Captain's Couscous Salad

Submitted by Shari2

"This recipe is from Good Times at Green Lake, Recipes for Seattle's Favorite Park. I received this cookbook from Ginny P. in the first food swap. It is a very refreshing salad and is good for summer or winter. Cook time includes time in the fridge."

 

• Ready In: 4hrs 15mins
• Ingredients: 15
• Serves: 6

ingredients

• Couscous

• 1 1⁄4 cups cold water
• 1⁄4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup quick cooking couscous
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
• 1 red pepper, seeded and cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1⁄3 cup sliced green onion
• 1 (2 1/4 ounce) can of sliced black olives, drained
• 1⁄4 cup chopped cilantro

• Dressing

• 1⁄3 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 5 teaspoons sugar
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 1⁄3 cup vegetable oil

directions

1. Bring water to a boil in a medium saucepan and add salt.
2. Gradually whisk in couscous, cover and remove from heat.
3. Let stand for 5-10 minutes, until all the water is absorbed.
4. Fluff with fork and transfer to a large bowl.
5. Combine all the rest of the couscous ingredients and mix.
6. ---Dressing---.
7. Combine lemon juice, chili powder, ground cumin, garlic, sugar and salt in a small bowl.
8. Whisk until the sugar and salt are dissolved.
9. Gradually whisk in the oil.
10. Pour dressing over couscous and mix.
11. Taste and adjust seasoning if desired.
12. Cover and chill in the refrigerator for 2-4 hours.

Reviews

[Chefiebig]

My family loved this salad. I left out the cilantro and cut the sugar in the dressing by half. It is a colorful and flavorful addition to my collection.

 

[Sudie]

Yum! Really tasty salad. This was part of our father's day celebration yesterday, so I did not use couscous; DH doesn't care for it, so I substituted orzo instead, and used green olives instead of black, because that is what I had. The dressing is great; the sugar tames the tanginess of the lemon juice, but there are many flavors going on in there and it really works well. I hope I didn't mess it up by not using couscous; I can't imagine this being any better than it was! Thanks, Shari2!