This perfectly balanced tangy salad is a great example of clean food packed with flavour. It is based on one of our truths – eating the rainbow – using deep purple beetroot, with dark watercress and broccoli…all great tasting and very good for your body.

Summary

Serves: 4

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cooking Time: 25 minutes

Dietary Info: Wheat Free, Dairy Free

Ingredients

• 3 free-range chicken breasts, skin on
• 60g quinoa
• 120g barley couscous
• vegetable stock
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 500g broccoli, cut into small florets
• 320g cooked beetroot
• ½ cucumber
• juice of 3 limes
• 1 tablespoon water
• 140g watercress, thick stalks removed and washed
• a handful of alfalfa sprouts
• a handful of sprouted peas

Preparation

• Heat the oil in a large pan.  Add the cumin seeds and cook for 1 minute. When the seeds start crackling, add the shallots and red curry paste.  Cook over a low heat for 3 minutes until the shallots are soft. Add the beetroot.
• Heat the oil in a large pan.  Add the cumin seeds and cook for 1 minute. When the seeds start crackling, add the shallots and red curry paste.  Cook over a low heat for 3 minutes until the shallots are soft. Add the beetroot.
• Steam the broccoli over a pan of simmering water for about 8-10 minutes or until tender.
• Cut the beetroot into bite size pieces. Halve the cucumber lengthways, spoon out the seeds and slice into moon shape pieces.
• Whisk together the lime juice and water to make a dressing.
• Mix the quinoa, couscous, broccoli, beetroot and cucumber together in a large bowl.  Pour over half of the dressing and toss to mix. Use 2 forks to fold through the dressing and don’t over mix or the quinoa and couscous will become lumpy. Be gentle!

To serve

• If you’re in a hurry and want a really quick lunch, use bought, ready cooked, roasted chicken and shred the meat from the bone. Serve this salad warm or cook it and chill to serve cold. If serving cold, plunge the broccoli into a bowl of iced water to stop the cooking process.

Jennifer’s Tip

If you’re in a hurry and want a really quick lunch, use bought, ready cooked, roasted chicken and shred the meat from the bone. Serve this salad warm or cook it and chill to serve cold. If serving cold, plunge the broccoli into a bowl of iced water to stop the cooking process.

This recipe is from Jennifer’s book, The Diet for Food Lovers available on Amazon (The Orion Publishing Group)
Jean Cazals Photography