Lamb Kofta with Couscous Salad and Ratatouille Stack

Ingredients
Lamb Kofta
5 teaspoons cumin seeds
5 teaspoons coriander seeds
¼ cup pine nuts
½ medium brown onion, finely chopped
500g extra lean lamb mince
2 cloves garlic, crushed
juice of ½ a lemon
¼ cup mint leaves, finely chopped
1 egg
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
8 roasted capsicum strips
100g feta, cut into eight cubes
1 tablespoon olive oil
Сucumber raita
300ml natural yoghurt
1 Lebanese cucumber, grated
1 tablespoon finely chopped mint leaves
juice of ½ lemon
Spicy Couscous
700ml beef stock
2 cups couscous
150g seeded Kalamata olives
½ cup roasted capsicum strips
½ cup mint leaves, finely chopped
juice of ¼ lemon
Ratatouille
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
6 roma tomatoes, peeled, chopped
1 sprig of thyme, leaves only
1 bay leaf
½ cup roasted capsicum strips
2 yellow zucchini, cut into 0,5cm rounds
2 green zucchini, cut into 0,5cm rounds
micro herbs, to garnish
If you are time poor, seal kofta in a frying pan and cook for remaining time in the oven.
To make your own chargrilled capsicum strips, place whole capsicums on an oven tray and cook at 200° for about 20 minutes or until skin is charred and blistered. Place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Stand for 10 minutes. Peel and discard skin. Cut flesh into strips.
For thin, even slices of zucchini, try using a mandolin slicer.
To peel tomatoes, use a sharp knife to make a small cross in base of tomatoes. Place in a heatproof bowl and cover with boiling water. Stand for 5 minutes. Drain. Peel.
Recipe
- To prepare the kofta, cook the cumin, coriander and nuts in heavy based frying pan, stirring, until toasted and fragrant. Stir in the onions. Remove from heat and crush with a mortar and pestle until paste-like. In a large mixing bowl, combine spice paste, lamb, garlic, lemon juice, mint, egg and salt and pepper. Divide into eight portions. Wrap capsicum strips around feta cubes and mould a portion of lamb around each one to form kofta.
- Heat oil in a heavy based frying pan. Add kofta. Cook, turning, until browned all over and cooked through.
- To prepare the cucumber raita, combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate, covered, until required.
- To prepare the spicy couscous, bring stock to boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in couscous. Stand, covered, for 5 minutes or until stock is absorbed. Fluff grains with a fork and toss through remaining ingredients. Cover to keep warm.
- Preheat your oven to 180°C.
- To prepare the ratatouille, heat half the oil in a in a small saucepan. Add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, until soft. Add tomatoes, thyme and bay leaf. Bring to the boil. Simmer until mixture is thick. Remove bay leaf. Stir in capsicums. Using a barmix, blend until smooth. Cover to keep warm.
- Place zucchini in a single layer on a baking paper lined oven tray. Brush with remaining oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook for about 15 minutes or until lightly browned and tender.
- To serve, spoon the couscous into four small dishes. Top with koftas and raita. Place on serving plates. Layer the zucchini on top of each other in alternate colours to form a stack and spoon a little of the sauce on the side. Garnish with micro herbs and serve immediately.