Thursday, June 17, 2010

Israeli Couscous with Roasted Shrimp



I picked up this main course salad (perfect for warm weather dining!) from a blog I found on my favorite food porn site tastespotting.com called joelens.blogspot.com which itself adapted a recipe from Ina Garten (of Barefoot Contessa fame.)  The original recipe called for orzo, but Joelen substituted Israeli Couscous, which is way more fun!.

Kosher salt
Good olive oil
1 cup dried Israeli couscous +  equal amount chicken broth for preparing
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (3 lemons)
Freshly ground black pepper
1-2 pounds (16 to 18 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined, depending on how much shrimp you desire
1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts
1 cup chopped fresh dill (I totally left this out and it was fine)
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced (persian cukes work well too)
1/2 cup small-diced red onion
1/2 cup chopped and seeded tomatoes
3/4 pound good feta cheese, crumbled

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Prepare the Israeli couscous as directed (bring broth to boil, dump in couscous, simmer 15 min or so covered.)  Once cooked, place in a large bowl to cool.

Meanwhile, place the shrimp on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to combine and spread out in a single layer. Roast for 5 to 6 minutes, until the shrimp are cooked through. Don't overcook!

Add the shrimp to the couscous and add the scallions, dill, parsley, cucumber, onion, tomatoes, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Toss well. Add the feta and stir carefully. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the flavors to blend, or refrigerate overnight. If refrigerated, taste again for seasonings and bring back to room temperature before serving.

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