For these 2 reasons, a classic combo endures

Much has been written about the classic combination of legumes and grains. There’s a persistent myth involved, though: the idea that you have to combine the two to get a so-called complete protein, or protein that contains all the essential amino acids found in animal protein. In fact, some legumes, grains and other plant-based foods can be complete sources of protein on their own. Moreover, researchers have learned that you don’t have to eat complementary foods in the same meal to get the benefifit.

There’s another reason t o e a t b e a ns and g r a i ns together: They taste wonderful in concert. Cuisines the world over celebrate the pairing, from the beansand-corn dishes of Mexico to the pasta-with-chickpeas of Italy and the soybeanswith-rice of Asia.

Beans and grains can take a good amount of time to cook, although there are solutions for each: pressure cookers, slow-cookers (for that set-it-and-forget-it approach), plus canned and frozen products.

When it comes to legumes, the quickest ones to cook from dried are in the lentil family, and my favorite — especially as the weather gets cooler — are split red lentils, which lighten to a golden hue and become super-creamy as you cook them. There are the wonderful dals of India, of course, but my previous go-to recipe for such was Mollie Kat- zen’s combination of these lentils with soft onions.

Now I’ve found another t a ke t h a t i s d e s t i n e d t o become a st aple. In her lovely new book, “Small Victories,” Julia Turshen writes of cooking red lentils with curry spices and coconut milk, a recipe born out of college-age dinners in which she would try to make the most out of a friend’s sparse pantry. It’s a revelation: You “bloom” the spices in oil, right along with garlic, ginger and shallot, and then let the lentils slowly absorb the coconut milk and a little water, until they become almost like a thick soup.

On their own, the lentils are deeply flavored and warming. Served over a little basmati or brown basmati) rice, for that classic combination, they’re a meal.