Couscous is a quick food to prepare and tastes good in main dishes, side dishes and even as a dessert. We explain what makes it so healthy and we show you three summer recipes, fresh and tasty.
Couscous is a typical and staple food of North African and Near Eastern cuisine with a status similar as a staple food to pasta, potatoes or rice in other countries.
In Morocco it is a very popular national dish. Couscous dishes are often seasoned with ras-el-hanout (a mixture of spices that usually includes black pepper, cumin, cardamom, nutmeg, cinnamon, paprika and ginger) or harissa pasta (hot sauce popular in the Maghreb area and especially in Tunisia that includes smoked red-hot peppers, garlic, coriander fruits, caraway, salt and olive oil).
WHAT IS COUSCOUS?
The dishes called couscous are made with coarse wheat grits, which is the lightly ground grain of durum wheat, although it can also be made with other grains, such as barley or millet.
It is a carbohydrate-rich food that provides lasting energy (112 calories per 100 g), B vitamins, minerals such as potassium, calcium and zinc, and a significant amount of protein.
HOW COUSCOUS IS COOKED
Couscous is traditionally prepared in a special saucepan, cocksure, where semolina is gently steamed over hot water.
Couscous available in the supermarket is a pre-cooked instant product that just needs to be poured hot water or broth on it and then left to soak for a few minutes.
3 COUSCOUS RECIPES
1. COUSCOUS SALAD
Whether to accompany or as a main course, couscous salads are wonderfully versatile and quick to prepare.
Ingredients (for 2 servings):
- 200 g couscous
- 1 onion
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 400 g cherry tomatoes (halved)
- salt
- pepper
- sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon thyme (dried)
- 3 tablespoons parsley (chopped)
- 200 g feta cheese (shredded)
Elaboration:
- Put the 200 g of couscous in a bowl and pour 250 ml of boiling water on top. Cover and let soak for 10 minutes.
- Sauté the onion in strips with 3 tablespoons of oil, add the cherry tomatoes cut in half, season with salt, pepper, sugar and 1⁄2 teaspoon dried thyme. Boil over low heat for 5 minutes.
- Mix the couscous with 3 tablespoons of chopped parsley. Serve with tomatoes and sprinkle with shredded feta cheese.
2. VEGETABLE COUSCOUS WITH APRICOTS
Ingredients (for 4 servings):
- 300 g couscous
- 200 g boiled chickpeas
- 6 apricot apricots
- 3 tablespoons raisins
- 150 ml orange juice
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 zucchini
- 1 eggplant
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 yellow pepper
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 teaspoons ras-el-hanout
- 150 g Greek yogurt
- 4 tablespoons goat’s or vegetable milk
- 10 nuts
- 4 mint sprigs
- black pepper
- salt
ELABORATION:
- Prepare the couscous according to the instructions on the package.
- Rinse the chickpeas in a strainer and drain.
- Finely chop the apricots, mix with the raisins and pour on them the orange juice and two tablespoons of lemon juice. Let stand for about 5 minutes.
- Fluff the couscous with a fork and add the mixture of apricot and currants with the juices and chickpeas. Mix well.
- Wash, clean and cut vegetables into cubes. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet and briefly sauté the vegetables. Season to taste with a tablespoon of lemon and salt. Let cool a little.
- Add couscous to vegetables. Season and season with ras-el-hanout.
- Chop the nuts into large pieces and toast them in a fat-free skillet.
- Mix the yogurt with the milk until creamy and add the nuts.
- Wash the mint, shake it to dry, pluck a few leaves and finely chop them. Add the leaves to yogurt and salt and pepper. Serve along with couscous.
3. ZUCCHINI AND CRANBERRY COUSCOUS (TAKEAWAY)
Ingredients (for 1 serving):
- 50 g zucchini
- 1 shallot
- 1/2 tablespoon dried cranberries
- 90 g couscous
- 1 teaspoon vegetable broth (granulated)
- 1/2 teaspoon harissa
- 2 tablespoons cooked chickpeas
- 1 tablespoon toasted almonds
- 100 g yogurt
- 200 ml water
Preparation:
- Finely chop the zucchini and shallot. Also chop the blueberries into small pieces.
- Put couscous, vegetable broth and harissa in a heat-resistant sealable glass (with a capacity of 500 ml). Add the chickpeas, shallots, blueberries and zucchini and close the jar tightly.
- Chop the almonds, mix them with the yogurt in an airtight jar.
- When you want to eat, pour the boiling water into a bowl and stir everything well with a spoon. Let it stand for 10 minutes and stir again shortly before consuming. Finally add the yogurt and almonds.
