Cauliflower ‘couscous’ with chilli, sesame & mint

This is not baked, not in any way, shape or form, but I wanted to include it in the book (A Lighter Way to Bake) as an interesting alternative to couscous (the comparison recipe is regular couscous). It is much lower in carbohydrates than regular couscous and you can add whatever bits and pieces you fancy to make it your own tasty, almost guilt-free accompaniment. The sugar content comes from the natural sugars in the onions, cauliflower and red pepper.

Serves 4 (or 6 as an accompaniment)

Equipment

Food processor

Ingredients

1 large cauliflower

Spray oil

2 large red onions, very finely chopped

2 big garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 red pepper, very finely chopped

2 red chillies, deseeded (if you like it less hot) and very finely chopped

4cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and very finely chopped

100ml good chicken stock

Juice of 1 lemon

Drizzle (about 1–2 tsp) of sesame oil (optional but really, really good)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve

Small handful of fresh mint leaves

Small handful of fresh basil leaves

Remove and discard the woody stem and outer leaves from the cauliflower. Chop it up into rough chunks and then blitz it in a food processor using the pulse button, until it resembles couscous then set this aside.

Put a really large frying pan on a medium heat and add a spray of oil. Gently fry the red onion for 3–4 minutes until softened, but not coloured. Then add the garlic and cook for a further minute. Next, add the red pepper, chilli and ginger and cook for a couple of minutes. Tip in the cauliflower and stock and continue to cook for about 10–12 minutes until the cauliflower is just tender and its raw taste has gone. Finish with the lemon juice and season with a little salt and pepper.

Remove the cauliflower mixture from the heat and spoon into a large serving dish. Drizzle over the sesame oil, if using, then rip over the mint and basil leaves and serve.