First there are the classic ones, known in Spain as lentejas pardinas o pardi�as, which are big but not too big. (I can't remember what the great big ones are called because I can't stand them.) Then there are the French ones, smaller and perhaps a bit milder. And perhaps because of their origin, or because of some silly comment, I have always preferred them.
But I will always remember what the manager of the first restaurant where I worked said. His name was Mr. Guitch. His comment was nothing more than a fine point on the concept of luxury and the small side of things. I think that in reality he was telling me I should become more refined, much more, in the art of cuisine.

The point is that as far as lentils go there are not many varieties. In France the small ones come in several colors, such as brown, green and pink. And they come with a ticket specifying their class, zone where they were grown and how they were grown.
In England I have come across fast-cooking lentils. They take eight minutes. That's right, eight minutes. And they come in different sizes and colors.
It turns out Spain consumes more lentils than any other country of Europe, almost in the whole world, and the habit becomes kind of a tyranny. But not ours, which I would understand. One always understands one's own follies.
But after all this talk of varieties, what we really tend to be interested is in eating the lentils, now that we have bought them. And what often comes first is the question, what do I cook them with?
We should first recall a series of factors when cooking lentils. The first is to soak them for six or eight hours. Or overnight. Or what the instructions on the package say if they are the fast-cooking kind. If you have not soaked them, with normal lentils what you can do is put them in a pot with lots of cold water, then put them on the stove. When it starts to boil, strain them and cool them under the faucet. Then turn to the recipe you like most. Another doubt tends to be how to serve them. They can be for salad, or with dishes involving meat, game or other things hardier than the lentils. Most people get around this by simply boiling them the old-fashioned way: with water, salt, black pepper, clove, half an onion, one bay leaf and two cloves of garlic.

Let it be clear that the only acceptable way for the lentils to be eaten is when they are whole but tender. They are not pasta, which has to be al dente, and they are not to be cooked again. Nor should they come out like pur�e.
I don't know how long to cook them in a pressure cooker. Sorry, I just don't have one. We'll talk about that some day. But in a normal pot, over a low fire so the water will bubble gently, it depends on the variety of lentil. But never more than half an hour. So be careful.
Cooking the lentils plain-style as mentioned above is useful for other more complex dishes. As a squid suc that I prepare in the Taberna de Liria, which takes nearly two hours to make. This length of time would wear out the lentils, so it is best to cook them separately. Then cook them again with the rest of the ingredients for five minutes. They absorb the flavor of the dish quickly and well. This helps in a lot of ways.
But plain lentils are above all good in salads. There is the Spanish style, with onion, red and green pepper, tomato and parsley, well chopped, and seasoned with a regular vinaigrette dressing. The Arab style features onion, parsley, coriander and mint, all with a bit of salt, pepper, lemon and olive oil.

Of course, we can always add smoked duck, balls of morcilla, bacon cured Italian-style, or a good pickling sauce, which enriches our salad and turns it quite a dish.
The traditional Spanish lentil dish with chorizo and morcilla seems boring, but there are hundreds of other versions.�� Add rice, and bits of salted codfish, with a little bit of leafy Swiss chard. This is entirely too good. So forget about it.
Or you can make them with pig's feet and a Rioja-style tomato sauce, that is to say with red peppers. This is delicious, too, so forget it.
Or with mussels and prawns. Way too good.

But one thing we simply cannot forget is how to thicken the lentils so the dish does not come out watery. Some people mash up garlic and parsley with some of the lentils. There are other people who chop up onion and/or carrot. Others add potatoes fried in little squares.
I acknowledge that I like the idea of frying garlic, almonds and herbs and mash it up with broth from the lentils. This thickens the stew nicely. But on this point everyone should make up their own mind.
You can make the lentils with saut�ed vegetables, although this might be too vegetarian for some tastes. Or with smoked pork or fish. In the end there are so many recipes that everybody should pick some for themselves and get cooking.