A handful of lentils is perfect for rounding out a soup or making a salad just a little more filling. They come in brown, green, red, and all shades in between, and we love trying a new kind whenever we come across one! Ever wonder if the color or specific variety really makes a difference?
In very broad and general categories, here are the most common kinds of lentils we see in stores:
Brown Lentils - This is by far the most common variety of lentil, and probably the one that you see at your local grocery store. They can range in color from khaki-brown to dark black, and generally have a mild earthy flavor. They cook in about 20-30 minutes and hold their shape very well. Common varieties are Spanish Brown, German Brown, or Indian Brown. The blackest and tiniest lentils you find are usually Beluga lentils, which have a rich and deeply earthy flavor.
Green Lentils - These can be pale or mottled green-brown in color with a glossy exterior. They have a robust, somewhat peppery flavor. Green lentils generally take the longest to cook, upwards of 45 minutes, but they keep a firm texture even after cooking. This makes them ideal for salads and other side dishes. Look for Lentilles du Puy, Puy lentils, or French Green lentils.
Red Lentils - With colors ranging from gold to orange to actual red, these are the sweetest and nuttiest of the lentils - to our mind, at least! They're somewhere in the middle in terms of cooking time and are usually done in about 30 minutes. They tend to get mushy when cooked through, so they're perfect for Indian dals and other curries, or for thickening soups. A few varieties are Red Chief and Crimson, and you'll often find them in Indian or Middle Eastern markets labeled as masoor (red lentils) or channa (yellow lentils).
Do you have a favorite kind of lentil? What do you like to make with them?
Related: Soul-Satisfying: A Round-Up of Great Lentil Recipes
(Image: AllPosters.com)
5 Things Paris Taught Me About Travel
Recipe: Ham, Cheddar & Chive Egg Bakes
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Bacsac Bacsquare 04...
Dirty Little Secrets of Tidy Families
Emi & Nathan's Natural History
Beluga Lentils in mirepoix - one of my comfort foods.
http://bit.ly/d2Zre6
A handful of red lentils in bolognese sauce, chilli and tomato based vegetable stews or a mixture of green lentils and meat in a shepherd's or cottage pie makes them go that bit further, and is a good way of eating more healthy foods without really noticing or having to chomp your way though a whole bowl full - which can get a little tedious!
In the lead photo it looks like you are showing brown lentils, green split peas and yellow split peas. The lentils that I am familiar with are not split. An Indian market is a wonderful source of pink lentils as well as a number of interesting split beans [dals].
Are green split peas different than green lentils?
I too am wondering about split peas (green and yellow) vs. lentils. They look the same, but I don't know if they would taste the same. If they are not the same, does anyone know where to get yellow lentils in the Oakland area?
Lentil soup, Greek lentil salad, curried lentil soup, dal, it's all amazing.
Here is one of my favorite red lentil soups: http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/red-lentil-soup-recipe.html
I like to cook moong dal (small yellow lentil) and masoor dal (red lentil) because they both take only 1/2 hour to cook. Here are some recipes for both:
a recipe I modified from Maddhur Jaffrey:
http://abcdsofcooking.blogspot.com/2009/07/moong-dal-with-coconut-ginger-and-peas.html
a recipe I learned while visiting Turkey:
http://abcdsofcooking.blogspot.com/2009/10/story-behind-soup.html
South Indian spicey lentil soup recipe:
http://abcdsofcooking.blogspot.com/2009/12/sambar-south-indian-lentil-stew.html
Green & yellow split peas are different in taste and cooking time from lentils. And yes, it appears that middle bowl has green split peas.
I like the red lentils the best, but I cook a lot of dal.
You forgot about. black / Puy / French dal. These are little black lentils that when wet look like the most beautiful tiny, swirled, glossy river stones. They're the ones I always use to make dal because they stay firm rather than become all sloppy.
Oh, just noticed that you've put "Puy lentils" under green lentils, but they're quite different. The light/bright green ones are green lentils, the mottled black-green ones are Puy/black lentils.
The green and yellow thingys in the picture are split peas, aren't they? Little half-spheres? They are legumes, too, I think, but different from lentils. As for the rest, it would seem personal assessment varies from one poster to another. Green lentils are less green than they are the color of some richly patina-ed metal or like paving stones or slate shingles. Black lentils are belugas, quite small and really black...almost like little buckshot but not as round. The red are actually more rosy, and they go soft and hummus-like in no cooking time at all. The brown ones are the ones you most often find in supermarkets. They're all delish. If it says "lentils" on the bag, box or barrel, buy them. Eat them. You will like them. You will be well (provided you remember to pick them over for little stones and pebbles).
I have often wondered the difference, as I love the speed and mushiness of red lentils but my boyfriend loves the earthier flavor of French lentils. What I am curious about is how they differ in nutritional value. Does one have more fiber? More protein? More carbs?
Just made Sopa de Lentejas this weekend! See the recipe at Second Floor Walkup
My red lentil soup recipe after falling in love with the dish in Istanbul:
Red Lentil Soup
1 cup red lentils
1 medium or large chopped onion
6 cups chicken or meat stock
1 egg yolk
1 cup milk
3-5 garlic cloves, minced
salt
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp ground cumin
1 tbsp ground coriander
1. Wash and drain the lentils. Put aside.
2. Saute the chopped onions in the butter until they are golden. Add the stock and bring to a boil. Add the lentils, cover and simmer gently for about 30 minutes, until they are very soft.
3. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolk with the milk. Season with salt. Pour a little of the hot soup into the egg mixture and then pour it all back into the soup while stirring. Let it simmer for about 5 minutes.
4. In the meantime, in a small bowl, combine the garlic, cumin and coriander.
5. Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat and add the garlic and spices. Brown the mixture until it turns into a yellow sauce, 30-45 seconds. (The garlic can burn easily, be careful.)
6. Add garlic mixture to the soup, and continue to simmer, partially covered, for about ten minutes.
7. Soup thickens as it stands, and can be thinned with water. Tastes great the next few days!
8. Soup should be served very hot. Can be accompanied by lemon wedges, which are squeezed, a bit at a time, into soup as it is eaten. You can also drop croutons onto the soup just before serving. (Fry small bread cubes in hot butter until golden and crispy.)
Red lentils and caramelized onions in rice. Yum!
Nomadchicky, I ate lentil soup as practically every second meal during my 2 months in Turkey! Although when reproducing it later I found the truest version to what I had been eating was just a small amount of onion, garlic, red lentils and chicken stock, served with chilli flakes and lemon. Much simpler.
Good sharing of info. I was looking for lentils which require least time to cook. Now I know I should avoid the green variety and stay close to brown or red. Thanks.
"Are green split peas different than green lentils?"
Yes! Split peas are disgusting and lentils are delicious.
My question is what to do with black-and-white lentils? My boyfriend went on a lentil-buying blitz in an Indian grocery store about a year ago, and we've used all the lentils save for the massive bag of urad dal: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Black_gram.jpg. What can I make with these?
Oops, here's the link for the urad dal. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Urad_%28bean%29
Urad dal: the skinned and split kind (looks all white) is most often used for making fermented batters for dosas and idlis. The split/skinned kind tend to get too starchy to use for dal directly. Whole or split with skin still on (look black, or black/white) can be used for dal, but recipes are fewer as this type of legume isn't used for dal as frequently as others and only in certain areas of India. These are a bit harder to digest than some other legumes, but can be very tasty.
I'd search the Indian food blogs for recipes. Here's a recipe for dal makhani for whole urad dal, mixed with other legumes:
http://jugalbandi.info/2008/05/maa-di-dal-dal-makhani/
From what I understand green split peas are what they sound like: dried peas that are split in half to facilitate cooking. This seems right to me in that split peas have a bit of a sweet taste to them in the way that peas do.
Lentils are not split and completely different in flavor and taste. I heard somewhere that red lentils are peeled brown lentils but I have no idea if this is so.
Lentils are awesome! When I was a poor student I could go to the bulk store once a month and buy $1 worth of brown rice and $1 worth of green lentils, which would feed me for the month. I would sauté an onion, add the rice and lentils to the pot, add twice as much vegetable bouillon as I had lentils and rice, and would simmer this 'stew' until the lentils and rice were tender, about 45 minutes, adding more liquid as necessary. If I had flour, I sometimes made dumplings that I would steam over the lentils and rice in the last fifteen minutes of cooking. If I had frozen veggies (carrots were especially good), I'd throw them in, too. If I needed a little extra seasoning, I'd add a dash of low-sodium soy sauce. The end result was up to twenty nutrious meals. I'd keep a week's worth in the fridge and freeze the rest. The flavours really developed over the week and Friday's stew was always tastier than Saturday's.
Surprisingly, I still eat 'lentil stew' several times a month!
I love lentils especially French lentils a bit smaller and better for salads. I make a batch every other week and use them many ways I even add them to my senior 19 yr. old dog's dinner for fiber because he needs less protein.
I use a lot of lentils at home but tend to use brown (for the quick cooking time) and red (for dahls and soups. Lentils go in most of my rice dishes and I love making my Curried Red Lentil Burgers for lunches.
The only lentil or split I haven't tried for some reason is green lentils. I'm not sure why as the "robust, somewhat peppery flavor" really intrigues me! We sell some Australian grown (so local for me), organic DuPuy lentils at work so I'll have to buy some and give them a whirl.
This is a great little reference and I've linked it from a Beef, Lentil & Mushroom Pie recipe I posted recently after I got a comment regarding why I used a particular type of lentil. I always find great articles on this site, thankyou!