Fregola is a large couscous-like pasta originating from Sardinia, made typically from semolina dough and toasted in an oven.
Like most pasta or pasta-orientated products, it’s a vehicle for flavour and needs good ingredients to accompany it – and I’m willing to guess its tiny pearls of pasta texture might not appeal to everyone as it has a different mouth-feel. But pair it with contrasting textures and fresh flavours as I have here, and it makes a wonderful hot (or cold) salad. Texture is very important in food,more than I think a lot of people realise.
Recipe taken from Cooking For The Senses by Gregor Law and Jennifer Peace Rhind, which presents a new way of looking at food and flavour. Published by Jessica Kingsley Publishers and on sale now for £25.
For more information see: www.jkp.com/uk/ cooking-for-the-senses-1.html/
Serves 2 generously
Ingredients
200g Sardinian fregola
1 tbsp olive oil
1 medium pink onion (or red), cut into 1.5cm (1⁄2 inch) dice
1 romano pepper, deseeded and cut into 1.5cm (1⁄2 inch) dice
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp oregano
1 courgette, cut into 1.5cm (1⁄2 inch) dice
Handful of fresh basil leaves, chopped
Handful of fresh mint leaves, chopped (reserve a few for finishing)
Handful of pitted gordal olives, sliced widthways
Handful of mixed-colour baby tomatoes, halved
Pinch of chipotle salt or chilli salt
Pinch of freshly ground tellicherry peppercorns
Squeeze of lemon juice (optional)
Method
1 Cook the fregola in lightly salted water for 10 to 12 minutes or according to the packet. Drain and mix a little oil into the fregola to keep it loose. Set aside.
2 Heat the olive oil in a high-sided frying pan and add the onion and romano pepper. Cook for approximately 10 minutes on a medium heat then add the garlic, oregano and courgette, and continue to fry gently until the courgette has some colour and is tender but holding its shape. You need the vegetables to have texture or the dish will lose its appeal.
3 Add the fregola and combine with the vegetables for 5 minutes to coat with the pan flavours and heat the fregola. Add the chopped herbs and olives and stir through. Remove from the heat and serve in wide pasta bowls topped with the tomato halves and seasoned with the chipotle salt and tellicherry pepper and a few chopped mint leaves, drizzled with a touch of your best olive oil. A squeeze of fresh lemon juice isn’t a bad alternative here to salt if you’re salt-conscious, or even if you just want to add it.
4 If you can’t get gordal olives, good-quality large green olives will be fine, but seek out the gordal ones – they are out there, and they are wonderful.
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