Hot Honey Halloumi Couscous

• 250 ghalloumi, cut into 1cm slices
• 1 tbspolive oil
• 2 tbsphoney
• 1 tspchilli flakes
• 200 ginstant couscous
• 240 mlhot vegetable stock
• 2roasted red peppers, jarred, roughly sliced
• 150 gcherry tomatoes, halved
• 1lemon, zested and juiced
• 20 gfresh mint, roughly torn
• 20 gfresh parsley, roughly chopped
• 30 gpomegranate seeds
• Fine salt and black pepper

Method

1. 1Pour the hot vegetable stock over the couscous in a bowl, stir once, cover with a plate and leave for 5 minutes. Fluff thoroughly with a fork until light and separate; any clumps now stay clumps later.
2. 2Warm the honey and chilli flakes in a small pan over low heat for about 1 minute, until the chilli infuses the honey and the mixture smells warm and fruity. Pull off the heat and set aside.
3. 3Stir the roasted peppers, cherry tomatoes, lemon zest and lemon juice through the couscous. Season generously with salt and plenty of black pepper, then fold through half the mint and parsley. Taste; the couscous should taste bright and properly seasoned, not flat. Add salt or lemon if needed.
4. 4Pat the halloumi slices dry with kitchen paper. Season the slices lightly with black pepper (the cheese brings its own salt).
5. 5Heat the olive oil in a heavy frying pan over high heat until shimmering and just starting to smoke. Lay the halloumi in a single layer with space between each slice; crowd the pan and they steam instead of crisping. Work in two batches if needed.
6. 6Cook for 1–2 minutes each side, without moving, until deeply golden and crisp at the edges. Resist the urge to nudge them early; the crust only comes from uninterrupted contact. Flip once, brown the second side, then lift onto a warm plate.
7. 7Taste the couscous one more time before plating; a final pinch of salt or squeeze of lemon if it needs lifting.
8. 8Divide the herby couscous between bowls, lay the hot halloumi slices on top slightly overlapping, drizzle the chilli-toasted honey generously over the cheese while it's still sizzling, then scatter with the remaining mint and parsley, the pomegranate seeds, and tuck a lemon wedge alongside each bowl.

Per serving

kcal

592

protein

29.7g

fibre

17g

carbs

59.8g

fat

28.6g