Are lentils beans?

Brad asked me this question last night as he was downing his second bowl of lentil soup.

It’s one of those questions where you know you should know the answer, but you have to stop for a minute and think about it.  Kind of like, which direction does the sun set? I have to think about the positioning of my childhood home to remember that accurately.

My answer: Well, it’s a legume, but I think it’s different than a bean.  Let me look into that.

My  lunch reminded me of his question and my inadequate answer.

In my green lunch box today: lentil soup (finally had hot soup to eat in my cold office!), a Dr. Cracker’s cracker, Laughing Cow, and two kiwis.

While eating this bowl of deliciousness, I did a little research and found out:

  • Peas, beans, and lentils are all seeds of a plant.
  • Dried beans require soaking before cooking while lentils do not.
  • Both get 26% of their calories from protein, which make them the third highest level of protein by weight of any plant-based food.

So, I’m assuming any real difference is in their appearance and that cooking lentils is easier than beans (?).

I think I’m finally growing tired of apples.  I’ve been squeezing my kiwis all week hoping that they were ripe enough to eat.  I finally scored two ripe ones this morning.

And yes, I do eat the skin.

It’s an excellent source of fiber and I don’t mind it at all if I cut the kiwi in disks so the surface area is mainly the fleshy green part.

You should try it. You’ll like it.  I promise.   🙂