Greek Lentil Salad (Fakes Salata)

Fakes salata sits alongside fasolia salata as another genuinely filling cold pulse salad, using the same brown or green lentils that make fakes soup but taking them in a completely different direction, dressed cold in olive oil, vinegar and a generous amount of red onion rather than simmered into a hot bowl.

The technique is simple, cook the lentils until tender but not mushy, then dress while still warm exactly as with patatosalata and fasolia salata, so the dressing is properly absorbed rather than sitting on the surface of cold lentils.

This is genuinely good picnic and packed lunch food, holding up well at room temperature for hours and keeping for a couple of days refrigerated, arguably improving as the flavours settle.

Key preparation steps

1. Simmer lentils until tender but still holding their shape.
2. Drain and dress while still warm.
3. Add red onion, parsley and a sharp vinaigrette.
4. Let sit before serving so the flavours settle.

Cooking the lentils

Brown or green lentils, simmered in plenty of water with a bay leaf for twenty five to thirty minutes, until tender but still holding their shape rather than collapsing into mush, since a salad wants distinct lentils rather than a puree. Salt only towards the end of cooking, since salting the water early can toughen the skins of any dried pulse.

Dressing while warm

Drain the lentils, discard the bay leaf, and dress immediately while still warm with a generous amount of olive oil and red wine vinegar, along with finely sliced red onion, exactly as with patatosalata and fasolia salata. Warm lentils absorb the dressing far more thoroughly than cold ones.

Finishing and resting

Stir through a generous amount of chopped fresh parsley and check the seasoning. Let the salad sit for at least twenty minutes before serving, which allows the onion to soften slightly and the flavours to properly meld, and it keeps well for a couple of days refrigerated.

What matters in this dish