Couscous and chicken salad with orange-balsamic dressing
8 Servings
Ingredients
| Quantity | Ingredient | |
|---|---|---|
| Salad | ||
| 4½ | cup | Water |
| 3 | cups | Couscous; (2 10-ounce boxes) |
| 1 | cup | Dried currants |
| 1 | 3 pound roasted chicken; skinned, boned, cut | |
| Into bite-size pieces | ||
| 1½ | cup | Diced drained roasted red bell peppers |
| (from jar) | ||
| 1 | can | Chick-peas (garbanzo beans); (15 1/2 ounce) |
| Rinsed, drained | ||
| 1 | cup | Chopped pitted Kalamata olives* |
| 1 | bunch | Green onions; chopped |
| ½ | cup | Chopped fresh cilantro |
| Dressing | ||
| ¾ | cup | Orange juice |
| 3 | tablespoons | Balsamic vinegar or red wine vinegar |
| 3 | tablespoons | Grated orange peel |
| 1 | tablespoon | Ground cumin |
| ½ | cup | Olive oil |
| Greens | ||
| Romaine lettuce leaves | ||
Directions
For Salad: Bring 4½ cups water to boil in large saucepan. Add couscous and currants. Cover, remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Fluff with fork. Transfer to large bowl and cool. Mix all remaining salad ingredients into cooled couscous. For Dressing: Mix first 4 ingredients in bowl.
Gradually mix in oil. Pour dressing over salad and toss. Season with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and chill.) Line large bowl with romaine. Add salad. *Black brine-cured Kalamata olives are available at Greek and Italian markets and some supermarkets. 8 Servings Bon App‚tit June 1993
Recipe By : Bon App=E9tit June 1993=20 Posted to MC-Recipe Digest V1 #220 Date: Tue, 17 Sep 1996 18:04:38 -0400 From: Mail Delivery Subsystem <MAILER-DAEMON@...> (by way of kmeade@... (The Meades))
NOTES : Currants, roasted peppers, chick-peas, olives, green onions and cilantro add color and flavor to this portable salad. To start, dip wedges of pita bread into store-bought hummus (a creamy puree of chick-peas and sesame paste, available at Middle Eastern markets). A slightly chilled Beaujolais or lemonade is a refreshing beverage choice. =20