The National Lentil Festival started in 1989 and grows every year!Lentils are shaped like a contact lens. In fact, lens is the latin word for lentil.
Lentils may have been used as an aphrodisiac in ancient Egypt. They also thought that the lentil enlightened the minds of children, making them more cheerful and studious.
The lentil is a cousin of the bean, and both are a part of the legume family. All legumes are seeds that grow within pods. Click here for a brief history of farming on the Palouse.
During World War lI, Americans were encouraged to eat lentils to help the wartime economy.
Folic Acid is one very important nutrient found in lentils. One cup of cooked lentils provides 90% of the recommended daily allowance (RDA). Lentils provide more folic acid than any other unfortified food.
Lentils have been found in the tombs of Egypt dating back to 2400 B.C.
The official mascot of the National Lentil Festival is Tase T. Lentil. His close cousin, Dan D. Pea, is the mascot of the USA Dry Pea & Lentil Council.
Soluble fiber in lentils acts as a scrub brush, cleaning the digestive system. This type of fiber also decreases serum glucose and cholesterol, and decreases insulin requirements for people with diabetes.
The chili bowl at the National Lentil Festival holds 650 gallons of lentil chili.
In 1990 Whitman County, where Pullman is located, grew 98% of the lentils produced in the entire United States!
According to the Bible, Esau was tricked into selling his birthright for a pottage of lentils. (Genesis 25:34).
In 2008 we brewed 200 gallons of our famous lentil chili. Every last lentil was gone in under 40 minutes!