Ask a Chef reveals the secrets of those superb dishes you ate in cates and restaurants and wanted to try yourself. This week: Nectar's chickpea, pumpkin, capsicum and corn salad with harissa dressing.
Serves 8
For the pumpkin
½ pumpkin, skinned, deseeded and cut into cubes
½ cup rice bran oil
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp salt
For the salad
4 cups cooked or canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1 tsp salt
½ tsp pepper
2 tsp ground cumin
2 cups frozen corn, defrosted
1 tsp ground cumin
2 red capsicums, deseeded and cut
into 1cm cubes
Harissa dressing
6 roasted red capsicums, skins removed (fresh or from a tin)
1 fresh chilli, seeds removed and chopped
1 cinnamon stick
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp salt
2 cups water
For the pumpkin
Toss the pumpkin cubes in the oil, cumin and salt and roast at 180degC for 30-40 minutes.
For the salad
Heat a little oil in a pan and fry the chickpeas for 5-7 minutes, shaking the pan from time to time. Add 2 tsp cumin and salt and pepper.
In the same pan cook the corn for 5-7 minutes with another teaspoon of cumin and salt and pepper. Then cook the capsicum for about 10 minutes.
Put pumpkin, chickpeas, corn and capsicums in a bowl and add the dressing.
Harissa dressing
Put all the ingredients into a pot, bring to the boil, then simmer for 20 minutes. Allow to cool, remove cinnamon stick. Blend the sauce and sieve. Add to the salad.
Optional extras: chopped fresh coriander, toasted cashew nuts.
Recipe requested by Annette Carr, of Dunedin. This recipe comes from Nectar cafe in Princes St.
If you have enjoyed a dish in an Otago cafe or restaurant and would like the recipe, write to Ask a Chef, Features, Otago Daily Times, PO Box 181, Dunedin, fax 474-7422, or email odt.features@odt.co.nz, including your name, address and a daytime telephone number, and we will request it.
