Couscous with grilled summer vegetables and loadsa herbs

This couscous recipe is quite a bit different from the norm because instead of boiling or steaming the couscous you just feed it from raw with a really tasty dressing. This means it keeps a slight bite which I think is more interesting for a salad.

Place the couscous in a bowl with the cold water. This will start to soften the couscous and you will see the water disappear as it soaks in. While the couscous is softening, we need to blacken the peppers. I do this by placing the peppers directly on to the naked flame of my gas hob. If you don’t have gas, then blacken under the grill. Both ways you need to blacken the peppers on all sides, so turn when need be. When fully blackened, place in a sandwich bag, wrap in clingfilm or cover in a bowl for 5 minutes until cool. This will steam the skins and make peeling and deseeding easier. Remove the skins and seeds and roughly chop.

To make your dressing just chuck all your ingredients into a jar, tighten the lid and shake up. Put to one side. On a very hot ridged grill pan, lightly char the asparagus and courgettes or patty pans on both sides then toss them into the bowl of couscous with the peppers, spring onions, chillies and ripped-up herbs. Mix well. Add the olive oil and lemon juice dressing and toss well. Finally, taste and season with salt and pepper and a couple of dribbles of red wine vinegar for a slight twang. It’s a beautiful thing.

• from Return Of The Naked Chef