Sprouted Bean & Lentil Salad - Healthy & Tasty

 

Summer means more time at the beach, which in turn means getting into shape as soon as you can! Joining the "eat healthy" bandwagon, the Sprouted Bean & Lentil Salad has become my current favorite as weeknight dinners, at least twice a week. A healthy diet should include a mix of essential nutrients, a primary one being Proteins. And for vegetarians, beans, legumes and lentils are the best way to fill up on your protein needs. I love this salad because it's easy to prepare, tastes really great, and is extremely filling! Sprouted beans are combined with chopped veggies and flavored with fresh herbs and spices to help you get the best of "tasty & healthy". Customize it to suit your liking, or enjoy this summer salad the way I like it!

Lentils are a great source of protein, calcium, and are also rich in fiber. They have a unique flavor when you sprout them, and they can fill you up in no time, which works perfectly for diet plans and portion control. Garbanzo Beans (also called chickpeas) are a good source of cholesterol-lowering fiber, and also help keep your blood-sugar under control.

For my salad, I used Horsegram Dal, but you can use any other legume of your choice. I made a mild sweet and sour tamarind sauce, which was used as a dressing for my salad. I added sprouted Green Mung, along with chickpeas and other veggies, and sprinkled some spicy chaat masala and cilantro to add a zing to the sweet and tangy chutney dressing. I had never eaten sprouted horse-gram before, and I was really skeptical about how it would taste, but this salad came out great, and now its become one of my favorite salad recipes!

Ingredients

1/2 cup horsegram dal
1/2 cup whole green mung
1/2 cup boiled garbanzo beans
1 tomato - finely chopped
1/2 onion - finely chopped
1/2 cucumber - finely diced (optional)
1/4 cup fresh cilantro - finely chopped
salt - to taste
black pepper - to taste

For Dressing
3 tbsp tamarind chutney
lemon juice - to taste
2-3 tsp chaat masala

MethodSoak the horsegram and whole green mung in 2 containers in sufficient water overnight. Cover with a lid and allow them to swell-up. Then remove the water from the containers, cover with a damp cotton cloth or kitchen towel, and allow them to sprout, probably another 6-8 hours. You can even use a sprouter for doing this. The sprouted beans can be dried and stored in an air-tight box or zip-lock bags in the refrigerator for 5-7 days.

Now mix all the ingredients for the salad in a large bowl, except cilantro. Add the salt, and black pepper to it and let it sit for 5-10 mins.

Meanwhile prepare the tamarind chutney, or you can use the store-bought one. If you are not a tamarind-person, you can easily omit it and use only lime juice for the dressing.

Add the dressing to the salad, taste and add any more spices as required. Finally sprinkle a generous helping of chaat-masala, again, according to your taste. Chaat Masala is merely a blend of spices and adds a fresh taste to your food, so don't be afraid of using it! Top it with chopped cilantro.

Enjoy this healthy Sprouted Lentil Salad on its own, or top it on a slice of bread. Combine with a glass of orange juice and you are all set for a healthy and tasty dinner indeed!

  http://funnfud.blogspot.com/2008/06/sprouted-bean-lentil-salad-healthy.html