Moroccan Braised Brinjal and Chickpea Salad

I LOVE EXPERIMENTING!

On Sunday evening we smoked some chicken on the Weber Kettle Braai. 

Needing a vegetable dish to compliment the chicken I looked for something to do with chickpeas,

Something Mediterranean that would be a bit spicy and warm for a winter evening.

I came up with this idea with finger brinjals (small long aubergines) and carrots with Moroccan spicing,

Not too hot but with a bit of a kick...

It's a meal on it's own, but if you prefer a vegetarian option,

 then use vegetable stock instead of the chicken stock I have used.

Normally I'd have used apricots, which are commonly used in Moroccan cuisine, but didn't have any, so I left them out and just used raisins. 

It was absolutely delicious and definitely worth repeating!

Give it a try.

As for the chicken, we will have to make that again also;

when we do I'll take photos and share the way to do it with you all.

Ingredients:

30ml olive oil

2 onions, each cut into 8 wedges

6-8 finger brinjals, cut in 1cm thick slices

5ml ground cumin

2.5ml turmeric

2.5ml cayenne pepper or ground chillies

7.5ml ground coriander

5ml ground cinnamon

300ml chicken stock (or vegetable stock for a vegetarian option) 

2 carrots, sliced

125ml raisins

125ml dried apricots, chunky chopped (optional)

60ml flaked almonds

I x 410g can chickpeas, drained

60ml couscous

60ml chopped fresh coriander

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Method:

Heat the olive oil in a saucepan, add the onions and brinjals and fry over a medium heat for 5-6 minutes, stirring occasionally until the onions are softened and the brinjal has taken a bit of colour. 

Add the spices and cook for a further 2-3 minutes. Stir in the stock, carrots, apricots (if using), raisins and almonds and bring to the boil. Simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Wash and drain the chickpeas and add them to the vegetables, stirring to mix the chickpeas through. Cover and return the pot to the boil and allow to cook for about 20 minutes. Sprinkle in the couscous, fold it in and continue to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Season with salt and pepper and fold in half the coriander. Serve sprinkled with the remainder of the coriander.

Moroccan Couscous Salad

Ingredients:

250ml couscous

1 red pepper, seeds removed and flesh diced

1 green pepper, seeds removed and flesh diced

2 ribs of celery, washed, trimmed and finely sliced

125ml seedless raisins

60ml white vinegar

10ml ground coriander

5ml ground cumin

1-2ml chilli powder

60ml olive oil

Method:

Cook the couscous according to the package instructions.

Add the peppers, celery and raisins to the couscous.

To make the dressing, whisk together the vinegar, coriander, cumin, chilli powder and olive oil and mix into the salad.

Chicken and Vegetable Couscous Salad

Ingredients:

Salad:
375ml water
15ml olive oil, divided
5ml salt
250ml uncooked couscous
250ml chopped yellow bell pepper
125ml finely chopped courgettes
125ml chopped mushrooms
375ml chopped skinless, boneless rotisserie chicken
125ml (1/8-inch-thick) diagonally cut carrot
60ml thinly sliced green onions
50ml dried currants
50ml finely chopped fresh mint
Freshly ground black pepper

Dressing:
250ml plain low-fat yogurt
50ml fresh lemon juice
15ml honey
15ml white wine vinegar

Method:

To prepare salad, bring water, 5ml oil, and salt to a boil in a medium saucepan; gradually stir in couscous. Remove from heat; cover and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork. Place in a large bowl; cool to room temperature.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add remaining oil to pan. Add the bell pepper, courgettes, and mushrooms; sauté 4 minutes or until bell pepper is tender. Add bell pepper mixture, chicken, carrot, onions, currants, mint, and black pepper to couscous; toss gently to combine.

To prepare dressing, combine yogurt and remaining ingredients, stirring with a whisk. Drizzle over couscous mixture, tossing gently to combine.

Curried Couscous Salad

Ingredients:

500ml uncooked couscous

200ml finely shredded carrot

200ml finely chopped celery

3 green onions, finely sliced

125ml chopped fresh parsley

250ml canned drained chick peas

½ cup raisins

For the Dressing:

60ml plus 15ml apple cider vinegar

60ml plus 15ml extra virgin olive oil

45ml honey

30ml curry powder

15ml turmeric powder

15ml vegetable stock powder or 1 stock cube

2.5ml freshly ground black pepper

Method:

To prepare the couscous, bring 500ml of water along with 5ml salt and 5ml extra virgin olive oil to a boil in a medium saucepan. As soon as it's boiling, add the couscous. Immediately turn off the heat, cover and let sit for 15 minutes. Fluff the couscous with a fork and put it in a very large mixing bowl. Because of the vinegar-acid content, use a glass or plastic bowl. Add all the vegetables to the couscous and stir to combine. Set aside.

To prepare the dressing, combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk until emulsified. Pour the dressing over the couscous salad, ⅓ at a time, stirring to combine between additions. Cover and refrigerate overnight so the flavours have time to meld.

Serve as a light lunch or as a side dish along with chicken or fish.

Moroccan Chicken

Moroccan Chicken

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts cut into strips

250g couscous

300ml chicken stock

5ml cinnamon

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

15ml olive oil

1 red chilli, sliced

25g pine nuts

Juice and zest of 1 lemon

100ml water

Method:

Put the couscous in a large bowl, add the hot stock and leave for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, toss the chicken in cinnamon, salt and black pepper. Stir-fry in hot oil for 6-8 minutes. Add the chilli and pine nuts. Cook for a further minute.

Stir in the lemon juice, zest and water. Let it bubble rapidly until reduced by about half. Spoon the chicken and sauce over couscous and serve immediately.

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Herby Chicken Couscous

Herby Chicken Couscous

Ingredients:

4 skinless chicken breasts

250g couscous

300ml hot chicken stock

25g butter

75ml olive oil

15g chopped fresh mint

15g chopped parsley

2 sticks celery, chopped

75g sultanas

50g pine nuts, toasted

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

30ml lemon juice

Method:

Slice each chicken breast lengthwise with diagonal cuts to make thin slices and season. Put the couscous in a large bowl, add the hot stock and leave for 5 minutes.

Add the butter and 15ml olive oil to a frying pan and heat until the butter has melted. Add the chicken and cook for 3-4 minutes on each side until cooked through.

Meanwhile, toss the mint, parsley, celery, garlic, sultanas and pine nuts with the couscous and season. Mix the remaining olive oil in a small bowl with lemon juice. Spoon the couscous onto plates, pile the chicken slices on top and drizzle with the lemon dressing.

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