Lentil Gloss

 In late September, before the pandemic had reached its halfway stage, I wore a bow tie and shiny grey suit to travel to a French Themed Evening at a restaurant that lay on the edge of one the most ancient forests of them all. On the menu  that night was an exquisite Duck Shepherd's Pie with Lentils and gravy that helped inspire a fish dish one evening in February.

The ingredients for this were as follows:

Two Fresh Haddock Loins sourced from a local fishmonger. 

One Hundred and Fifty Grams of Lentils Verts. 

A Red Onion, skinned, topped, tailed and diced.

Two Carrots, topped, tailed and then cubed.

Quarter of a pint of Vegetable Stock, just enough to cover the Lentils, Carrots and Onion in a saucepan.

The zest of half a Lemon. 

Five shoots of Fresh Dill. 

On the player was the Eagles' 1994 comeback album "Hell Freezes Over", a record that showed after a fourteen  year hiatus they had regained enough juice in the tank to return as a important act that retained a huge following. 

So to the method which goes as follows:

1. Put the Carrots, Onion and Vegetable Stock in saucepan, cover and simmer for around twenty-five minutes. 

2. In the meantime steam the Haddock Loins for about fifteen minutes until the fish starts to become crumbly. 

3. When ready to serve, decorate the Haddock with the Dill and Lemon Zest and serve on top of the Lentil, Onion and Carrot Mixture.

The trick of using just enough stock to cover the Lentil Mixture meant a Lentil, Carrot and Onion mixture that was not too runny and soft and struck just the right balance between properly cooked and al dente. This was as close as I had come to replicating the wonderful lentil mixture I had consumed on the French Themed Evening on a sunnier day. 

The Lemon and Dill meanwhile leant a sharpness to the Haddock that was the perfect contrast to the earthy richness of the Lentils.