IT'S ZUCCHINI TIME, BOYS AND GIRLS.

And what a good time that is.

Zucchini are cheap, green, nutty, buttery, sunny, easy to prep - and somehow add immeasurably to any dish you care to nominate.

How you cook them, however, is crucial. If you cook zucchini in water you will end up with sog, because they are mostly water (94%!) to begin with. Frying or grilling is best. Stay tuned for today’s recipe in which I reveal just how LITTLE oil you really need to get beautifully bronzed zucchini.

Your cooking strategy also depends on whether they are S, M or L.

Small enough, and you can toss them in olive oil and pan-fry them whole.

Medium? Slice and quickly fry in olive oil, then toss with red wine vinegar and mint, Italian-style. Or slice them lengthwise, brush with olive oil and grill on the barbie.

Large zucchini can be steamed or roasted whole, or cut in half lengthwise and roasted, or put through a spaghetti machine to turn into long spiralling noodles.

Or roughly grate them and toss in a hot pan with a little olive oil and sea salt, finishing with a spritz of lemon.

Then, of course, there are zucchini fritters, zucchini bread, and creamy lemon zucchini pasta sauces, and this zucchini with chorizo and tomato couscous.

Blessed are we to have the zucchini.

HERE’S THE GOOD NEWS. THANK YOU FOR WAITING.

Contrary to popular opinion, you don’t need a lot of oil in which to fry zucchini. I’ve seen recipes that call for inches of the stuff. But I don’t want to embalm my zucchini, I want to keep it light and lush.

I looked up a few recipes from old favourites such as Marcella Hazan and the River Café, and even then had to cut back their recommendations to just 2 tablespoons of olive oil. The end result was fine, but still felt too much.

So the next night, I added ONE TEASPOON of olive oil to a pan, swirled it around to coat the base, and added my little green coins of sliced zucchini to the oil-slicked surface.

That was it. Perfect little bubbles of roasty brown on one side. I turned them once and left them for a minute more, and that was it. Here’s the before and after.

Less is more, after all (until Zucchini Time becomes Pinot Noir Time at least).

So, back to the Zucchini with Chorizo and Tomato Couscous. It’s lovely and light, but every mouthful has something to say.

As I may have mentioned in my previous post on couscous, all you have to do is boil the kettle to get a golden, steamy pile of light, buttery, steamy gorgeousness. For 200 grams of couscous, use 220 ml water or stock. For 500 grams couscous (that is a LOT), use 550 ml water or stock.

ZUCCHINI WITH CHORIZO AND TOMATO COUSCOUS

• 2 medium zucchini - or more, go mad

• 1 tsp olive oil

• 1 fresh chorizo (picante), or two merguez, or anything spicy

• 2 tbsp picked mint, parsley or coriander leaves

• Lemon and extra virgin olive oil for serving

For the couscous:

• 200 g couscous, instant-style

• Half tsp turmeric

• Half tsp smoked paprika

• 1 ripe tomato, finely diced, keep the juices

• 1 tbsp green olives, sliced

• Half tsp sea salt

• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

• 220 ml boiling water from kettle, or hot stock

Heat the oven to 170C and put the kettle on.

Combine couscous, turmeric, paprika, diced tomato and juices, green olives, sea salt and olive oil in a heat-proof bowl, tossing well.

Add boiling water or stock, toss it through, cover tightly with foil and leave in the oven for 15 minutes.

Fluff up the couscous with two forks and keep warm until serving.

Slice the zucchini into coins, and pat dry with paper towel.

Heat 1 tsp olive oil in a medium frypan, and add the sliced zucchini, smooshing it through the oil to make sure each little coin gets a bit.

Cook over medium to high heat for 3 minutes, pressing them down occasionally with the back of a spoon.

Turn with tongs, and cook for 1 further minute.

Spoon the couscous onto a large serving platter and scatter the zucchini on top.

Chuck the sliced chorizo into the same pan and fry for a minute or two until browned and sizzling, turning once.

Scatter the chorizo on top as well (with any pan juices), with plenty of mint leaves a good squeeze of lemon, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Serves 3-4.

Also nice with prawns.

I mean, really, just tip a panful of fried zucchini onto a smoosh of hummus or a creamy swirl of yoghurt, feta and dill, and you’re laughing.

Thanks for dropping by! And thanks for your comments and suggestions. Special thanks to Terry for giving me the lovely pewterish serving spoon from The Bay Tree for Christmas.

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I would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waters upon which I work, live, cook and play; the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. Thank you for sharing your culture, traditions, knowledge, spirit, art, music, humour and food traditions, allowing us all to experience a greater sense of belonging in this ancient land.