It really doesn’t get much fresher than this. We love this light salad — it doubles as a side, can be the main event or works well topped with grilled chicken or Adam’s favorite, shrimp!
Make and eat straight away or do what we do and make it ahead of time, cover it and keep it in the fridge to allow all the flavors to marry and mingle.
You’re going to love this salad. Serve it warm or cold (we like it cold) … When you look for the couscous, look near the pastas and you should see Israeli or Pearl couscous, which is a lot larger than other types of couscous. You cook it similar to pasta and it only takes 10 minutes, so definitely think about adding it to your shopping list!
How to Pack in Flavor
The secret for this salad is adding a brightly flavored dressing to WARM couscous. By doing that, the couscous soaks up all the flavor so when it cools, every pearl of couscous tastes perfect.
The dressing is simple — and great to toss with warm veggies like carrots or as a light salad dressing. All you need is Dijon mustard, honey, lemon zest, lemon juice and olive oil.
Add the lemony dressing to warm couscous for the most flavor.
Add Lots of Fresh, Crisp Ingredients
Throw in some diced tomato, about half a cucumber that has been diced, fresh herbs, raisins and walnuts.
If you have the time, toast the nuts before adding them — just throw them into a dry pan and cook over low heat, tossing occasionally until warmed and lightly toasted. Toasting the nuts brings out the flavor a bit more than if you were to add them straight from the bag.
| Lemon and Herb Couscous Salad |
Make ahead tip: Make this up to 4 hours in advance and keep covered in the refrigerator.
- 1 1/2 cups Israeli couscous
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon honey
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
- 1/2 of a medium English cucumber, diced (about 1 cup)
- 1 large tomato, diced
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh herbs (any combination of fresh parsley, cilantro, basil, dill or mint)
- 1/3 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted
- Freshly ground black pepper and salt
- In a large saucepan, bring about 2 quarts of water and 1 teaspoon of salt to a boil. Add couscous and cook until tender, 8-10 minutes. Drain.
- While the couscous cooks, in a small bowl, mix the oil, mustard, honey, lemon juice and zest, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
- Add cooked and drained couscous to a large bowl, and then, pour dressing over warm couscous, mix well.
- Add cucumber, tomato, herbs, raisins and walnuts to the couscous and stir. Taste for seasoning and add salt and/or pepper as needed.
- Enjoy warm or cover then refrigerate until cool, about 1 hour.
To toast walnuts, add to a dry pan over medium heat. Cook, stirring frequently until the nuts turn golden brown and become fragrant.
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{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
This looks so refreshing!! I have everything but the raisins. I want to make this!