Well those who saw my last blog will know that spring has sprung Down Under. The last few days have been so very warm, in fact, yesterday it was 33C. A lovely hot day and for once I did feel the heat. I had the doors and windows open to let some breeze into the house. I do however say it’s not so hot that I need to start my fan just yet….. But the evenings are too warm to spend standing by the cooker making hot dinner. Not only cooking makes me hot it is also too hot to eat that meal.
My fall back standard is to make something that will not require standing by the heat of the fire. I try for the minimum of time to be spent by heat. So the favourite dish is the couscous salad since couscous can be done simply. I just need to add right amount of boiling water, stir in the couscous, with a pinch of salt, spoonful of olive oil and cover it for while I get the salad ready. Once the couscous is ready fluff it up with a fork before it cools down completely, otherwise you will have to break up the lumps that will form. I do not put more olive oil in the couscous at the start as I will be putting salad dressing too and might end up with soggy couscous. This dish has developed and evolved with every making and so now I forget from where and what exactly was the original recipe was.
When I do not have couscous or it has gone stale for it is not used all over winter then I have pasta (fuselli, or farfalle or rigatoni etc. any small variety ones) as one does not need to spend a lot of time cooking it. I have also used Bulgar wheat which is generally used for tabouli and indeed that’s where I picked up some of the ingredients for my salad.
Now for the salad, I love putting –
Cucumber – in UK there was only one variety but In Australia I get also the small Indian variety and the Lebanese one too.
Onions - can be spring onions or red onions or just ordinary cooking onions but I have not tired the white ones.
Tomatoes - variety is not a major issue as I use whatever I have handy. But I have to say the small cherry tomatoes both red and yellow are sweet. The purple tomatoes (I cannot remember the name) I used for the first time this year and oh my! The taste is so very different and wonderful. If you can find these try them at least once.
Fennel – the bulb of fennel and also the fine fronds are really good in adding an aniseed taste and a crunch to the salad.
Raddish – I have added the small red raddish as well as the white large mooli.
Leaves – Now I am allergic to lettuce (iceberg and other varieties) but you can add whatever you want to. I usually add watercress if I can find any and rocket which I can still eat. Small spinach which is for salads can also be used. Fresh basil and coriander are another favourite of mine if I have some in the fridge.
Beans – I usually add tined butter beans after washing off the preservatives. At different time I have added red beans, chickpeas, barlotti beans or indeed mixed beans. This will add protein into the meal. Somehow I have not liked the taste of fresh peas or corn in this salad.
Egg – a couple of hard boiled and chopped eggs can be added if you wish. After all this is meant to be a one bowl meal so I want more variety in it.
I nearly forgot and would not be forgiven by my husband if I did not mention boiled potatoes. He loves his potatoes and so I indulge him with boiled and cooled potatoes chopped small.
Cheese – I have tried a couple of cheeses like mozzarella and feta separately. Shred by hand and sprinkle it in the bowl. However, cheese is not a regular ingredient in my salads.
Nuts – I sometimes add toasted pine nuts or walnuts.
So you see it’s everything and the kitchen sink in the salad depending on what is in the cupboard and fridge. Sometimes when I plan to make it, then I shop for all the ingredients I feel like that day. You can add sultanas and raisins and maybe some hard fruit like apples and pears. However I do not like to mix sweet and savoury so I have never added them myself.
Now for the dressing –
Olive oil and balsamic vinegar generally at a ratio of 2 to 1 as advised by many recipes that I have seen.
Salt and pepper and or mustard powder (the English mustard as it is hotter) You can put French mustard as it is milder if you do not like hot food. Also you can use grain mustard.
Crushed garlic cloves and I must say this is entirely up to you how much you add. I sometimes just chop it find and add it to the salad instead of the dressing. Same goes for green or red chillies, since I am found of hot food I leaves the seeds in and add finely chopped chillies into the dressing.
If you do not have fresh herbs like basil and coriander or thyme you can add the dried herbs into the dressing.
Put all the dressing ingredients into a jar, close the lid and shake it thoroughly and have it ready to pour on to the salad.
By now the couscous /pasta/bulgar wheat should be ready and should be cooled. The couscous and bulgar wheat should be fluffed and spread to cool and pasta can be cooled under cold running water which not only stops it cooking but also stops it sticking till you can coat it with dressing. Add it all to the other ingredients, and pour the dressing on it. Mix well and leave in the fridge to cool. I know most recipes advise that dressing should be added just before serving so that the leaves do not wilt but I find that adding the dressing and letting the salad cool in the fridge allows for the flavours from the dressing to soak into the ingredients and makes it very tasty. I discovered this when I had once made a lot of salad and had to eat the left overs the next day. Yummmm
So you can see that adding and leaving out different items at different times will make for so many versions of this salad. I have deliberately left out the amounts as I have not even got approximates since I just throw things in as I find and just aim to have the bowl filled. Hope you try it and enjoy.
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