The Men in the family start talking about Butchers Grade Sausages, Steaks and how many small Chickens they can fit in the gas-fired beast of a bar-b-que.
The Women in my family start talking about "who is bringing which salad"....
I'm not a person who generalises about the sexes too much, but.... Men just don't 'do' salad. It is their prerogative and we need to allow them that independance. We need to nod a small approval when there is the tiniest something 'leafy' or 'green' on their plate. It is a sign they at least know the women are either a) watching or b) approving.
SO... Cous-Cous Salad, for the ladies.If you are a Cous-Cous Virgin, you need to know the following:
Cous-Cous tastes rubbish without a shed load of stuff putting into it.
Cous-Cous is high in Protein - essential for me, as i am a vegetarian (please don't recoil in horror) Cous-Cous is low in fat and high in fibre.
Cous-Cous is very cheap and very easy to prepare. It is a cupboard essential in my kitchen as it can be flavoured in a million different ways and goes with any meal.
STEP ONE: pour some Cous-Cous into a bowl / dish for which you have a LID. I always make up more Cous-Cous than i need as i can eat it again the next day. ONLY keep it for 24 hours once made (and keep in a fridge) it is like rice and can breed bacterias very quickly.
Pour over some stock made with just boiled water **200g Cous-Cous = 250ml stock** approx serves 4 people. Put the lid on and leave it to soak up all the liquid, till you are ready - 20 mins minimum.
p.s THIS is the stock i use in EVERYTHING. It is the worlds greatest stock and even my meat loving friends enjoy this stock.
Whilst the Cous-Cous is 'swelling' fry up half an onion and some courgettes in a saucepan with a knob of butter. Till they are soft and browned. At the last minute add a generous helping of peas from the freezer. Never cook peas - they are too nice to ruin by boiling in water for an age.Pop this veg into the serving dish you'll use for the salad.
Add 3/4 block of crumbled Feta Cheese (it needs to be a hard, crumbly, salty cheese for this dish)
Add the Cous-Cous and 'fluff' the the little grains with a fork. It tends to clump whilst swelling so separate it with fork and mix it all very well.
THEN - it's up to you... but I added a good splash of soy sauce to mine and a drizzle of Olive Oil, plus a sprinkling of Celery Salt and some Black Pepper
Honestly - yum yum! and i ate the leftover portion for my lunch on the following day. So tasty x
7 comments:
Lovely - my boys had couscous this evening and polished it all off. I bet your recipe would be lovely with some pinenuts too - love that crunch! Totally agree about the stock - just the best.
No recoiling here. Need more veggie recipes please, can never have enough! We're a family of vegetarian and I love finding new things to try. I will do some cous cous this week, it's one thing I always have in but forget about.
I did not know about only keeping it for 24hrs! I'm awful at couscous, so I will definitely use your handy tips!
oh yes - rice, couscous, anything like that - but rice is the worst offender. If you get ill after an Indian take-away it would be more likely the rice than any other culprit.
Pine Nuts - i did think that too! I was going to go all over seeds in it but my family aren't seedy. It would be good tho x
oh my! this was so good I have eaten it for dinner and tea. I just had caramelised red onions, peas, mint and feta! just perfect! def hurrah for more veggie recipes! x
I love couscous, one of the absolute staples in our hosue (and very good with a veg tagine).
Hurrah for veggies - I'm not one, but the Lovely is and as such I spend a good half of my life trying to find delicious meals to make and eat :D Bring on the dshes says I!
xxx
ps. Bouillon totally rocks my socks. If I didn't have bouillon in the cupboard, food would be much sadder!
rhiannon - you won the parcel of goodies in the craft blog - email me your address!!
kirstyfish@googlemail.com
Post a Comment