, it will take 40-45 minutes. Brown lentils are cooked for about an hour. Red lentils are the quickest to boil - up to 20-25 minutes. About 30-40 minutes will be required for boiling yellow or orange lentils.
Most often, lentil cutlets are fried in a frying pan, with this method of cooking they turn out to be ruddy and appetizing. However, bean cutlets can not only be fried, but also baked and even steamed. Baked lentil cutlets are preferred by supporters of healthy eating and people on a diet for weight loss.
To make lentil patties more dense, they add flour, semolina, oatmeal, starch, eggs, mashed potatoes. The most succulent products will be obtained if the composition include vegetables. Most often for this purpose use carrots, onions, vegetable marrows, pumpkin, cabbage.
The taste of finished products will largely depend on the spices used to make them. Adding garlic and black pepper makes them look like meat cutlets. The similarity will be even more noticeable if the spices are supplemented with dry broth. When adding broth to minced meat, consider the fact that it contains a significant amount of salt.

Serve lentil patties with sour cream or some sauce. Especially well suited mushroom sauce, which can be served even with lean products.

Lenten lentil patties

Composition:

lentils - 0, 2 kg;
semolina - 100 g;
onions - 0, 3 kg;
refined vegetable oil - how much will go;
salt, spices - to taste;
breadcrumbs - how much will go.

Method of preparation:

Rinse lentils, cover with water and leave in a cool place for 8-12 hours, you can overnight.
Drain excess water. Crank lentils through a meat grinder or grind to a state of flour with a blender.
Mix shredded lentils with semolina.
Free the onion from the husk, cut it into small cubes.
Heat the oil in a pan, put chopped onion in it and fry it to a translucent state.
Transfer the onions to lentils and semolina, add salt and spices to them, mix until a homogeneous mass. If the mass is too dry and dense, you can add to it 1-2 tablespoons of boiled water or broth (vegetable, mushroom).
Heat a new batch of oil in a clean pan.
Make lentils from lentils, breaded in breadcrumbs and put in boiling oil. Fry them 5-7 on each side, allowing them to redden well.

To remove excess oil from products, first spread them on a napkin and only after some time they shift it onto a dish and serve it to the table. Cooked for this recipe meatless meatballs are perfectly combined with mushroom gravy.

Red lentil cutlets

Composition:

red lentils - 150 g;
zucchini - 0, 2 kg;
chicken egg - 1 pc .;
carrots - 100 g;
onions - 100 g;
garlic - 3 cloves;
salt, paprika or curry - to taste;
refined vegetable oil, breadcrumbs - how much will go.

Method of preparation:

Wash lentils, cover with a glass of water (0, 25 l). Put on the stove, bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the intensity of the flame, boil the lentils under the lid for 20-25 minutes, until it boils hot.
Put the lentils in a bowl and knead them carefully using a potato masher or a special mixer tip.
Wash, dry the vegetables.
Remove the husks from the bulb, chop the vegetable into small pieces.
Peel carrots, chop grated with medium or small holes.
Clean zucchini from seeds and coarse rind. Pulp chop on a coarse grater. Salt it. Wait 10 minutes. Drain excess zucchini juice, squeeze them.
Pass garlic through a press.
Heat the oil in a deep frying pan, put onions and carrots in it, and fry them until soft.
Add zucchini to onions and carrots, mix the vegetables and simmer for 10 minutes on low heat under the lid.
Put the vegetables in a clean bowl, let them cool.
Add spices, salt, garlic and egg to vegetables. Mix thoroughly to obtain a homogeneous mass.
Combine the resulting composition with lentil puree, stir until smooth.
Make cutlets, breaded in breadcrumbs.
Fry cutlets until cooked in boiling oil or boil for a couple. It is necessary to fry products not for long - 5-8 minutes. Steamed them brewed longer - 20 minutes.

When serving, pour cutlets with sour cream to the table - they combine best with it. Curry sauce is also suitable.

Green lentil cutlets

Composition:

green lentils - 0, 2 kg;
oatmeal - 50 g;
onions - 100 g;
garlic - 2 cloves;
chicken egg - 1 pc .;
breadcrumbs - 5 g;
salt, ground coriander - to taste;
refined vegetable oil - how much will go.

Method of preparation:

Rinse lentils, cover with warm water, leave for 5-6 hours.
Boil half a liter of water, add lentils to it. Boil it for 40 minutes on low heat.
Allow lentils to cool slightly, place it in a mixing container.
Sprinkle oatmeal with lentils, break an egg into a bowl with it.
Pass the garlic through the press.
Onion, freeing from the husk, cut into small pieces. Together with garlic, send it to a container of lentils.
Add salt and spices.
With the help of an immersion blender, chop the products, turning them into a homogeneous mass.
Make cutlets of lentil mince, breaded them in bread crumbs.
Heat the butter in a pan, fry the patties in it, giving each side 3-4 minutes.

If you want to get a dietary version of the dish, do not fry the cutlets, but bake them until they are ruddy in the oven.

Lentil cutlets in the oven

Composition:

red lentils - 0, 6 kg;
wheat flour - 60-80 g (for breading);
black ground pepper - 5 g;
salt - 10 g;
onions - 0, 3 kg;
refined vegetable oil - 20-30 ml.

Method of preparation:

Boil lentils until soft in salted water, turn into puree in any convenient way.
Onion, peeled, finely chopped and fry until golden brown in a small amount of vegetable oil.
Combine lentil puree with onion, add pepper. Mix the products well.
Let the lentils cool to a comfortable temperature, make them cutlets, roll them in flour.
Lubricate the baking form with a thin layer of vegetable oil using a cooking brush.
Put prepared patties in shape.
Send the cutlet form to the oven preheated to 200 degrees.
After 15 minutes, turn the chops over to the other side and bake another 15 minutes.

Serve the patties with mushroom and tomato sauce. Products according to this recipe are obtained as lean, they are not only suitable for food during fasting, but can also be included in the vegetarian menu.

Lentil cutlets with meat flavor

Composition:

White cabbage - 0, 3 kg;
green lentils - 0.2 kg;
chicken egg - 1 pc .;
garlic - 2 cloves;
onions - 100 g;
carrots - 100 g;
wheat flour - 50 g;
black ground pepper - 5 g;
salt or powdered bouillon cube - 5 g;
refined vegetable oil.

Method of preparation:

Rinse lentils, soak for several hours. Fill with clean water in the amount of 0, 5 l, bring to a boil.
After 15 minutes of boiling lentils, add salt or broth, continue cooking for half an hour. Turn into mashed potatoes.
Chop the cabbage finely, cut the onion in medium-sized, rub the carrot, chop the garlic using a special press.
Grind vegetables to a puree using a blender.
Mix lentil puree with vegetable, add flour and egg to them. Stir to make the mass uniform.
Heat the oil in a pan. Spoon lay out the lentil-vegetable puree and fry on both sides until golden brown.

Lentil patties made according to this recipe will resemble meat, even if you cook them without using broth.

Cutlets made from lentils are nourishing and nutritious. They will help to make food balanced, even if a person for one reason or another does not eat meat. If for cooking dishes use the same seasonings as for meat, then lentil cutlets will even resemble meat in their organoleptic qualities.