Chargrilled Hibiscus-Marinated Lamb With Rocket, Mint, Giant Couscous and Pomegranate Salad Recipe
by Victoria Glass
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Easy
Hibiscus adds complex perfume and notes of tart, red berries – a perfect pairing with lamb. Grinding the flowers for a wet marinade turns the raw meat a vibrant shade of pink, but don’t be alarmed - the colour is less vivid after cooking. The freshness of the mint and sweet and sourness of the pomegranate complement the fattiness of the lamb beautifully. Sunshine on a plate that can be eaten at any time of the year.
Ingredients for lamb Serves: 2
- 2 lamb leg steaks
Ingredients for the marinade
- 5g dried hibiscus flowers
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- ½ tsp fine sea salt
- A generous grind of black pepper
- 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
- The juice of 1 lemon
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Ingredients for giant couscous salad
- 100g giant couscous
- 1 tbsp pomegranate molasses
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
- A generous pinch of salt
- 70g rocket
- A generous bunch of fresh mint
- ½ pomegranate seeds
Method for chargrilled hibiscus-marinated lamb with giant couscous salad
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- Grind the dried hibiscus flowers in a spice grinder and tip into a medium-sized shallow dish. Stir in the ground cumin, fine sea salt, a generous grind of black pepper, crushed garlic cloves, lemon juice, and olive oil.
- Put 2 lamb steaks in the marinade and turn to coat. Cover the dish and leave the lamb to marinate in the fridge for at least 3 hours, or overnight, turning the meat over in the marinade every now and then.
- Remove the meat from the marinade and place in a new dish – make sure any solid pieces of garlic have been scraped off, or they will burn on cooking. Leave the lamb to come up to room temperature.
- In the meantime, rinse the giant couscous, in a sieve, and boil it in salted water for 15 minutes, or until tender. Drain through a sieve and rinse in cold water to cool it down.
- Scrape the remaining marinade into another small saucepan and heat thoroughly before transferring into a jug and whisking in the pomegranate molasses, extra virgin olive oil, white wine vinegar, and a generous pinch of salt.
- Wash the rocket and pick the leaves from a generous bunch of mint. Heat a griddle pan very hot and griddle the lamb for 2 minutes on each side for rosy pink meat, or longer for well done – this can also be done on the barbecue. Leave the lamb to rest for 5 minutes.
- Toss the cold couscous, rocket, and mint in the marinade dressing and serve with the lamb. Scatter over the seeds from ½ a pomegranate and serve immediately.
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Shop all edible flowers, and try our giant couscous carrot and feta salad.
About the author
Victoria Glass is a London based writer and recipe developer. She has written six cookbooks, including Too Good To Waste and has contributed to various print and online media including The Sunday Times, Great British Chefs, Delicious. Magazine, Women’s Health and The Evening Standard. She has been featured regularly on regional BBC Radio as a food and drink expert and was Food Writer in Residence at the Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre. Victoria once cooked her way through the alphabet in a year for a project called Alphabet Soup, so she certainly knows her artichokes from her elbow.
