A versatile summer salad
It is always a bit grim to farewell the summer holidays and head back to work – thank goodness for a few long weekends in the calendar to ease the pain. Today’s salad is a fabulous mid-week dinner, which can be served on its own or as part of a barbecue feast – but possibly the best thing about it is the way it makes a fantastic next-day work lunch.
The flavours and textures work so beautifully together, starting with the chilli and cumin-spiked, sweet roasted red onion, kumara and capsicum.
Next up is the large-size couscous, which rather than being a grain, is more like a small flat pearl pasta shape. (Although many grains would work brilliantly – brown rice, freekeh, hulled millet or quinoa.)
The cress adds a slight bitterness – but can be subbed for rocket or baby spinach – with creamy avocado, sweet semi-dried tomatoes, coriander, and luscious prawns. The finishing touch is a drizzle of cool harissa-swirled yoghurt mayo. Irresistible!
Feel free to play with some of the flavours – you could swap cooked chicken for the prawns, then throw in a few salty black olives and some crumbled feta. Smoked fish would also substitute well with a hit of lemon zest added to the mayo.
Whichever way you make it, be sure to squirrel some away for lunch the next day.
Prawn and Israeli couscous salad with harissa yoghurt mayo
Serves: 4-6 Preparation: 20 minutes Cooking: 32 minutes
❚ 2 tablespoons olive oil
❚ 1 red onion, halved and sliced into 1cm wedges
❚ 1 large orange kumara
❚ 1 red capsicum
❚ Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
❚ 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
❚ 1⁄ teaspoon chilli flakes 2
❚ 1 teaspoon runny honey
❚ 1 cup Israeli couscous
❚ 1⁄3 cup greek yoghurt
❚ 1⁄3 cup good quality mayonnaise
❚ 3 tablespoons harissa paste (or more to taste if desired)
❚ 3 cups large watercress
❚ 1 large avocado, halved and sliced
❚ 1⁄2 cup semi-dried tomatoes, halved
❚ 12 large cooked prawns (shelled if desired)
❚ 1⁄2 cup picked coriander leaves
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Put the olive oil and red onion in a large roasting dish. Cut the kumara into 3cm-4cm pieces, core the capsicum and slice into 1cm wedges. Add the kumara and capsicum to the onion, season well with salt and pepper, cumin seeds and chilli flakes and toss to coat in the oil.
Roast the vegetables for 15 minutes, then remove from the oven and turn kumara pieces over. Drizzle with honey and return to the oven to cook for a further 10 minutes, then remove from the oven and set aside.
Bring a large pot of water to the boil, season with sea salt and add the couscous.
Boil for seven minutes then drain well. Add to the dish of roasted vegetables and toss so that the couscous absorbs some of the seasoned oil. Leave to cool to room temperature (or refrigerate to use later).
Put the yoghurt and mayonnaise in a bowl and whisk to combine. Add the harissa and swirl through so it is semi-combined.
To serve, spoon a few tablespoons of dressing on to the bottom of a large serving plate and top with 2⁄3 of the watercress.
Layer on 2⁄3 of the vegetables then remaining watercress, avocado, semi-dried tomatoes, prawns and coriander leaves. Sprinkle with sea salt and black pepper, drizzle with mayo dressing, and serve with a little extra dressing on the side.