# Bulgarian lentil stew (Леща / leshta) — pressure cooker, 4 persons

Thick Bulgarian-style lentil stew with carrots, potatoes and fresh tomatoes,
built on a paprika roux (запръжка), enriched with diced cured sausage, and
served with crumbled white brine cheese on top. Cooked entirely in the pressure
cooker — no oven, no blender.

Written to spend the lentils (bb in 3 days) and the garlic (bb today).

## Ingredients

**From inventory:**

_pantry-fridge:_
- [ ] ~400g carrots, i.e. 4–5 medium `ID:carrots-2026-07-10` (location: pantry-fridge, bb:2026-08-15)
- [ ] 150–200g cured sausage, diced `ID:shpek-stara-planina-2026-06-18` (location: pantry-fridge, bb:2026-09-04) — or `ID:shpek-burgas-2026-06-13` (bb:2026-10-05), or 2×100g `ID:lukanka-red-parkmart-2026-07-15` (bb:2026-09-06)
- [ ] ~200g white brine cheese (сирене) for serving `ID:cheese-nasheselo-2026-07-21` (location: pantry-fridge, bb:2027-02-02)

_pantry-behind-stove:_
- [ ] ~250g onion, i.e. 2 medium `ID:onions-2026-07-02` (location: pantry-behind-stove, bb:2026-08-01) — top up from `ID:onion-kaba-2026-07-08` (bb:2026-08) if short
- [ ] 4 cloves garlic (~20g) `ID:garlic-2026-07-08` (location: pantry-behind-stove, bb:2026-07-28) ⚠️ at best-before today — or `ID:garlic-parkmart-2026-07-15` (bb:2026-07-28)

_pantry-spice-stove:_
- [ ] 3 tbsp sunflower oil `ID:sunfloweroil-seta` (location: pantry-spice-stove, bb:2027) — or the olive oil below
- [ ] 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar `ID:vinegar-paros` (location: pantry-spice-stove, bb:2029)

_temp:_
- [ ] 3 tbsp olive oil `ID:olive-oil-peristera-2026-07-08` (location: temp, bb:2028-03-16) — if not using the sunflower oil

_food2-box:_
- [ ] 💧 500g dried lentils `ID:lentils-bulgarian` (location: food2-box, bb:2026-07-31) — or `ID:lentils-green-saban` / `ID:lentils-yerli-saban` (both 1kg, bb:2026-07-31)

_food3:_
- [ ] ~500g potatoes, i.e. 3 medium `ID:potatoes-2026-07-10` (location: food3, bb:2026-09-01) — or from the 2.6kg `ID:potatoes-yellow-2026-07-06` (location: temp, bb:2026-08)

_food1:_
- [ ] 200ml tomato passata `ID:passata-baresa` (location: food1, bb:2027-01-14) — only if the fresh tomatoes are pale/watery

_pantry-foodbox-loose:_
- [ ] 100ml cooking cream 22%, optional `ID:cooking-cream-milbona-2026-06-07` (location: pantry-foodbox-loose, bb:2026-09-26) — stands in for the missing yoghurt, see below

_F-13 (spices):_
- [ ] 1 tbsp sweet paprika `ID:paprika-sweet-kania` (location: F-13, bb:2027)
- [ ] 1 tsp dried lovage (девесил) `ID:lovage-dried-2026-05-16` (location: F-13, bb:2027-05-30)
- [ ] black pepper to taste `ID:pepper-black-harmony` (location: F-13, bb:2028)

_F-02 / F-03:_
- [ ] 1 tbsp wheat flour `ID:flour-greek` (location: F-02, bb:2027)
- [ ] salt to taste `ID:salt-coarse` (location: F-03, bb:2031)

_not in inventory (confirmed on board by user 2026-07-27):_
- [ ] ~400g fresh tomatoes, i.e. 3–4 medium
- [ ] extra carrots beyond the 504g registered — use them, this stew takes carrots happily

**Missing — no shopping this time:**
- ❌ Eggs — out of stock. Halved hard-boiled eggs are a good topping here next time.
- ❌ Yoghurt — out of stock, all five tubs consumed. The white brine cheese is now the only dairy topping; the optional cooking cream can replace the yoghurt swirl.
- ❌ Bay leaf (дафинов лист) — not in stock. Added to the wanted-items list. Without it, lean a little harder on the lovage and finish with the vinegar.
- ❌ Summer savory (чубрица) — the other classic leshta herb, also not in stock.

**Preparation needed:**
- [ ] 💧 Rinse the 500g lentils and pick out stones. Soaking is *not* required with the pressure cooker, but 30 min in cold water while you chop shortens the cook and helps these older lentils cook evenly.

## Equipment

- **Pressure cooker** — the whole stew is cooked in it. The lentils are at their best-before date; older dry lentils can be stubborn, and pressure removes that risk.
- **No blender** — this stew is meant to be chunky, so nothing needs pureeing. If you want it thicker, mash a few potato and carrot chunks against the side of the pot with a spoon.
- **No oven, no microwave** — not needed.
- Everything happens in one pot on one burner.

## Instructions

**Prep (do all the chopping before any heat goes on — the roux burns in seconds):**

1. Rinse 500g lentils in cold water, pick out any stones, leave them to sit in cold water while you chop.
2. Chop ~250g onion (2 medium) finely. Slice ~400g carrots (4–5 medium) into 5mm rounds. Peel ~500g potatoes (3 medium) and cut into 2–3cm chunks. Chop ~400g fresh tomatoes (3–4 medium) coarsely. Finely chop 4 cloves of garlic. Dice 150–200g cured sausage into ~1cm cubes.
3. Measure out the roux ingredients within arm's reach: 1 tbsp flour, 1 tbsp sweet paprika. You will have about 10 seconds to use them.

**Cooking:**

4. Open pressure cooker, medium heat, 3 tbsp oil. Fry the 150–200g diced sausage for 3–4 minutes until the edges brown and the fat renders.
5. Add the ~250g chopped onion and fry 5–6 minutes until soft and golden, stirring now and then.
6. Add the ~400g sliced carrots and fry another 3 minutes.
7. Turn the heat **down to low**. Sprinkle in 1 tbsp flour, stir hard for 30 seconds. Then add 1 tbsp sweet paprika and 4 chopped garlic cloves and stir for 15–20 seconds only — paprika burns and turns bitter fast.
8. Immediately kill the burn risk: pour in the ~400g chopped tomatoes and about 300ml water, scraping the bottom of the pot clean. If the tomatoes are pale or watery, add 200ml passata as well.
9. Add the drained 500g lentils, the ~500g potato chunks, 1 tsp dried lovage, and enough water to cover everything by 3cm (roughly 1.2–1.5 litres total). **Do not salt yet** — salt early can toughen lentil skins, and both the sausage and the brine cheese bring salt of their own.
10. Close the pressure cooker, bring to full pressure, then cook **10 minutes** at pressure on low heat.
11. Release pressure (natural release is gentler and lets it settle — 10 min; quick-release if you are hungry). Open, taste a lentil. If still firm, simmer open for 5–10 more minutes.
12. Now season: black pepper and salt to taste, and stir in 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar. The vinegar is what makes it taste Bulgarian rather than merely brown — add it at the end, off heat. Taste before salting; with the sausage in there you may need very little.
13. Optional, in place of the missing yoghurt: stir 100ml cooking cream into the pot off the heat, or hold it back and spoon it onto the bowls.
14. Let it stand 5 minutes to thicken. It should be thick enough that a spoon leaves a trail, not soupy.

**Serving:**

15. Ladle into 4 bowls. Crumble ~200g white brine cheese over the top, roughly 50g per bowl, and add a last grind of black pepper.

## Variations

> **Note:** Traditional Bulgarian леща is usually meat-free and gets its depth from bay leaf, summer savory (чубрица) and a lot of paprika. We have neither bay nor savory on board, so the diced cured sausage and the lovage are carrying that load instead. If you want the authentic vegetarian version, skip the sausage and add a second tablespoon of paprika.

> **Note:** Potatoes are not in every leshta recipe — they are here to stretch the dish to 4 people without shopping, and because there are ~4kg on board.

> **Note:** With both the eggs and the yoghurt gone, protein comes from 500g of lentils plus the sausage and the cheese. That is still plenty for 4, but the cheese on top is now doing real work — do not skip it, and be generous with it.

## Items used from inventory

| Item | ID | Location | Status |
|------|-----|----------|--------|
| Bulgarian lentils 500g | `lentils-bulgarian` | food2-box | bb:2026-07-31 (3d) |
| Garlic | `garlic-2026-07-08` | pantry-behind-stove | bb:2026-07-28 (today) |
| Onions | `onions-2026-07-02` | pantry-behind-stove | bb:2026-08-01 (4d) |
| Carrots | `carrots-2026-07-10` | pantry-fridge | bb:2026-08-15 |
| Potatoes, fresh | `potatoes-2026-07-10` | food3 | bb:2026-09-01 |
| Shpek Stara Planina 250g | `shpek-stara-planina-2026-06-18` | pantry-fridge | bb:2026-09-04 |
| White brine cheese (сирене) | `cheese-nasheselo-2026-07-21` | pantry-fridge | bb:2027-02-02 |
| Cooking cream 22% (optional) | `cooking-cream-milbona-2026-06-07` | pantry-foodbox-loose | bb:2026-09-26 |
| Tomato passata (optional) | `passata-baresa` | food1 | bb:2027-01-14 |
| Sweet paprika | `paprika-sweet-kania` | F-13 | bb:2027 |
| Dried lovage | `lovage-dried-2026-05-16` | F-13 | bb:2027-05-30 |
| Black pepper | `pepper-black-harmony` | F-13 | bb:2028 |
| Wheat flour | `flour-greek` | F-02 | bb:2027 |
| Coarse salt | `salt-coarse` | F-03 | bb:2031 |
| Olive oil | `olive-oil-peristera-2026-07-08` | temp | bb:2028-03-16 |
| Apple cider vinegar | `vinegar-paros` | pantry-spice-stove | bb:2029 |

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*Generated 2026-07-27 to use the 2026-07-31 lentils and the 2026-07-28 garlic. Updated 2026-07-28 after eggs and all yoghurt turned out to be consumed. No shopping.*