Description
A vibrant and refreshing giant couscous and tomato salad featuring a zhoug-style dressing. This Mediterranean-inspired dish combines juicy vine tomatoes, tender giant couscous, fresh herbs, and a spicy, garlicky green chili dressing to create a flavorful and colorful side or light meal.
Ingredients
Scale
Salad Ingredients
- 4 large vine tomatoes, diced
- ½ red onion, finely chopped
- 150g giant couscous or fregola
- ½ small bunch of coriander, roughly chopped
- Handful of parsley leaves, roughly chopped
Dressing Ingredients
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 green chillies, chopped
- 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped
- ½ tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp caster sugar
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp sea salt (divided)
- 1 tbsp water
Instructions
- Prepare the tomatoes and onion: Place the diced vine tomatoes and finely chopped red onion in a large bowl. Sprinkle with ½ tsp sea salt, toss to combine, and let sit to allow the flavors to meld and the tomatoes to release their juices.
- Cook the couscous: In a saucepan, bring salted water to a boil. Add the giant couscous and cook for 8-10 minutes until tender but slightly undercooked to allow it to absorb the tomato juices. Drain thoroughly and let cool for about 10 minutes.
- Combine couscous with tomato mixture: Toss the cooled couscous with the tomato and onion mixture in the large bowl, allowing the grains to soak up the flavorful juices.
- Make the zhoug-style dressing: In a blender or food processor, combine the chopped green chillies, garlic clove, ground cumin, caster sugar, olive oil, lemon juice, 1 tbsp water, and ½ tsp sea salt. Blend until smooth and emulsified.
- Dress and serve: Drizzle some of the zhoug dressing over the couscous salad, tossing gently to coat. Serve the remaining dressing on the side to allow guests to add more according to taste.
Notes
- You can substitute giant couscous with pearl barley, spelt, or cracked bulgur wheat for different textures and flavors.
- Adjust the amount of green chillies in the dressing to control the spiciness to suit your preference.
- This salad benefits from resting for a while before serving to enhance flavor melding but is also delicious served immediately.
- Use fresh, ripe vine tomatoes for the best sweetness and juiciness in the salad.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Salad
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Keywords: giant couscous salad, tomato salad, zhoug dressing, Mediterranean salad, healthy salad, vegetarian recipe
