Skip to content
FriendsPantry

French

Salade de lentilles

Vegetarian

Salade de lentilles vertes

Small green lentils simmered with carrot, onion and herbs, then dressed while warm in a sharp Dijon and shallot vinaigrette — an earthy French bistro salad that is good warm or at room temperature.

Salade de lentilles is a French salad from France, ready in about 45 minutes and made with french green (puy) lentils and prepared mustard. It serves 4 and is rated easy to cook.

Start cooking
Lentil salad with tomato, red onion and carrot
Photo: Joey Doll / Wikimedia Commons · CC-BY-2.0
Prep
10 min
Cook
25 min
Rest
10 min
Total
45 min
Serves
4
Level
Easy
Calories
392

Ingredients

4 servings

For cooking

For the vinaigrette

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Put the lentils, carrot (opens in a new tab), onion (opens in a new tab), bay leaf (opens in a new tab) and thyme (opens in a new tab) in a pan with the water. Bring to the boil, then simmer gently until the lentils are tender but still hold their shape, adding the cooking salt for the last 5 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    While they cook, whisk (opens in a new tab) the shallot (opens in a new tab), vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper (opens in a new tab), then whisk in the oil in a thin stream until thick and emulsified.

    Onions frying golden in a pan
    How it looks · Photo: Magda Ehlers on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Drain the lentils well, discard the onion (opens in a new tab), bay and thyme (opens in a new tab) stalks, and toss immediately with the vinaigrette — warm lentils absorb it best. Leave for 10 minutes.

  4. Step 4

    Fold in the parsley (opens in a new tab), check the seasoning and serve warm or at room temperature, topped with goat cheese (opens in a new tab) if you like.

    • 2 min
    A finished dish being plated
    How it looks · Photo: Willians Huerta on Pexels

About this dish

Origin
France · Well documentedMade with lentilles vertes du Puy from the Auvergne, though eaten all over France.More food from France
Dish
Lunch · Dinner · Salads · Side dishes · Main courses
Cooking method
Simmered
Taste
earthy, tangy, herby, savoury
Diet
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo) · No gluten ingredients · No nut ingredients
All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Lacto-vegetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No gluten ingredients · Egg-free · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Pork-free · Beef-free · Calorie-conscious
Without the optional extras: Vegan, Plant-based, Ovo-vegetarian, Dairy-freeWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Make-ahead · Meal-prep friendly · Budget-friendly · Portable / lunchbox
Cook more with
Prepared mustard · Carrot · Onion · Bay leaves · Thyme (fresh) · Shallot
Techniques
Boiling · Simmering · Emulsification

Allergens

  • Contains, can be adapted: Milkfrom goat cheese
  • Contains: Mustardfrom prepared mustard
  • May contain: Sulphitesfrom wine vinegar, prepared mustard

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

392 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 213 g · recipe makes 4

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 16%
  • Carbohydrate 44%
  • Fat 40%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g
Energy392 kcal184 kcal
Protein16.2 g7.6 g
Carbohydrate44.4 g20.9 g
Net carbohydrate36.4 g17.1 g
Sugars3.2 g1.5 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre8 g3.8 g
Fat17.7 g8.3 g
Saturated fat2.5 g1.2 g
Trans fat0 g0 g
Cholesterol0 mg0 mg
Sodium649 mg306 mg
Salt equivalent1.6 g0.8 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
552 mg
Calcium
69 mg
Iron
4.8 mg
Magnesium
44 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
143 µg
Vitamin C
11 mg
Vitamin D
0 µg
Vitamin B12
0 µg
Folate (DFE)
314 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: goat cheese.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Tips

  • Salting lentils at the start can toughen their skins; add salt towards the end.

Common mistakes

  • Boiling hard — the lentils burst and turn mushy. Keep to a gentle simmer.

Serve with

  • With smoked sausage, a poached egg or flaked smoked trout for a fuller meal.

Storage

  • Keeps 4 days in the fridge; bring to room temperature and refresh with a splash of vinegar.

Variations

  • Aux lardons: Fold in crisp-fried lardons and use some of the bacon fat in the dressing.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Sauces, chutneys & dips for this dish

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What the dish is built around

Main ingredient

Used in steps 1, 3, 4

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

You might also like