This recipe brings together roasted purple sprouting broccoli and a vibrant, herby giant couscous salad, dotted with dried cranberries and toasted almonds for a crunchy, sweet contrast. It’s fresh, zingy, and works beautifully as a warm or cold dish, making it ideal for a variety of occasions. The optional tahini dressing offers a creamy element that ties it all together.
Whether you’re looking to wow at a dinner party or simply want a wholesome meal that feels light but satisfying, this dish is a brilliant addition to your culinary repertoire.
Table of Contents
- Ingredient Breakdown
- Purple Sprouting Broccoli vs. Tenderstem: What’s the Difference?
- The Key To Perfectly Roasted Purple Sprouting Broccoli
- Jewelled Couscous: The Perfect Side to Roasted Purple Sprouting Broccoli
- Why Toast the Giant Couscous?
- Tahini Dressing: Optional, But Delicious
- Roasted Purple Sprouting Broccoli with Jewelled Giant Couscous: Serving Suggestions
- Final Thoughts
- Love Broccoli? You’ll Love These Recipes
Ingredient Breakdown
- Giant couscous: Also known as pearl or Israeli couscous, these chewy pearls provide a satisfying texture to the salad.
- Vegetable stock: Adds depth and flavour to the couscous, elevating it beyond a plain side.
- Purple sprouting broccoli: A slightly sweeter, crisper alternative to tenderstem broccoli. If unavailable, tenderstem works just as well.
- Extra-virgin olive oil: Used for both roasting and finishing the salad, bringing richness and a touch of fruitiness.
- Crushed red chilli flakes: A light sprinkle adds warmth and a subtle kick to the roasted broccoli.
- Garlic: Freshly grated garlic is added to the couscous for an aromatic, savoury note.
- Lemon: The zest and juice bring brightness, cutting through the richness of the broccoli and almonds.
- Dried cranberries: Sweet and tart, these provide a burst of flavour that balances the earthy tones in the dish.
- Toasted flaked almonds: These bring a nutty crunch that contrasts with the soft couscous and roasted broccoli.
- Fresh parsley: Herbaceous and slightly peppery, it enlivens the couscous salad.
- Fresh mint: Offers a cooling contrast, although basil can be used as a substitute for a more mellow flavour.
- Tahini dressing (optional): Creamy, nutty, and with a hint of sweetness from maple syrup or honey, this dressing elevates the dish. Use it if you want to add a touch of luxury.
Purple Sprouting Broccoli vs. Tenderstem: What’s the Difference?
If you’ve never cooked with purple sprouting broccoli, you’re in for a treat. Aside from its striking colour, it’s slightly sweeter and crisper than tenderstem broccoli, but their similarities mean you can easily swap them if one isn’t available.
Purple sprouting broccoli thrives in colder months, making it perfect for seasonal winter dishes. It’s also packed with antioxidants, and its natural sweetness pairs wonderfully with savoury and tangy ingredients like garlic and lemon. If you find tenderstem broccoli more readily available, don’t hesitate to use it in this recipe – you’ll still get that satisfying texture and delicate flavour.
The Key To Perfectly Roasted Purple Sprouting Broccoli
When it comes to roasting purple sprouting broccoli, there are a few tips to ensure you achieve that perfect balance of tenderness and charred edges. First, make sure the broccoli is well-coated in olive oil. This helps it crisp up nicely without burning. Then, spread the broccoli in a single layer on your baking tray, ensuring there’s enough space between each piece to allow the hot air to circulate.
Roasting at a high temperature is key to developing those charred bits that add depth of flavour, while still keeping the broccoli tender-crisp. This step brings out a natural sweetness in the broccoli that pairs beautifully with the lemony couscous salad.
Jewelled Couscous: The Perfect Side to Roasted Purple Sprouting Broccoli
The couscous salad in this recipe is packed with bright flavours and contrasting textures, making it the perfect base for the roasted broccoli. The dried cranberries add a burst of tart sweetness, while the toasted almonds lend a satisfying crunch. Together, these jewels scattered through the couscous not only look beautiful but create a well-balanced salad.
Herbs are essential here too. The combination of parsley and mint (or basil if you prefer) brings freshness that cuts through the richness of the olive oil and almonds. The lemon zest and juice help to lift everything, making each bite zingy and light.
This salad is extremely versatile and can be served warm, at room temperature, or even cold. It’s ideal for meal prep, as the flavours improve over time. If you’re planning a big gathering, this dish can easily be made ahead of time and served as a side or main.
Why Toast the Giant Couscous?
One small but essential step in this recipe is toasting the giant couscous before adding the vegetable stock. While it’s an easy process, it imparts a subtle nutty flavour to the couscous that would otherwise be absent. This extra layer of flavour makes a difference, especially in a simple dish like this one, where each component shines individually.
Toasting also gives the couscous a bit of colour, and when cooked, it holds its shape better, resulting in perfectly tender, slightly chewy pearls rather than anything mushy or overcooked. It’s a step worth doing to elevate the entire dish.
Tahini Dressing: Optional, But Delicious
While the tahini dressing is optional, it’s highly recommended for those who enjoy creamy textures with a hint of nuttiness. The dressing adds a rich, velvety component to the dish that contrasts beautifully with the roasted purple sprouting broccoli and bright, zesty couscous.
The key to a good tahini dressing lies in the quality of your tahini. Supermarket brands can often be gritty or bitter, which can overpower the other flavours. Instead, opt for a Middle Eastern brand, as these tend to be smoother and more balanced. My personal favourites are Baracke, Al Nakhil, Al Taj, or Belazu. These brands provide a silky texture and delicate flavour that make a world of difference in this dressing.
If you do make the dressing, it keeps well for up to a week in the fridge, so you can use it in other dishes like salads, grain bowls, or even as a dip for vegetables.
Roasted Purple Sprouting Broccoli with Jewelled Giant Couscous: Serving Suggestions
This roasted purple sprouting broccoli dish works well in a variety of settings. As a centrepiece at a dinner party, it’s colourful, vibrant, and sure to impress. Serve it hot, warm, or even cold as a salad – it’s just as delicious at room temperature, making it a flexible option for any occasion.
For a more substantial meal, you can add some grilled chicken, roasted salmon, or even falafel on the side. If you’re looking for a vegan option, simply skip the tahini dressing or use maple syrup instead of honey to keep it plant-based.
The roasted broccoli and couscous also pair well with other Middle Eastern or Mediterranean dishes. Consider serving it alongside hummus, roasted vegetables, or a mezze platter for a more extensive spread.
Final Thoughts
This Roasted Purple Sprouting Broccoli with Jewelled Giant Couscous is a dish that celebrates bold flavours and contrasting textures, all while remaining light, fresh, and nourishing. Whether you choose to enjoy it as a main or a side, with or without the tahini dressing, it’s a recipe that works year-round and offers the kind of versatility that suits any occasion.
With a few simple, fresh ingredients and minimal effort, you can create a vibrant, delicious dish that’s not only visually appealing but also bursting with flavour. Perfect for any gathering, or even as a quick, healthy meal at home, this recipe is one you’ll come back to time and again.
Love Broccoli? You’ll Love These Recipes
If you’re a broccoli fan, you’re in for a treat. Here are other some delicious broccoli recipes that you’ll love:
- Charred Broccoli Salad with Crispy Noodles: This salad is a textural delight. The charred broccoli provides body and bulk. The crispy instant ramen noodles and crushed peanuts add crunch. Toss everything together with a delicious Chinese chilli oil-based dressing and voila!
- Smoky Butter Broccoli: Roasted tenderstem broccoli, served over a garlicky labneh and topped with the most delicious, smoky butter sauce.
- Broccoli and Kale Caesar Pasta Salad: A refreshing take on Caesar salad. It combines broccoli, kale and pasta, tossed in a homemade creamy Caesar dressing .
- Broccoli Cranberry Almond Salad: This delicious salad combines roasted almonds, dried cranberries and a yummy homemade lemon & garlic dressing.
- Lemon Garlic Tenderstem Broccoli: Swap boring, boiled broccoli for this! Tasty, roasted tenderstem broccoli, seasoned with lemon zest, garlic and chilli flakes and roasted until lightly crisp.
Roasted Purple Sprouting Broccoli with Jewelled Giant Couscous
This fresh, zingy veggie centrepiece is perfect for this time of year. It’s great hot, warm or even cold. It combines roasted purple sprouting broccoli with a herby, lemony giant couscous salad. The tahini dressing is optional but it adds a lovely creamy note.
Purple sprouting broccoli isn’t all that different to tenderstem broccoli. Aside from the obvious colour difference, they’re pretty similar in taste and texture: purple sprouting broccoli is slightly sweeter and crisper than its tenderstem counterpart. So, if you can’t find any purple sprouting broccoli, use tenderstem instead.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
Ingredients
- 300g giant couscous (also known as Israeli couscous)
- 600ml vegetable stock
- 400g purple sprouting broccoli or tenderstem broccoli, ends trimmed
- extra-virgin olive oil
- sprinkle of crushed red chilli flakes
- 1 large garlic clove, grated
- 1 lemon, zest and juice
- 60g dried cranberries
- 60g toasted flaked almonds
- 20g fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 20g fresh mint leaves, finely chopped (or fresh basil leaves)
For the dressing (optional):
- 80ml good-quality tahini (see Notes)
- 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp maple syrup or honey
- 1 large garlic clove, minced
- 1 lemon, juice
Instructions
- Heat your oven to 200°C / fan 180°C.
- Pour the giant couscous into a medium saucepan set over a medium-high heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until some of the pearls begin to colour, 4 to 5 minutes.
- Add the vegetable stock and a generous pinch of salt and bring to a boil, then cover, reduce the heat to low and cook for 10 minutes, or until all the liquid has been absorbed. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let the couscous sit covered for a further 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, place the purple sprouting broccoli on a large baking tray. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil, sprinkle with chilli flakes, season with salt and pepper and toss to coat. Arrange in a single layer and roast until tender and lightly beginning to char, 12 to 15 minutes.
- Back to the couscous. Add the garlic, lemon zest and juice and stir well to coat, then add the dried cranberries, flaked almonds, parsley and mint. Drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil, season with salt and pepper and mix well to combine. Taste and adjust the seasoning to your liking – you may want to add more salt, pepper, lemon juice and/or ezra-virgin olive oil.
- If making the dressing, place the ingredients in a bowl, season generously with salt and pepper and mix well to combine. If the dressing is too thick for your liking, mix in more cold water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
- To serve, dish the couscous out onto a platter or large plate. Top with the roasted purple sprouting broccoli and finish with the dressing, if using.
Notes
Note:
- The tahini dressing will keep in a sealed jar in the fridge for 1 week. It may thicken as it sits. If it does, you can thin it out with a little bit of cold water as needed.
- The rest of the dish will keep nicely in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- Not all tahini is created equal. Poor-quality tahini is thick, clumpy, gritty, and bitter. Good-quality tahini is smooth, pourable and balanced, not bitter. Where possible, I recommend avoiding supermarket own-brand tahini and opting for Middle-Eastern versions instead. Some of my favourite tahini brands are Baracke, Al Nakhil, Al Taj and Belazu.
6 Responses
This is so delicious (ummmmm can I drink a bath of this Tahini dressing) and surprisingly quick to throw together. Has become one of my go to recipes to impress or to meal prep for the week ahead and it always turns out perfect. Thank you Zena 🙂 🙂
So happy to hear it! It’s my absolute pleasure, Nicole 🙂
This is absolutely delicious and surprisingly quick to throw together. I could drink a bathtub of the tahini dressing. Has become my go-to recipe to impress a guest or as meal prep for my work lunches. One of my all time fave recipes 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed it, Nicole! Thank you so much for you review 🙂 I’m so touched that it’s one of your all time favourite recipes!
Absolutely love this recipe! So delicious (could drink a bathtub of the tahini dressing!) and surprisingly quick together. Has become one of my favourite recipes to impress a guest and also works great for mealprep lunches. If you can’t find purple broccoli I have used regular broccoli and is equally delicious. Thanks zena
It’s my absolute pleasure! I’m so glad you enjoyed it 🙂