Sweetcorn, Chickpea and Pepper Couscous Salad with Harissa Oil

It's not that often that D comes back with a bag of fresh fruit and vegetables, that is something that is often left to me being the one who primarily cooks at home, but he did at the weekend.  He came back with some very colourful seasonal vegetables (and some peach doughnuts).  The vegetables included red hot chilli peppers, some baby orange and yellow peppers and the first of the seasons sweetcorn on the cobs.  The sweetcorn he picked up was so sweet and ripe, that you could honestly eat it raw as it was. 

I tend to freeze chillies when I have too much, but I had decided to make some more harissa oil based on my harissa paste recipe.  It went wonderfully the last time I made it with my vegan Moroccan Tajine Flaky Filo Twist Pies.  One of the reasons, I wanted to make the harissa oil again was that it served as a ready to reach for store-cupboard fridge ingredient.  Perfect for spreading on pitta bread for a light snack when taking breaks between filling in application forms, but yesterday, I found it had come in handy for D's lunch.  The working man has to be fed too.  

I made this Sweetcorn, Chickpea and Pepper Couscous Salad with Harissa Oil, quite a mouthful I know.  Maybe I should just call it a Sunshine on a Plate Salad.  It's very golden and looking at it, induces a feeling of warmth.  I personally thought it was very tasty.  Crunch and sweetness from the sweetcorn and peppers, nuttiness from the chickpeas and a hint of heat from the harissa oil that coated the couscous wonderfully.  I also loved the delicate flavour of the coriander, it just lifted the salad a bit more. 

I am sharing this very colourful salad with Jacqueline at Tinned Tomatoes for this months edition of No Croutons Required. NCR is jointly hosted with Lisa at Lisa's Kitchen and this months theme is seasonal salads and soups.

Sweetcorn, Chickpea and Pepper Couscous Salad with Harissa Oil
Serves 6
Ingredients for the Harissa oil
50g large red chillies, sliced. I like to keep the seeds in for more heat, but feel free to deseed.
1 garlic clove
2 teaspoons ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 – 4 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon tomato puree
A pinch of salt
160ml extra virgin oil
Method
Blitz all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Simple as that.  Decant into a glass jar with lid  and store in fridge.  Stir well before using.

Ingredients for the Couscous Salad
200g couscous made according to packet instructions
2 orange baby peppers (or 1 large), cleansed and sliced lengthways
2 yellow baby peppers (or 1 large), cleaned and sliced lengthways
1 sweetcorn scraped carefully from the cob (or a small tin, drained and rinsed)
1 x 400g chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper to taste
Handful of coriander leaves, minced

2 - 3 tablespoons Home-made Harissa Oil (or to taste)
Method
Simply stir all the ingredients together, taste and tweak seasoning and harissa oil to taste.  Serve at room temperature.