sashinka | observation orientated, with a twist of lime | a blog

Recipular Moment - Sasha's Couscous and Mandarin Salad

Here's a salad I invented. Impress your friends by how complicated it looks, while knowing deep down that it's dead easy.

Ingredients:

couscous (although you can also use quinoa) - about 400g

salted cashew nuts - 300g bag

tinned mandarins in own syrup - 3 or 4 little tins

dried sour cherries - 3 or 4 100g bags (you can get these in Tescos, or, if you live in Kilburn, in any persian-style shop)

fresh dill

runny honey

balsamic vinegar

salt and pepper

Method:

pour boiling water with a little vegetable stock over the couscous... just so it's almost cooked, there's dressing going later. If you're using quinoa, then you have to boil it for 20 minutes, pretty much

put your cooked couscous/quinoa in a big bowl.. the salad should double with all the other ingredients

drain the mandarins, and reserve the juice

empty in the cashew nuts, dried sour cherries and mandarins

snip quite a lot of dill into the salad

into the mandarin juice, add some runny honey, a little balsamic vinegar, salt and pepper

pour the dressing over the salad, and turn it over a couple of times

this salad is best prepared the night before, so the flavours meld

You can do it different ways... cranberries. Or if you can't find dill, use coriander, and swap the balsamic vinegar for soy sauce (though forget the salt then), and make it a little South East Asian.