Experiment: success

[dagibbs]

Freezing then thawing the lentil-barley stew was successful. It was still food after the process.

Comments

[kattale.livejournal.com]

If it is vegetarian (or adaptable to be so)
I would love the recipe. :)

[dagibbs.livejournal.com]

The basic recipe is vegetarian (uses butter), but I generally cook it vegan, substituting olive oil for the butter.

I generally put in even more Rosemary than my edited enhancements in the recipe.

Oh yeah, I don't measure the oil, I just pour in a generous amount for frying the onions & celery. (And, often, garlic.)



Lentil and Barley Stew

1/4 cup butter (olive oil)
1/3 cup chopped onion (2/3 cup)
1/2 cup chopped celery (3/4 cup)
2.5 cups skinned chopped fresh tomatoes or canned tomatoes
2 cups water
1/2 cup dried lentils, picked over and washed
1/3 cup whole barley
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper (1/4 tsp)
1/8 teaspoon rosemary (1/2 tsp)
1/3 cup shredded carrots (ok without)
(garlic)
(basil, optional)

1. In a large heavy saucepan, melt the butter and saute the onion in it until tender.
Add celery and cook five minutes longer.

2. Add remaining ingredients except the carrots, bring to a boil, cover, and simmer
gently 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

3. Add carrots and cook five minutes longer, or until barley and lentils are tender.

Yield: 4 servings

(David: usually takes longer then 30 minutes for barley to be cooked. Olive oil is
a good substitute for the butter. Upped the herbs and spices. Carrot not really
neccessary at all.)

[jagash.livejournal.com]

Excellent. :)

[metalana.livejournal.com]

I've never met a stew that didn't freeze well. I make a lot of stew-type concoctions, and freeze the leftovers in individual servings.

[dagibbs.livejournal.com]

That's exactly what I did here. It worked quite well.