Every week I make one or two ‘lunch items’ – things I make large amounts of in advance  so I always have something available for quick meals. I like to imagine my refrigerator is a deli counter!

On Monday evening I made a big batch of this salad. I brought some to work with me on Tuesday and it was the perfect lunch – hearty yet light so I was satisfied but not weighed down for the rest of the afternoon. It ticked all the main boxes for me – protein, carbs and fresh vegetables.

I used :

2 small red onions, sliced

1 bunch fresh dill, roughly chopped

1 kg baby new potatoes

approx 300g green lentils

3 tablespoons white wine vinegar

2 tablespoons wholegrain mustard

1/4 cup olive oil

Maldon salt

1.First I boiled the potatoes and lentils, in separate saucepans.

2. While these were cooking I sliced the onions and left them to macerate in the white wine vinegar. Doing this removes the sharpness and prevents bad breath after eating!

3. When the lentils were finished, after about 30 minutes,  I ran them under cold water to stop the cooking and prevent mushiness. When the potatoes were done I quickly chopped them,returned them to the pan while still warm,  and poured over the mustard and olive oil and seasoned with salt. I did this while they were still warm so they would absorb the flavour. When everything had cooled I mixed it together and added the chopped dill.

4. When I ate this for lunch today I beefed it up and added some colour by adding a grated carrot and fresh rocket leaves.