Pulses
Pulses, the edible seeds of leguminous plants such as beans, peas and lentils, are an excellent base for a salad, especially one intended to be served as a complete meal. Consider cannellini beans with tomato, avocado and tuna preserved in olive oil or French lentils with green beans and chunks of smoked ham. Lentils are generally quicker to prepare than other pulses as they don’t require soaking and have a short cooking time. Pulses are available from health food and organic stores or you can sprout them yourself during summer on wet cotton wool in a jar.
Ingredients
Method
Main
NoteFrozen soybeans are available from Asian supermarkets. Furikake seasoning is a Japanese mix of sesame seeds, bonito flakes and nori, available from Japanese food stores and Asian supermarkets.
Short-order idea
For a Spanish chickpea salad, drain and rinse canned chickpeas and combine with chopped vine-ripened tomato and finely chopped rosemary. Place garlic cloves in a mortar and, using a pestle, crush to a fine paste. Add olive oil, a pinch of smoked sweet paprika and ground cumin and sherry vinegar. Whisk to combine. Drizzle over salad and toss to combine. Serve scattered with crumbled feta and draped with slices of jamón or prosciutto.
Notes