Spicy Salmon and Lentils

Approximately 600 calories per person – Serves 2

• Prep time: about 5 minutes
• Cook time: about 70 minutes
• Total time: about 75 minutes

Ingredients

• 10 ounces (285 grams) salmon fillets to create two fillets at about 5 ounces (142 grams) each. Preferably with the skin 
• 3 ½ ounces (100 grams) of baby spinach

• Lentils
  • 1 cup dry green french lentils  (not brown or red lentils)
  • 1 tablespoon (Tbsp) Red or Green Curry Paste
  • ¼ teaspoon (tsp) of cumin 
  • 1 teaspoon (tsp) dried thyme, divided 
  • 1 ¼ teaspoon (tsp) salt
  • ¼ teaspoon (tsp) black pepper
  • ⅛ teaspoon (tsp) of habanero pepper (if you like heat)
  • ¾ cup water

• Lemon mixture
  • 2 tablespoons (Tbsp) of fresh lemon juice
  • ⅛ teaspoon (tsp) salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon (tsp) black pepper

Steps

• Preparation
  • Lemon Juice
    • Mix together the lemon juice with ⅛ teaspoon (tsp) salt and ⅛ teaspoon (tsp) black pepper. Set aside
  • Lentils
    • Rinse the lentils in a colander with fresh water before boiling to remove any dust or debris.

• Lentils
  • Place lentils in the bean/rice pot
  • Cover with about 3 inches of water and 1 teaspoon (tsp) salt
  • Bring to a boil. (lentils will absorb a lot of water.)
  • Reduce heat and simmer, uncovered. (induction 176)
  • Cook about 40 minutes for green lentils. 
  • Check them frequently, and add water if needed. Don’t overcook. 
  • Once cooked, pour in a colander.
  • Set lentils aside

• Salmon
  • Heat large pan over a medium heat. (induction 320)
  • Tip in the curry paste and fry briefly, stirring constantly, until sizzling and aromatic. 
  • Add ¾ cup of water and the cooked lentils.
  • Add ¼ teaspoon (tsp) of cumin and ½ teaspoon of dried thyme.
  • Add ⅛ teaspoon (tsp) habanero pepper. (if you like heat)
  • Mix well and make sure the curry paste mixes in.
  • Heat until simmering
  • Lay salmon on top, skin side up.
  • Cover and leave salmon to cook at medium heat (induction 248) for 9 minutes or until it feels firm when prodded.
  • When salmon is cooked, lift it out of the pan, remove skin, set aside on a plate and cover to keep warm.
  • Taste the lentils in the pan and see if they need more salt. (lentils need a lot of salt)
  • Add water if lentils are too dry.

• Spinach
  • Stir in the spinach, and ½ the lemon juice and cook until the spinach has just barely wilted. 

• Serve
  • Spoon the lentils and spinach onto two plates.
  • Place salmon on top of lentils.
  • Drizzle the salmon with the remaining lemon juice.
  • Garnish with ½ teaspoon (tsp) thyme and serve.

All of Living in Beauty Recipes

We are working on a series of recipes that are easy to fix in an RV and are approximately 600 calories per person for two people. Ultimately, they will be compiled into “The Bean Counter Cookbook.”