Beet, Lentil & Orange Salad with Five-Spice Vinaigrette
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Earthy beets and lentils, sweet oranges, and fresh chard come together with a savory, complex five-spice vinaigrette in this beautiful and hearty winter salad. It's just as delicious after a day or two in the fridge, so make extra and you can enjoy it for lunch or dinner later in the week when you're hungry and short on time.
Author:
Recipe type: Salad, Entree, Plant-Based
Cuisine: Modern American, Vegan
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients
  • Beets, Lentils & Oranges:
  • 4 medium beets (2 - 2 ½” diam. or 4 - 4 ½ oz each), with greens attached
  • 15ml (1 Tbsp) unseasoned rice vinegar
  • Kosher salt
  • Warm water
  • 4 oz (½ cup) dried black, brown or green lentils, rinsed and picked over
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 clove garlic, peeled and lightly crushed
  • 1 small cinnamon stick
  • 1 piece star anise
  • One ¼-inch thick coin peeled ginger
  • Vegetable stock or water
  • 2 large oranges (about 6 oz each), scrubbed well
  • Vinaigrette:
  • 30 ml (2 Tbsp) olive oil
  • 1 tsp fresh Chinese five-spice powder or 1 ½ tsp store-bought powder¹
  • ½ tsp finely grated fresh ginger²
  • ½ tsp finely grated fresh garlic
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) raw honey or agave
  • 60 ml (¼ cup) freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 20 ml (4 tsp) unseasoned rice vinegar
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • Several grinds white pepper (or substitute black pepper)
  • Greens:
  • 5 ml (1 tsp) olive oil
  • Garnish:
  • Chopped fresh mint or parsley
  • Sliced scallions (white and light green parts only)
Procedure
  1. Preheat oven to 400F.
  2. Prep and roast beets: Trim the greens off the beets leaving about ½ inch of stem on the beet roots, and set the greens aside. Scrub the beets well with a vegetable brush, and wrap tightly in foil (or skip the foil and lay the beets on a parchment-lined sheet pan). Roast beets on a sheet pan for 35-45 minutes until they “give” slightly when pressed or are easily pierced with the tip of a knife. Cooking time really depends on the size and freshness of the beets; I check them at 35 minutes and let them go longer if necessary.
  3. Remove beets from oven and allow to sit in foil for a few minutes before unwrapping. (If you roasted them unwrapped, transfer to a bowl and cover with a plate or plastic wrap to let them steam.) After 5 minutes, unwrap or uncover the beets and let them sit until cool enough to handle, then peel³ them. As long as they’re relatively fresh the skin should slide off easily when rubbed. Cut beets into ½-inch cubes and transfer to a large bowl.
  4. While beets are roasting, prep greens and pickle stems: Wash and dry the greens. Cut the stems from the and dice them into small pieces. Transfer diced stems to a small bowl, add rice vinegar, salt, and enough warm water just to cover. Let sit until ready to serve. Slice the greens into ribbons and set aside.
  5. Cook lentils: Also while beets are roasting, add lentils to a small saucepan along with kosher salt, crushed garlic clove, cinnamon stick, star anise, ginger, and stock or water to cover the lentils by one inch. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to a bare simmer and cover partially with a lid. Simmer lentils just until tender but still toothsome, about 20 minutes. I check the pot at about the 12-minute mark to make sure there’s enough cooking liquid, and add a touch more if necessary. Drain lentils well, and discard aromatics and spices. Add lentils to cubed beets.
  6. Prep oranges: Zest both oranges and set zest aside. Juice one orange and reserve the juice. Using a very sharp knife, cut all the skin and white pith off the remaining orange. Cut the orange into ⅛ - inch crosswise slices, and cut each slice in half. Set aside.
  7. Make vinaigrette: In a medium sauté pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. When oil is shimmering, add five-spice powder and toast for 30-60 seconds, whisking constantly, until fragrant. Reduce heat to medium low, add fresh ginger and garlic, and cook for 30 seconds. Whisk in honey or agave, orange juice, rice vinegar, salt and pepper. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary. Pour hot vinaigrette over beets and lentils, and toss to combine. Don’t wash the sauté pan.
  8. Wilt greens: Add 1 teaspoon olive oil to the sauté pan from the vinaigrette, heat over medium until oil shimmers, and add greens and a pinch of salt to the pan. Sauté just until wilted and tender, 2-3 minutes. Add greens to beets and lentils.
  9. Serve: Drain the pickled stems. Add the stems and orange slices to the beet and lentil mixture, fold gently to combine, and garnish with orange zest, herbs and scallions. Serve immediately.
Notes
¹To make your own five-spice powder, combine the following in a spice grinder:
12 grams (scant ¼ cup) Szechuan peppercorn, toasted
12 grams (about 6 large) whole star anise, broken up
7 grams (1 Tbsp) fennel seed, toasted
6 grams (two 2 ½-inch long pieces) cinnamon stick, broken up
5 grams (1 Tbsp) whole clove

Process until finely ground, sift out any large pieces that won’t grind, and store powder in an airtight container.

²Fresh ginger makes a difference here, so please use it instead of the dried powder. (Grate it on the finest microplane you have, and while you’re at it, use the microplane to grate the garlic. If you don’t have a microplane, do your best to mince both the ginger and garlic into tiny pieces, then press down on them with the flat side of your knife and pull back and forth over the bits with brisk strokes to crush them into a coarse paste. Alternatively you can pound them with a mortar and pestle.)

³The only thing I don’t like about beets is the way the juice stains pretty much everything it touches, and beet stains are difficult to remove. If you’re not wearing gloves be sure to scrub your hands with soap and warm water immediately after handling them, and I don’t recommend wearing white when you work with them!
Recipe by Good Health Gourmet at https://goodhealthgourmet.com/beet-lentil-orange-salad-five-spice/