Toasted buckwheat salad with chickpeas, harissa carrots, orange and caraway

Method

1. Heat 350 g water in the kettle. Without rinsing it, as wet grain would not toast, put the buckwheat in the dry 2 litre saucepan and toast over a medium heat for 4–5 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon: the grains should turn from pale green to hazelnut brown, crackle and smell of toasted nuts.
2. Take the saucepan off the heat and pour in the boiling water, taking care as it may splash, with 4 g salt. Stir once, return to a low heat, cover and cook for 10 minutes without lifting the lid. Turn off the heat and rest, covered, for 5 minutes: when you tilt the pan, no water should remain at the bottom, and the grains should be tender with a still-firm centre. Fluff with a fork. If a little water remains, drain in the fine sieve; if the grains are still hard, add 2 tbsp water and cook for another 2 minutes.
3. While the buckwheat cooks, toast the almonds in the small dry frying pan over a medium heat for 4–5 minutes, shaking the pan: they should smell toasted and be pale golden in the centre when one is broken open. Tip onto the board. Toast the cumin seeds in the same pan for 1 minute, until crackling and fragrant, then crush in a mortar or under the flat of a knife blade. Roughly chop the almonds with a knife.
4. Also while the buckwheat cooks, make the dressing in the salad bowl: combine the garlic crushed in a press, harissa loosened with the juice of half a lemon, crushed cumin, caraway, 3 g salt and the pepper, then whisk in the olive oil with a fork. Peel and segment the orange over the bowl: cut off both ends, follow the curve of the fruit with a knife to remove the peel and all the white pith, then cut the segments free between the membranes. Halve the segments and set aside on a plate. Squeeze the remaining membrane over the bowl to catch the juice. Peel and coarsely grate the carrots. Rinse and drain the chickpeas, then add them and the carrots to the dressing and mix: they will absorb it while the buckwheat finishes cooking.
5. Add the still-hot buckwheat to the salad bowl and mix gently: while hot, it absorbs the dressing rather than leaving it at the bottom. Cool for 5 minutes, then fold in the orange segments and roughly chopped parsley and mint. Taste: the salad should be distinctly spicy, salty and tangy. Adjust if needed with a pinch of salt, a splash of lemon juice or, for more heat, 1 tsp harissa loosened with a little lemon juice.
6. Divide between two shallow bowls or two containers and scatter with toasted almonds just before eating. If taking away, carry the almonds separately in a small bag to keep them crisp.