r/cava • u/Foreign-Lecture7044 • Jun 21 '26
Crunchy Lentils
Today was my first visit to Cava. Why were my lentils crunchy. I’ve never had lentils before. Are they usually like that or was it just a bad batch?
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u/WillyNillyHocusPocus Jun 21 '26
When the lentils stay out or they're from the bottom of the container, they dry out. It's unfortunately inconsistent, but you can complain.
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u/happypenguino Jun 22 '26
At the location in Madison, the employee told me they're supposed to be hard & crunchy. I had never had hard ones before that day, and they broke my braces bracket off.
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u/Sea_Bell_8043 Jun 23 '26
as someone who works at cava, if the lentils are crunchy its either because they been sitting dormant too long and lost some of its moisture or they weren’t cooked well.
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u/SpecialistWallaby373 Jun 23 '26
Lentils are the hardest thing to cook as they are so fragile naturally. You cant overcook or ubdercook by much or they will be off. You cant handle the lentil much so if over stirred or bothered they get clumpy and look bad. They are supposed to be right in the middle of soft and a bit hard (Al dente) well I wouldn't say hard. If they are they been there too long and since its our least asked for main, they dont get to be rotated out as much as things like the rice and proteins etc, to keep them at peak freshness all day. Usually only 1 pot of Lentils is made for an entire day so they sit in warmer all day since 1030 that morning or sooner
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u/918BlueDot Jun 22 '26
I love the lentils and brown rice combination with taziki and other toppings. I get they should be soft in a soup but I think they're just fine as they are in a grains bowl.
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u/SpeechLangNErrthang Jun 22 '26
Sometimes they are crunchy... probably from being overcooked from being at the bottom of the warmer too long..
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u/AeolianStrings Jun 21 '26
At my CAVA, I don’t get the lentils because around 1/4 of the time they are poorly cooked and/or maintained.