Sunday, January 6, 2008

Couscous salad

Master Recipe for Couscous Salad

This recipe is a ‘master’ recipe which means I never make it the same way – use whatever vegies, cheeses or meats you have in the fridge, and any herbs you have too. It is great as a side dish to accompany meat such as lamb or chicken, or as a main meal if you jazz it up with say some grilled pumpkin. It takes about 10 minutes total to make and is very light on dirty dishes. I also sometimes add canned lentils for more legumes. You can make it more Italian with basil and boccocini, or Moroccan with cumin, coriander, turmeric, lemon and haloumi.


For two, with leftovers for lunch the next day. Makes enough for big meals.

1 cup couscous
1 cup boiling water
Red capsicum, diced
1 can chickpeas, drained and washed
Cucumber, diced
Celery, finely sliced
Carrot, diced
Tomato or cherry tomatoes, diced
Red onion, finely diced
Herbs such as parsley, basil, coriander or mint finely chopped
Cheese such as boccocini, haloumi (is great fried) or fetta
Olive oil
Balsamic Vinegar
Seasoning to taste

To prepare the couscous, bring 1 cup of water to the boil with some salt and if you like some seasonings such as cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon or anything! Garlic is good too. Add the couscous, turn of the heat and leave for 5 minutes. Add some oil, turn the heat onto high and fluff with a fork for about 1 minute before removing from heat.

Combine all ingredients into a large bowl, mix and add olive oil and balsamic, and lemon if you are using haloumi.

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