London lunch box: Spring salad with halloumi and orzo

I used to be a little sceptical of salads as the perfect lunch box material. Given a choice, I would have veered towards a wrap or a sandwich. My logic being that they were the more filling options. Often too I used to think that salads needed to feature rather exotic vegetables to be interesting. Meaning that when I forgot to plan shopping trips in advance, I’d look in the fridge and find it hard to take inspiration for a homemade lunch.

While working at The Dairy in Clapham I learnt how everyday vegetables can be made to shine, which at home, means a cheaper and more practical option for everyday lunches. Take the humble leek, one of the backbones of cooking. Try roasting it with a sprinkle of demerara sugar and glug of olive oil and lots of cracked black pepper, until it has a charred sweetness. Or glazing that everyday kitchen superhero – the brown onion – with a sweet vinegar (balsamic is great) and a little butter - and you have the base for a salad. Add some starch and/or protein and you’re good to go.

The summer months are perfect for experimenting with vegetables. For our lunch box recipe we’re making the most of sweet peas, asparagus and green beans. One of the tricks to a satisfying salad is using various textures. We’re cooking the vegetables until just crunchy then serving them with firm pan-fried halloumi and some thinly sliced radish with nigella and sesame seeds for extra crispiness. Here I’ve added orzo to bulk out the dish. For a lighter option you could swap it for quinoa or farro. The vegetables and halloumi by themselves are a great as a side dish with chicken or pork, or as a filling for pitta breads.

Ingredients (serves 2)

180g orzo

1 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp wholegrain mustard

2 tsp sherry vinegar

80g asparagus, woody stems trimmed, sliced in half diagonally

200g French beans, trimmed

60g frozen peas

140g halloumi, sliced

4 breakfast radishes, thinly sliced

1 tsp sesame seeds

1 tsp nigella seeds

Sea salt flakes, cracked black pepper

Method

To make the salad:

Place a large bowl of water in the freezer while you prep the vegetables, or fill a bowl with ice cubes and water. Put the orzo in a pan with plenty of boiling salted water. Simmer for 9 – 11 minutes then drain.

To make the vinaigrette:

Mix together 1 tbsp olive oil with the mustard and sherry vinegar. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Put the asparagus in a pan of boiling salted water and cook for 3 minutes on a high heat. Transfer to the iced water. Add the beans to the boiling water and cook for 5 minutes. For the last 2 minutes of cooking add the peas. Transfer to the iced water.

To prep the halloumi:

Season the halloumi with pepper, it can be quite salty so I tend not to add extra salt. Heat 1 tsp olive oil per serving in a pan, on a medium heat. Once hot, cook the halloumi for 3 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Drain the vegetables and mix together in a bowl with the radishes, dressing and orzo. Scatter the seeds on top with the halloumi.

Laoise (Lee-sha) is a chef, food stylist and writer, living in London. Follow her on Twitter @laoisecooks and Instagram @laoisecooks. She studied at Leiths School of Food and Wine, where she now teaches. She has worked in a number of top London restaurants including The Dairy in Clapham and Paradise Garage in Bethnal Green.