Couscous with Chicken, peppers and courgette

Couscous doesn’t half cause some debate! Most chefs shove it in the pasta group where as others like to call it a grain. In reality, couscous is made from the same semolina base as pasta and is a mixture of very coarse ground semolina and fine semolina flour, rolled together (sometimes by hand – yes you can make your own) to form a grain which is then steamed. Clearer now?

Well, enough of that. Here is a mild chicken recipe that goes with our Semolina perfectly!

Ingredients

In a small, heavy pan, very briefly roast off the whole spices and then grind them up in a pestle and mortar.

Coarsely chop the red onion, 3 cloves garlic and the peppers. If you want a kick, get some hot ones into the mix.

Add olive oil to a large pan and gently cook the spices for a few seconds then add the onions, garlic and peppers and fry till the onions have lost most of their water.

De-bone and chop up the chicken into small pieces and add to the onions (now you know why a BIG pan!) Continue to fry at a medium heat till chicken is nearly done – keep it stirring!

Core and skin the apples and add them and the sultanas to the chicken. Salt and pepper to taste.

Chop the courgettes into large lumps.

Fry in olive oil (a decent amount) till golden.

Add the tomatoes and cook until the tomato is rendered right down and the oil is pooling.

Finely chop the shallots and the last clove of garlic. Brown in a little olive oil in a saucepan.

Put in the couscous and cook for a short time. Remove from the heat!

Pour in hot chicken stock and stir with a fork until all the water is absorbed and the couscous is separating.

Cover with a tea towel and leave to steam gently on its own for a while (Couscous instructions will vary depending on what you buy, so read the packet!)

Make a bed of couscous on a warm plate, pile over the chicken and the courgette and tomato and serve.