Cous Cous - How to Make in only 5 Minutes
Five Minute Cous-Cous for a Tasty Fool-proof Side Dish
Aug 17, 2009
Many people who are otherwise excellent cooks, struggle with making couscous. Couscous is the simplest of all side dishes to prepare and so when time is scarce, it is the obvious choice. It can be eaten hot or cold and can be flavored or mixed with other ingredients to make a "pilaf".
What is Couscous?
Couscous is coarsely milled Durum (pasta) wheat which is moistened and rolled with the admixture of dry flour until it forms a granular texture. Traditionally eaten in Morocco, Tunisia and other Mediterranean countries, it was the women's task to sit and laboriously roll the couscous for the evening meal. Thankfully this process has now been mechanized so that more of us can enjoy the delights of this light, tasty and nutritious side dish.
Couscous may be used instead of potatoes or rice and has the added advantage that it can be made in a fraction of the time. It is well worth learning how to make couscous and once mastered, it will be a welcome addition on the dinner table.
Couscous - The Basic Recipe
The basic recipe couldn't be easier. The following recipe, which has been adapted from a pack of Sainsbury's Couscous, serves 5 people and takes not much longer than 5 minutes to make.
- Place 250g of couscous in a bowl.
- Pour 300ml of boiling water over the couscous.
- Stir well, cover and leave to stand for 5 minutes.
- Separate and fluff the grains with a fork before serving.
- Drizzle with olive oil or melted butter before serving
However it is easy to spice up couscous and so below is another suggested Couscous dish
Couscous with Crunchy Vegetables
This recipe serves 5, but can easily be adapted to serve one or two people. Simply reduce the quantities proportionately.
- Finely chop onions and celery (or other quick cook vegetables)
- Fry lightly in 2 teaspoons of olive oil, or a mix of oil and butter
- Remove from the heat and add in 300ml of stock made with a cube
- Immediately pour in 250ml couscous.
- Cover the pan and leave for 5 minutes. No cooking is required as the heat from the pan and from the stock will be sufficient.
- Take off the lid and using a fork, fluff up the couscous
- Serve immediately
The only skilled part of this recipe is making sure that there is just the right amount of stock to couscous. The couscous should absorb all of the stock so if there is too much liquid, simply add a little more couscous into the pan to absorb the stock.
Making couscous is so easy that even the novice cook will soon get the hang of it. Serve it with stew or vegetarian meal for a speedy supper.
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