I adore lentils. I'm actually eating lentil soup as we speak.

I do want to say, though, that I ALWAYS salt my lentils while cooking, and have never had any problems with them being tough; I think this might fall into the same category as salting beans causing them to be tough: it's an old wives' tale.

Some minced onions are a great addition while cooking. I always season after with red wine vinegar, olive oil and fresh garlic. It makes a great brown bag lunch with some crusty bread.

I LOVE lentils. But in the last pot I cooked I noticed these little white things mixed in with the beans that weren't there before they cooked? Any one know what these are? Are they ok to eat?

I discovered French green lentils, which hold their shape very well when cooked, and am just crazy for them. I think I could eat them every day, with a dijon mustard vinaigrette and little cubes of carrot and parsnip mixed in. Also there is a butternut squash seed oil (www.wholeheartedfoods.com) that seems like a match made in heaven - very deep, nutty flavor that goes so well with the lentils, especially warm. Sublime. So glad to connect with other lentil fans!

I constantly overcook my lentils! And, an thus let down by my mushy creation.

Tiainspace, try the French green, sometimes called lentilles de Puy - they get much less mushy than regular brownish, reddish lentils!! But you still don't want to cook them very long......

Sweetpotato, your lentils just sprouted a bit; that's what those little white things are. Enjoy.

I eat them the way @elainesinniger does - and - in a dish with rice (50/50 ratio of lentils to rice), caramelized onions, a spice mixture called baharat (many variations but mine has allspice, cinnamon, coriander, cloves, nutmeg, dried rose petals), and after it's heated topped with finely shredded fresh mint. Everytime I bring this in for lunch my coworkers drop by my office to ask what's in it (and sometimes beg for a taste) and I've handed out more bottles of homemade baharat than I can count. I like the brown for this dish but the green for the dish @elaine mentioned.

tend to cook brown lentils to al-dente then finish in a frypan with balsamic vinegar untill the pan is dry.

- truly mindblowing

I counted 6 types of lentils at the Asian food market on my last visit - they all cook differently and work well in different dishes - I suggest reading more about lentils and different recipes to find out what you like and the best ways to cook your lentils.

I'm making something with Lentils for the first time this week! So how ironic that this was posted! Took us forever to find them in the store, we looked with the canned beans first! WRONG. It's a sweet potato curry with lentils ,so I'm excited to make it!

i was just looking for lentil cooking methods yesterday! i made a pantry-cleaning-out grain salad with random 1/2 cups of cous cous, bulgar, rice, lentils, etc. and didn't want to cook everything on the stove.

i ended up doing the cous cous on the stove / in the microwave (israeli on the stove, boiling water for "normal" in the microwave), using the rice cooker for the rice and bulgar, and cooking the lentils in the oven.

i used a really easy technique i found in an old mark bittman column: ~1:1.5 ratio of lentils to water / stock, put everything in a baking dish, cover with foil, and cook for ~40 minutes at 425 until the lentils were done. i imagine the cooking time and amount of liquid vary a lot depending on how old the lentils are, but it was a great way to free up stove space.

i like cooking them in the rice cooker - easy peasy! i mean, easy lentily?!

@Rucy--do you mind sharing your recipe for baharat? Sounds awesome!