What gorgeous BBQ weather we’ve been having recently and I’ve made sure to make the most of it, you can see one of my last efforts here. This time round I made use of a generous BBQ kit hamper I’d been given from Ainsley Harriott’s cous cous range. Now I must confess that 1. I don’t have any outdoor space as I live in a top floor flat, and so 2. No barbecue. However, I wouldn’t let a little thing like that stop me so went over to someone who did, my mum. She doesn’t have a freestanding barbecue though, so I used one of those handy little disposable ones instead – where there’s a will, there’s a way.
There were 2 recipes for me to try in the hamper; beef and red pepper skewers with roasted vegetable cous cous, and beef kofta with Moroccan medley cous cous. The beef and red pepper was OK, but my fav was most definitely the beef kofta – all the flavours worked beautifully and the cooling raita topped if off a treat. The great thing about cous cous is that it’s really quick to prepare. The bad thing is that it can very bland. I did add fresh tomato just to lift it a bit, but the ones in the range are far from bland and definitely worth a try.
Many thanks to Ainsley Harriott for the BBQ hamper and recipes.
Ainsley Harriott's BBQ Koftas and Cous Cous
Tasty BBQ food
Ingredients
- 100g sachet of Ainsley Harriott Moroccan Medley Cous Cous
- 350g lean minced beef
- 4 spring onions
- 2 teaspoons garam masala
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 120ml thick Greek yoghurt
- 2 cm piece of cucumber – grated with excess water squeezed out
- 1 ripe tomato (finely chopped)
- 1 clove gariic (crushed)
- salt and freshly ground pepper
Directions
- Step 1 Light the barbecue.
- Step 2 Soak the bamboo skewers in water for 20 minutes.
- Step 3 Mix together the minced beef, spring onion, garam, cumin and 30ml (2 tbsp) of the Greek yoghurt. Season to taste.
- Step 4 Roll into 6 pieces, each about 7.5cm/3 inches long. Push each one on to a 15cm/6 inch bamboo skewer which has been soaked in water.
- Step 5 Meanwhile, make the Ainsley Harriott Moroccan Medley Cous Cous according to the instructions on the sachet and keep warm.
- Step 6 To make the raita, mix the remaining Greek yoghurt in a bowl with the cucumber, tomato, garlic and seasoning.
- Step 7 Check the BBQ is ready and place the beef koftas on the rack for approximately 12-15 minutes, turning occasionally until nicely browned and cooked through.
- Step 8 Divide the Ainsley Harriott Morrocan Medley Cous Cous between two plates and arrange the beef koftas on top. Drizzle over the raita before serving.
I worked with Ainsley Harriet many moons ago and he never made me any cous cous hahahahahaha, the hamper looks fantastic the Beef Kofta is my fave too.
Ha, well if it makes you feel better, he didn’t make it for me personally.
Hey Tash How Ya Doing Girl? You always make the food look so tantalizing
LOL Maria
Thanks, it doesn’t come easy – I had to get into a very interesting position to take some of the shots.
All’s well with me, hope you’re good too!