Smoked Trout With Lentil and Beet Salad
- 1 1/4 cups French green lentils, Lentilles du Puy are best
- 1 bay leaf
- Several sprigs fresh thyme
- Sea salt
- 2 small bunches baby beets, mixed red and yellow, trimmed and scrubbed
- 6 tablespoons good quality extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar, or to taste
- 2 shallots, minced
- 2 tablespoons finely grated fresh horseradish, or more to taste
- 1 small bunch watercress, stems removed and leaves roughly chopped
- Freshly ground black pepper
- Smoked trout, about 1 1/2 pounds
- Breakfast radishes, black bread and sweet butter for serving
Rinse lentils and discard any stones. Place in a large saucepan and cover with about 3 inches of cold water. Add bay leaf and thyme. Set over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, season with salt and simmer until lentils are just tender, about 20 minutes. Add more liquid if necessary and be careful not to overcook. Remove from heat, drain and discard bay leaf.
Meanwhile, fill another saucepan with water. Add beets. Set over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until beets are tender when pierced with a sharp knife, about 20 minutes. Drain beets, rinse under cold water and peel. Cut beets into small pieces.
Whisk together olive oil, vinegar, shallots and horseradish in a small bowl. Combine lentils and beets and toss with vinaigrette. Add more olive oil if needed as lentils tend to drink up the oil. Add watercress, tossing to combine and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Serve salad with smoked trout, radishes, black bread and butter. Having made salad today we all agreed that is would be nice on its own with a bit of salty feta crumbled in. Give it a try.