FISH ON ISRAELI COUSCOUS SALAD
This Israeli couscous salad becomes a full meal with the addition of pan fried fish, crunchy seeds and lemon butter sauce.
The salad itself is good either served warm or at room temperature. It’s a great one for taking along to summer barbecues. A little bit of feta wouldn’t go amiss either!
I’ve kept the fish super simple – a light dusting of flour, salt and pepper, before being quickly pan fried in olive oil. Virtually any white fish fillets will work (I used lemon fish).
There’s a lemon butter sauce for the fish too, which is also really simple. Together with the crunchy pumpkin seeds, it finishes the meal off nicely.
FISH ON ISRAELI COUSCOUS SALAD
This Israeli couscous salad is great served warm or at room temperature. It’s perfect for taking along to barbecues. Turn it into a full meal with the addition of pan fried fish, crunchy seeds and lemon butter sauce.
Ingredients
DRESSING
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- Zest of 1/2 lemon
- 1 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp caster sugar
- 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
COUSCOUS SALAD
- 200 g cherry tomatoes (7oz)
- 1/2 telegraph cucumber
- 1 avocado
- 1 handful fresh dill (optional)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 3/4 cup Israeli (pearl) couscous (150g)
- 2 tsp chicken or vegetable stock powder dissolved in 1 1/2 cups boiling water (375ml)
- 80 g baby kale or spinach (2.8oz)
FISH
- 500 g white fish fillets (1lb 2oz)
- 1/4 cup plain flour (38g)
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 Tbsp pumpkin seeds
- 60 g butter (2.1oz)
- Zest of 1/2 lemon
- 1/2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
Instructions
MAKE DRESSING
Place all dressing ingredients in a small jar and shake to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
PREPARE COUSCOUS SALAD
Halve tomatoes, dice cucumber and avocado, and roughly chop dill. Crush garlic.
Heat oil in a non-stick saucepan on medium. Add garlic and couscous and cook until lightly browned (1-2 minutes). Pour in stock, bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and cover with a lid. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, until liquid is absorbed and couscous is tender. Remove from heat.
PREPARE FISH
Meanwhile, season fish all over with salt and pepper. Place flour on a plate and press both sides of fish into flour to coat. Crush garlic.
Heat a large frying pan on medium. Add pumpkin seeds and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring occasionally, to toast. Remove into a small bowl.
Melt butter in pan. Cook for 1 minute, then add garlic and lemon zest and continue cooking until butter is a light golden brown and smells nutty (about 2 minutes). Transfer to a bowl and stir in lemon juice.
Increase heat to medium-high and add oil to pan. Fry fish for 2-3 minutes each side, until cooked through.
SERVE
Add kale, tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, dill and dressing to couscous. Toss to combine and season to taste with salt and pepper. Divide salad between individual serving plates. Top with fish, drizzle with lemon butter sauce and sprinkle with pumpkin seeds.
Recipe Notes
WINE MATCH: A Sauvignon Blanc.
GLUTEN-FREE OPTION: Swap the couscous for 1 cup (200g / 7oz) dried medium grain white rice. Cook as per the couscous, using the same quantity of liquid, but reducing the cooking time to around 13 minutes. Make sure your stock powder is gluten-free. Use plain gluten-free flour.
INGREDIENT SWAPS / NOTES: I used lemon fish (it was a big slab, hence the shape of the fillets!). If you don’t like fish, you can use chicken tenderloins instead - pan fry for a little longer, until fully cooked through. If you have some parmesan, this makes a great addition sprinkled on the meal!
STORING AND REHEATING: Store individual portions in containers in the fridge. Reheat in the microwave.
