Salted Pork with Red Split Lentils- Pork Sale ek Lantir

This creamy Salted Pork with Red Split Lentils- Pork Sale ek Lantir-is a traditional and popular Seychellois dish packed with protein.

Different Types of Lentils

For this recipe we are using the red split lentils, which is the most popular lentils used in Seychelles. Red lentils are easy to cook and packed with protein, iron, fibre, and B vitamins. It is nutty and sweet with a mild earthy aroma.

In Seychelles, we prefer to cook it until it becomes extra creamy and then we add the protein, which is usually salted pork, sausages or even fried fish.

Main types of lentils

There are types of lentils available, each with its own flavour profile and texture. These include:

Red, Orange, and Yellow Lentils

These sweet lentils are all beautifully hued variations of one specific variety. They are ideal for thick soups, sauces, curries, or Indian daal. You can find them in Indian or Middle Eastern markets labeled as masoor (red lentils) or channa (yellow lentils). Since they get mushy easily, it is important to know how long to cook red lentils. 

Brown Lentils

This is the most common variety of lentils, and what you’ll see most often at your local grocery store. They generally have a mild, earthy flavour, cook quickly in about 20 to 30 minutes, and hold their shape fairly well. Common varieties include Spanish Brown, German Brown, or Indian Brown. The blackest and tiniest lentils are called Beluga lentils. If you are cooking black lentils, start checking for doneness after 15 minutes.

Green Lentils

Green Lentils are much-loved for their hearty and peppery flavour, and they also stay firm after cooking, which makes them perfect for salads and sides. They are usually cooked slowly, for 45 minutes, to preserve that firm texture. Varieties include Lentilles du Puy, or French Green lentils.

SALTED PORK

This Salted Pork with Red Split Lentils- Pork Sale ek Lantir– is an easy dish to put together even though there is a little forward planning required to salt the pork.

Salted pork is not easy to access these days so why not make your own. Follow this link and you will learn how easy it is to salt your own pork.

How do I prepare Red Split Lentils?

You are probably not going to find a pebble in your lentils these days, but it’s worth a quick look. It is best to be safe and rinse and sift through them before cooking, because no one wants to break a tooth by biting down on a small rock.

How do I check?

I do this by slowly pouring the lentils into a fine-mesh sieve, keeping a careful eye out for any tiny rocks or extraneous materials. I sift through the lentils with my fingers to make sure I did not miss anything. I then, rinse the lentils under running water until the water runs clear.

Traditional Sifting and Winnowing

However, in days gone by, you could not skip the sifting. This was because all lentils sold on the islands were not prepacked. They were shipped in gunny bags and these bags were left permanently open next to the main counter in most shops. The lentils were sold from these bags and weighed in the same scale that all other goods were weighed in. Consequently, they were exposed to numerous types of debris and other foreign objects. It was therefore critical to carefully sift through the lentils and this was done in a flat bamboo basket locally called lavann.

After the sifting was done then came the winnowing.  Winnowing is locally known as vannen ( fr. vanner). This process involves placing the lentils in a flat basket and gently throwing them in the air and catching them back again in the basket so that the wind blows away from the lentils the lighter  lentils skins, insects and other impurities .The lentils were then rinsed a few times  until the water ran clear. Even after all this checks, the risk of biting on a small pebble was always high!

Cooking the Red Split Lentils

Red Split Lentils (they are actually a bright orange colour) are by far the quickest to cook of the lentil family. They need no pre-soaking unlike many legumes as the fibrous skins have been removed so they split naturally into two halves, making them less dense, hence ‘split lentils’.

Some myths and facts about cooking lentils

When to add salt ?

There are many opinions about when to add salt to a pot of simmering lentils. Some experts say to wait until the lentils soften before adding salt, otherwise the lentils will not cook through. Others advise adding the salt right at the beginning of the cooking in order to season the lentils through and through.

There is, however, no scientific evidence that salt can prevent lentils from reaching their peak tenderness. On the other hand, it has been found that calcium, sugar, and acidic ingredients does inhibit the softening of lentils

Effect of calcium and sugar

Normally when fruits and vegetables are cooked, heat causes the insoluble pectic substances (the “glue” between the cells) to convert to water-soluble pectins, which dissolve. The cells then separate, and the fruit or vegetable softens. Both calcium and sugar, however, hinder this conversion to pectin, so when beans are cooked with an ingredient containing these substances, the lentils will not get overly soft. Cooking lentils in “hard” water, which contains calcium, also prevents softening. Seychellois living in the outlying islands would experience this because the water on these islands have a high calcium content originating from the coral base.

Effect of acidic ingredients

Acidic ingredients prevent softening, but in a different way. While calcium and sugar prevent cells from coming apart, the starch that is inside the cells can still swell and soften, so the lentils will be tender. But acids work differently, acting on starch within cells, preventing it from swelling. So, do not add acidic ingredients, such as tomato sauce, wine, lemon juice, or vinegar, until the lentils are tender.

Health Benefits of Lentils

Lentils are made up of over 25% protein and have the third-highest level of protein, by weight, of any legume or nut, after soybeans and hemp. Proteins include the essential amino acids isoleucine and lysine. They also contain folate, vitamin B1, minerals, dietary fibre and is a great source of iron.

Preparing the Salted Pork with Red Split Lentils- Pork Sale ek Lantir

Prepare the salted Pork

Once you have accessed your salted pork, wash it very thoroughly to remove as much surface salt as possible. Soak it in water for about 2 hours. Then place it in a pot, add fresh water and boil for about 25 minutes until cooked.

Remove the pork from cooking liquor, allow it to cool and cut into bite-size portions. Keep the cooking liquor because the flavour secret of the dish is using the cooking liquor in which the salted pork was cooked as stock for the dish instead of water.

Cook the lentils

Put the lentils in a strainer and rinse them under running water until water runs clear. Drain and set aside. 

In a medium saucepan, add oil and sweat the chopped onion. Then add garlic, ginger, and stir for a minute or so. Stir in the lentils and add half of the water and mix thoroughly and bring to a boil over medium-high heat.

Lower the heat, cover the pot with a lid and gently simmer, about 30 to 40 minutes allowing the lentils to really break down and give a comforting, creamy texture.  You will have to constantly stir the lentils to stop it from sticking to the bottom of the pot and more importantly, to check on the consistency of the lentils as it will thicken as it progressively absorbs the water. You may have to add the extra water as you go for you to get this creamy consistency.

Finishing the Salted Pork with Red Split Lentils- Pork Sale ek Lantir

Once your lentils have reached its creamy consistency, add the salted pork meat and simmer for another 15 minutes. Cover the pot so that the moisture stays in the lentils as well as  preventing the  lentils from bubbling  and splashing everywhere.  Make sure you stir it every now and then so that it doesn’t stick to the bottom. I do it normally every couple of minutes.

Check the consistency of the lentils, it must stay creamy. If it starts to get too thick you may thin it with some water. Alternatively, you may decide to thin it with some of the reserved cooking liquour in which the pork was boiled. This will also concentrate flavour of the pork. Be careful though, always add a little a a time and check for the level of saltiness, because the cooking liquor may make your dish too salty. If it is too salty use plain water.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

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