Israeli Couscous Salad

Making Israeli Couscous Salad Ahead

Refrigerate up to 3 days. Bring back to room temperature and refresh with lemon before serving.

Making Israeli Couscous Salad

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1. Heat the oven to 210°C / 410°F fan. Toss the peppers, courgette, onion and tomatoes with the olive oil, cumin and salt and roast 25 minutes until charred at the edges.

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2. Meanwhile, heat the 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a saucepan and add the dry couscous.

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3. Toast over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly, until the pearls are golden and smell like popcorn.

   Mark done Start 4 min timer

4. Pour in the hot stock — it will hiss — cover, and simmer 8 to 10 minutes until the liquid is absorbed and the pearls are tender with a slight bite.

   Mark done Start 8 min timer

5. Whisk all the dressing ingredients together.

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6. Tip the hot couscous into a wide bowl and pour half the dressing over immediately, forking it through.

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7. Fold in the roast vegetables with all their pan juices and let everything cool to room temperature.

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8. Add the remaining dressing, the herbs, almonds and pomegranate seeds, and toss.

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9. Taste and adjust for lemon and salt — it should be sharper than seems right at first.

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Related guides: Prep, cook and total time · Ingredient substitutions.

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Worth Knowing

• Toast the pearls until they smell like popcorn. Untoasted couscous clumps.
• Dress it hot, then again cold. Two stages, better absorption.
• Herbs at the very end so they stay green.

Some Background

Toasting the pearls in oil before adding liquid keeps them separate and gives a nutty flavour that plain boiling does not — untoasted ptitim clump into a solid mass as they cool. Dressing the couscous while it is still warm means it absorbs the lemon rather than wearing it.

Serving Ideas

Grilled chicken or halloumi · Labneh · A crisp white wine

Common Substitutions & Variations

• An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.

Israeli Couscous Salad FAQ

The Numbers per Serving

Per serving, an approximate calculation from the ingredient list. Treat it as a rough guide: an ingredient listed without an amount is not counted, so the figures run low. How the figures are worked out.

Vegan when made with maple syrup rather than honey.

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