Aunque tenga poco tiempo, me pongo a cocer las lentejas antes de ducharme.

Because aunque can be followed by either the subjunctive or the indicative, depending on the meaning.

Here, aunque tenga poco tiempo presents the idea as a concession: even if / although I may have little time. The subjunctive makes it sound less like a plain factual statement and more like a circumstance the speaker is pushing past.

• Aunque tengo poco tiempo = although I do have little time
• Aunque tenga poco tiempo = even if I have little time / although I may have little time

In many real-life cases, both are possible, but they create a slightly different nuance. The sentence you have sounds very natural if the speaker wants to stress the obstacle rather than simply report a fact.

Yes, it could be correct, but the nuance changes a bit.

• Aunque tengo poco tiempo... sounds more factual: although I have little time...
• Aunque tenga poco tiempo... sounds more concessive or more detached from a simple factual statement: even if I have little time...

So both can work, but tenga gives the sentence a slightly more idiomatic concessive feel.

Ponerse a + infinitive means to start / to begin doing something.

So:

• me pongo a cocer las lentejas = I start cooking/boiling the lentils

It is a very common structure in Spanish:

• Me pongo a estudiar = I start studying
• Se puso a llorar = He/She started crying
• Nos pusimos a hablar = We started talking

The me is part of the pronominal verb ponerse, so you should learn it as a whole expression: ponerse a hacer algo.

The me is there because the verb is ponerse, not just poner.

• poner = to put
• ponerse a + infinitive = to begin to do something

So me pongo a cocer does not literally mean I put myself to boil lentils in modern usage. It is just an idiomatic verbal structure meaning I start boiling/cooking the lentils.

The pronoun changes with the subject:

• me pongo
• te pones
• se pone
• nos ponemos
• os ponéis
• se ponen

Cocer means to cook by boiling or to boil/cook through heat in water.

With lentejas, cocer is very natural, because lentils are typically cooked by boiling/simmering them.

So:

• cocer las lentejas = to boil/cook the lentils

This is more specific than cocinar, which just means to cook in a general sense.

Compare:

• cocinar las lentejas = cook the lentils
• cocer las lentejas = boil/cook the lentils

In Spain, cocer is a very normal verb in this context.

They overlap, but they are not identical.

• cocinar = to cook, in a general sense
• cocer = to cook something in boiling water or with moist heat
• hervir = to boil

Examples:

• Voy a cocinar = I’m going to cook
• Voy a cocer las lentejas = I’m going to boil/cook the lentils
• El agua hierve = The water is boiling
• Voy a hervir agua = I’m going to boil water

So in your sentence, cocer is chosen because it fits lentils very well.

Spanish often uses the definite article where English would not.

Here, las lentejas sounds natural because the speaker is referring to the lentils as the specific food they are about to prepare.

In Spanish, articles are frequently used with food, body parts, and nouns understood in context.

For example:

• Voy a hacer la cena = I’m going to make dinner
• Me lavo las manos = I wash my hands
• Pongo las lentejas a cocer = I put the lentils on to cook

English often drops the article, but Spanish often keeps it.

After a preposition like de, Spanish normally uses an infinitive if the subject stays the same.

So:

• antes de ducharme = before showering / before I shower

The pronoun me is attached to the infinitive:

• ducharme
• levantarme
• acostarme

You cannot say antes de me duchar.

The correct possibilities are:

• antes de ducharme
• antes de que me duche if you want a full clause with a conjugated verb

Because ducharse means to shower oneself / to take a shower.

In Spanish, many daily routine verbs are commonly reflexive:

• levantarse = to get up
• acostarse = to go to bed
• ducharse = to shower

So:

• ducharme = to shower myself / to take a shower

If you say duchar a alguien, that means to shower someone else.

For example:

• Voy a ducharme = I’m going to take a shower
• Voy a duchar al niño = I’m going to shower the child

Yes. Both are possible, but they are structured differently.

• antes de ducharme = before showering / before I shower
• antes de que me duche = before I shower

Use antes de + infinitive when the subject is the same as in the main clause. That is the case here, so antes de ducharme is the most compact and natural choice.

Use antes de que + subjunctive when you want a full clause, often especially when the subject is different.

For example:

• Me pongo a cocer las lentejas antes de ducharme
• Me pongo a cocer las lentejas antes de que llegue mi hermano

Poco tiempo means little time or not much time.

So:

• tener poco tiempo = to have little time / not have much time

It is a very common expression in Spanish.

Examples:

• Hoy tengo poco tiempo = I don’t have much time today
• Aunque tenga poco tiempo... = Although I have little time / Even if I don’t have much time...

It is very natural and standard here.

The first part, Aunque tenga poco tiempo, is an introductory concessive clause. In writing, Spanish commonly separates this kind of fronted clause with a comma.

So:

• Aunque tenga poco tiempo, me pongo a cocer las lentejas...

That comma helps the reader see the structure clearly.

Yes. Spanish allows some flexibility.

For example, you could say:

• Me pongo a cocer las lentejas antes de ducharme, aunque tenga poco tiempo.

That still makes sense. However, putting Aunque tenga poco tiempo first highlights the contrast immediately: despite having little time, I still start cooking the lentils.

So the original order is very natural if the speaker wants to emphasize the obstacle first.

It is perfectly natural in Spain, especially because cocer is very common there in cooking contexts.

The sentence would also be understood elsewhere, but in some regions a speaker might be more likely to say something like:

• me pongo a cocinar las lentejas
• pongo a cocer las lentejas

So the sentence feels very standard and natural for Spain, especially in everyday domestic language.

It can suggest either I begin the task of cooking them or I set them to cook, depending on context.

With lentils, a native speaker may easily understand it as I get the lentils going before doing something else. In everyday life, that often means you start the cooking process and then move on.

If you wanted to be even more explicit, Spanish might also say:

• Pongo las lentejas a cocer = I put the lentils on to cook

That version focuses more directly on setting them to boil.

Normally, yes, when talking about the food.

• la lenteja = a lentil
• las lentejas = lentils

When referring to the dish or ingredient in general, Spanish often uses the plural:

• Hoy comemos lentejas = Today we’re eating lentils
• Voy a cocer las lentejas = I’m going to cook the lentils

So the plural here is exactly what you would expect.