5-Minute Side Dish

I had a really awesome girls-nite bbq party last night and I made the fastest and yummiest side dish. You must try it. It uses a few exciting ingredients, and because you really can't screw it up, this recipe is a great starting point to introduce these new items into your kitchen...

Spicy Mango Couscous Salad

• 1 jalepeno pepper
• 1 large (or two small) mangoes
• 2 or more green onions
• 1 box of plain couscous
• 1 fresh lime
• Olive Oil
• Garlic Salt

Prepare the couscous according to the box, or by adding one cup of dry couscous into 2 cups of boiling water, remove immediately from heat, add a splash of olive oil and garlic salt, and cover for a few minutes (it's done!). In the meantime, chop two or more green onions and set aside. Cut the jalepeno in half and pull out all the seeds (seeds are super spicy, not good for this recipe). Very finely chop a small amount of the jalepeno. At this point, you need to check and see how hot this pepper really is. Touch it to your tounge and decide for yourself. A little goes a long way so I usually use about 1/8 teaspoon (a pinch). Put this and the green onions into your covered and steaming couscous, and stir. The couscous will start to absorb the flavors of these ingredients.

Cutting a mango is kind of tricky. First, they are really slippery. But they also have this weird flat core, and they are hard to peel. So what I have found works best is to cut into the fruit like a pie. Cut about 8 sections to the core and then use your fingers to peel the skin down from each section. Once it's peeled, start chopping it from the core and leave somewhat large chunks. Add these to the mixture, stir, and put the salad into a bowl and into the fridge. It doesn't take long to cool down. When you are ready to serve, taste it for salt. And squeeze the lime over it for a little kick!!

Ummmm.... I need to mention also.... whatever you do, do NOT touch your eyes or go to the bathroom without very thoroughly washing your hands. :) Your leftover pepper can actually be chopped and frozen, or kept in the fridge for a few days to use in other things. Used in small amounts, it doesn't overwhelm recipes and actually adds some subtle spiciness to recipes and can be really awesome.