COUSCOUS SALAD

The day I discovered couscous (or tabulé) I was still a university student in Florence (Italy). Oh yes, who would have thought that I would have sight for those memories... The days of independence, out of the protective shell family gives you. Those, are the days when you start to understand how tough it is to keep the house clean. How harsh can be relationships. And of course, the days of first experiment with cooking. I must say it, to the delight of my room mate, I experimented a lot.  

One day Hamada, one of my best friend, came home with a present from his granny, which is Moroccan origine. Thanks to the kindness of a grand mother I had my first plate of couscous. I was totally stunned. I felt to eat something between pasta and rice. Was that possible?

I learnt that couscous is super fast, easy and one of the most versatile ingredients ever. It's a north African dish of semolina, usually served with vegetables or meat stew, spooned over it. To form the semolina into small granules is a very long process and luckily it's possible to get the "Western" edition: Instant Couscous.

Today, a very hot day in Goa (India) besides monsoon's, I decided to cook a Couscous Salad, fresh, filling and colorful. You can add whatever ingredients you like in a salad, from the most common (lettuce, tomatoes, cucumber, carrots etc.) to the more special (feta cheese, tuna, eggs, fried bacon, ham, chicken, salami, grated zucchini, spring onions, apple, etc.). I seasoned it with a salad dressing lemon-based.

Time: 10 minutes
Ingredients:

• 1 cup of Couscous
• Lettuce
• Carrots
• Tomatoes
• Spring Onions
• Yellow Capsicum
• Olive Oil
• Butter (optional)
• Lemon-Based Dressing

Preparation:

• In a large non-stick frying pan, bring 1 cup of water to boil with 1tsp of olive oil and 1tsp of salt. Remove it from fire, add 1 cup of couscous and cover it. Let the couscous to absorb the water and after 7 minutes remove the lid, put it back on a very low flame, add little bit of butter (optional) and separate the granules with a fork.  

• Remove from the pan and let it cool on a large plate.

• Wash and cut all the ingredients for the salad and put them in a lage bowl.

• Separately, prepare the Lemon-Based Dressing and toss it in the salad. Mix it well, try it and adjust the taste if necessary.

• Add the couscous once it gets cool, some more grated pepper and mix it well.

I serve it with Spanish Omelet and Bruschetta.

If you have any question or suggestion you know how to find me.

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