1. Canned legumes
In their dried form, legumes usually require an overnight soak and an hour-plus for cooking, so having a variety of canned legumes in your cupboard is a huge time saver. Look for brands that are low in sodium, since they’re all high in fibre, low in fat and versatile — try tossing chickpeas and black beans together in this refreshing Chickpea and black bean salad, use pinto or kidney beans in chili or as a burrito filling, whip up this delicious recipe for Herbed White Bean Spread, or add your favourite legume to soups, stews and pastas.
2. Quick-cooking grains
Stock up on alternative grains such as barely and quinoa or couscous, which are cooked similarly to pasta, although the latter can also be cooked by pouring a boiling liquid (usually water or stock) overtop, letting the couscous absorb the liquid for five minutes in a tightly covered container and then fluffing with a fork to serve. Nutritious and nutty-tasting, these grains can be mixed up with veggies and proteins to make stand-alone meals such as a rustic Grilled Chicken and Barley Salad, or they can be subtly flavoured to be used as easy, killer sides like fragrant Herbed Pearl Couscous.
3. Raw nuts and seeds
Hazelnuts, walnuts, almonds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds…the list goes on. And even though they have a reputation for being high in saturated fat, they’re also full of good fats and Vitamin E. (you don’t need additional oil to toast nuts, just a 350ºF oven, a baking sheet and a keen sense of smell). Coarsely grind up hazelnuts to coat pork tenderloin, crust tuna with sesame seeds, or roll chèvre discs in pumpkin seeds.
For depth of flavour, earthy notes and an unbeatable crunch, toss nuts and seeds, raw or toasted, into salads, veggie sides and pastas. Here are a few recipes to get you started:
• Maple glazed squash and beans with walnuts
• Linguine with walnuts, parsley and garlic oil sauce
• Red cabbage slaw with blue cheese and walnuts
• Green beans with lemon and hazelnuts
4. Du Puy lentils
Sometimes called just French lentils, these tiny, elegant legumes are brown and turquoise in colour. They don’t require a pre-soak and take less than 30 minutes to cook. Make a delicious fall salad with basic white-wine vinaigrette, toasted almonds and crumbled aged cheddar, or for a heavier winter meal, braise them with sausages.
To give Du Puy lentils a flavour boost during the cooking process, add a few big hunks of onion, carrot, and celery (they’re easier to pick out of the cooked lentils if left in large pieces), plus a garlic clove, bay leaf, a few sprigs of thyme and even a splash of wine to the cooking water — or simmer them in a low-sodium vegetable or meat broth. Season the lentils with salt in the last few minutes of cooking. Try our recipe for Braised Lentils with Sausages.
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