Description
My friend Gail, whose husband manages the Albany Trader Joe’s, brought this salad to a party last week, and it blew me away: most important, it was incredibly delicious; nearly important, it required very little effort: picking up three, ready-made products and combining them.
If you cannot find Trader Joe’s cooked lentils, look for the Melissa’s Produce cooked lentils in your local grocery store. Or boil them from scratch as instructed below.
This salad keeps very well in the fridge, and I like eating it cold straight from the fridge, but if you are serving it to company, you may want to bring it to room temperature before serving because the olive oil in the bruschetta sauce congeals a bit in the fridge.
Ingredients
For the Trader Joe’s version:
- 1 1/2 cups cooked lentils, see notes
- 1 1/2 cups Trader Joe’s bruschetta sauce
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
For the from-scratch version:
- 1/2 cup dried black lentils or French green lentils
- kosher salt
- 1 1/2 cups bruschetta sauce
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta or more to taste
Instructions
To make the Trader Joe’s version: Combine all ingredients in a bowl. Toss. Taste. Adjust to taste with more feta or bruschetta sauce. Serve immediately or stash in the fridge.
To make the from-scratch version:
- Place the lentils in a small pot and cover with water by at least an inch. Add a teaspoon of kosher salt. Bring to a simmer. Simmer till done. Times will vary considerably. My black lentils have been cooking consistently in about 23-25 minutes. If you are using French Green lentils, they’ll likely need a little more time. Taste before draining them. Drain, then let cool completely.
- To make the salad, combine the lentils — you should have about 1.5 cups cooked — the bruschetta sauce, and the feta in a large bowl. Stir gently to combine. Taste. Adjust with salt to taste.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Toss
- Cuisine: American
