Beet root greens and yellow lentils

Lentils and greens is a nutritious combination. My mom was visiting and as usual we got bunched beet roots from the farmer's market. The beet root had greens attached. My mom was surprised to see the beet root greens, she had never seen beet roots with greens. All along I have been casually tossing them away every time I brought them and just use the beet roots. But this time mom's special attention to the leaves made me have a second thought about them too. She decided to cook them with lentils. The stem was too fibrous to consume so she chopped it off and decided to cook just the leaves with lentils. What she cooked was just delicious and now its one of the recipes I find myself making....happily :)

If you like this simple, quick and innovative recipe please share, post comments and hit +1d, I will convey the message to my mom that her recipe is a success!! Keep encouraging :)


Ingredients:

Leaves from a bunch of beet root

1 cup lentil (I used yellow and pink lentils in 1:1 proportion)

1/2 medium onion finely chopped

1-2 garlic cloves

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp turmeric

Salt to taste

1 -2 tbsp oil for tempering

Recipe:

1. Thoroughly wash the beetroot greens and chop. Discard as much stem as you can. I found them too crunchy and fibrous to eat.

2. In preheated oil, add mustard seeds, and cumin seeds. Let them splutter. Then add chopped onions and finely minced garlic.

3. Once the onion turns golden brown, add the chopped leaves, cover and simmer.

4. In the meantime, cook the lentils. I cooked the lentils in open utensil with double the quantity of water as the lentils, on the stove.First a layer of foam forms in the boiling lentils, using a spoon carefully throw the foamy layer.

5. Let them cook till the lentil soak up the water and double up in size. It takes about 15-20 minutes. I usually start with the lentils ahead of the greens. 

6. Once both the greens and the lentils are cooked mix them together and stir. Add salt to taste. Enjoy with fresh homemade Roti, rice and your choice of pickle.