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Couscous is an excellent grain to have in your pantry, if you want to get meals out quickly. Couscous takes 5 minutes to make and is practically fool proof. Couscous is delicious, nutty, and slightly buttery. Couscous is a coarsely ground semolina pasta. Wondering what to do with couscous? It makes a fantastic bed for a vegetable or meat stew. Here is a nice spicy vegetable couscous from the Williams Sonoma Savoring Series. This is an excellent dish that does not take advantage of the quick cook time of couscous, but is definitely worth the extra time.
For the vegetables:
- 2 Tbls. unsalted butter
- 2 Tbls. extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 yellow onions, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 small dried red chiles, such as arbol or birds eye, seeded and crumbled
- 2 Tbls. ground turmeric
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves (or 1/4 tsp. dried)
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. ground pepper
- 1/8 tsp. saffron threads (feel free to experiment here, saffron is very expensive)
- 8 small new potatoes, unpeeled, halved
- 1 small head cauliflower, cut in small florets
- 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 2 inch lengths
- 2 cups veggie or chicken stock
- 1 cup shelled English peas
For the couscous:
- 3 cups boiling water
- 2 cups couscous
- 1 Tbls. unsalted butter
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/4 cup minced fresh mint
- 1/4 cup minced fresh chives
- 1/4 cup minced fresh tarragon
And harissa to serve on the side - harissa is a spicy red chili sauce that is used as a condiment, you can omit this, or you can purchase it at food stores like Williams Sonoma.
To prepare the vegetables, in a deep, heavy saute pan or fry pan over medium heat, combine the butter and olive oil. When the butter foams, add the onions and garlic and saute until translucent, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the chiles, turmeric, cumin, thyme, salt, pepper and saffron. Add the potatoes, cauliflower and carrots and turn them gently in the butter mixture for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the broth and stir for 1 to 2 minutes. Cover tightly, reduce the heat to low and cook until the potatoes are almost tender when pierced, 15 to 20 minutes. Add the peas, cover an cook until the peas and potatoes are tender, 5 to 7 minutes more. Remove from the heat and keep covered.
To prepare the couscous, in a large bowl, combine the boiling water, couscous, butter and salt. Let stand until the water is absorbed, about 10 minutes. Turn the couscous into a fine-mesh sieve and press gently with the back of a spoon to remove excess water. Transfer to a bowl and, using a fork, gently fluff.
To serve, heap the couscous into a serving bowl, spoon a little broth and vegetables over it and sprinkle with fresh herbs. Serves 6.