Vegetable couscous is timeless, balanced, and endlessly adaptable! Inspired by the French version of the iconic Maghrebi stew I had growing up, this recipe is vegetarian and easily turned vegan if you wish. Couscous regularly appears in the top 10 favorite foods of the French — I had to write about it! See how this comforting dish entered French culture, along with how to make a generous pot at home.
What is couscous and where is it from?
Couscous actually refers to two things. First, it’s the wheat product originating in North Africa more than 2000 years ago. Traditionally hand-rolled in a large vessel, durum wheat semolina flour is mixed with water and rubbed to form tiny grains of varying caliber. This technically makes it a form of pasta — but no one calls it that. The formed grains are then passed through a sieve, making a “kss-kss” sort of sound. And this is how the name originated. The indigenous people of North Africa, the Imazighen (or Berbers), are credited for its origin. They call the versatile food k’seksu or seksu. Today, many people just buy it ready-made.
Second, couscous refers to the eponymous dish: the delicate-yet-incredibly-filling stew eaten alongside the couscous grain. The colorful stew is about what’s on hand. Traditionally made with lamb or other available meat like beef or chicken, camel in the desert, and seafood in coastal places, it’s also made vegetarian using only legumes — often chickpeas.
What I love most about couscous is the array of vegetables it contains, for a complete one-pot meal. A combination of warm & sweet spices make for its lovely broth. And a slow cooking process ties it all together. Couscous is now eaten all over Maghreb in many different forms, its flavor as varied as the people making it!
How did couscous enter French culture?
The well-rounded dish travelled north to Spain and Portugal in the 13th century. But it wasn’t until 1532 that it appeared in French literature, showing up as cosscosson, coscoton à la mauresque, then later as coussou coussou, and kous-kous. After this, time did its thing as it always does, and the word morphed to its form we know and love today.
The dish itself came to France in the 1900s, during the colonial era. North African people brought the fare with them as they worked or fought in the wars. Then in the 1960s, the end of French colonialism and the ensuing exodus ensured couscous went mainstream.
Major flows of people moved from Maghreb to metropolitan France. This included harkis, Algerians who’d fought alongside France in the Algerian War of Independence, and Algerian-born French nationals, aka pieds-noirs (black feet), such as my grandparents, who had to face the fact Algeria had never been their legitimate home. Ah colonialism!
The French take on it
Couscous has a long reputation of lending itself to local flavors, family traditions, and cook’s preferences. As the dish entered French culture, a new variation appeared. The main twist being the meat: instead of the single kind traditionally used, many French people liked their couscous with three kinds. Chicken, lamb, and beef and especially merguez sausages and meat balls! I suppose this makes it regal — hence the name, couscous royal.
But not everyone makes it this way. I am personally not buying into this meat overload and instead choose a more humble route: Vegetable Couscous. I’ll sometimes use Field Roast vegan sausages as a topping, like a playful nod to the French love of meat. They add color and a lovely textural variation. Otherwise, I let the vegetables (légumes) and legume (légumineuse) do their thing. Notice how similar the two words are in French — that’s why couscous de légumes says it all.
Its place in French hearts
For many people in France, it’s a dish that feels nostalgic and testifies to a intercultural heritage. For others, it’s a symbol of cultural blending they have a hard time embracing. But the truth is, couscous is undeniably tasty, and anyone who tries it falls in love with it. You will too, if you haven’t already!
Couscous is very popular. For proof are its repeated rankings among the favorite foods of the French. It’s eaten with friends, entre amis, and with family. College students often have it for Sunday lunch. The abundance of maghrebi restaurants throughout France makes it very easy to find a good couscous at “l’arabe du coin,” or “the Arab down the street,” as people say.
It’s a dish my siblings and I relished growing up. We had it countless times throughout the years. At the school cafeteria, even. And also from a can. Yes, my parents, in all their whiteness, sometimes fed us canned couscous, or rather jarred couscous — which is actually a pretty common thing! Its widespread availability in supermarkets speaks to its popularity, right? For a watered-down version of the real stuff, it hit the spot. But the best couscous is always the one made fresh.
One Memorable Couscous
Aunt K who’s from Mauritania is one mean cook. When cooking, she’ll move about peacefully, not measuring, just eye-balling and tossing, almost looking distracted, and yet the results are always spectacular. So even though the couscous she grew up eating was of a different order, she can make a very respectable couscous royal.
It was high summer when she made a big pot for the whole family. She started early in the kitchen, dressed in one of her signature soft cotton dresses with a loose, casual cut and a bright pattern. On the stove, she heated up the largest stockpot I’d ever seen.
I helped auntie prep the veggies and watched as she layered ingredients into the pot. The stew quickly took on more colors and smells. Cinnamon, coriander, and saffron floated above the rest. Mmm. Everything slowly bubbled away while I played nearby.
And after a slow and low simmer, when everything was perfectly tender, she ladled the hot stew atop soft and buttery couscous grain. With her usual care, she made sure to give each person a taste of everything — potato, celery, turnip, carrot and so on — and passed around some deep-red harissa chili paste for those who like it hot.
Everyone went for seconds, eating probably more than they should have, and our bellies swelled with opulence. Every time I make couscous, I think of her.
Make it your own
There are as many versions of couscous as there are cooks — and they also vary with seasonal availability. This couscous is the way I like to make it in late-summer-to-fall with the veggies that grow near me. But shape your couscous to your taste and use the veggies you love or have within reach. Do make sure to keep a variety though, as they all give each other a little something that makes for a rich and beautiful stew, not to mention nutritious and balanced!
The reason you can play around with the veggies is because the soul of couscous is in the spices! While many people use the Maghrebi spice blend Raz el Hanout, others just mix their own spices on the spot. The idea is to create a complex blend of warm, woody, and zingy. Making do of the spices in my kitchen, I’ve found that a generous dose of paprika mixed with curry powder and a touch of the delicate blend Rogan Josh really works well. If you don’t have Rogan Josh, use some plain saffron and cardamom, or skip it altogether. And if you like more zing, feel free to add more ginger, black pepper, or chili flakes!
As far as peeling the veggies goes, people often strip root veggies of their skin for a smoother mouthfeel. I only peel the carrots — I season the peels and eat them as snack so their vitamin C doesn’t go to waste; they taste better this way! Everything else fares well as-is, at least that’s what my picky eater says. Leaving the skins spares me the extra work and preserves nutrients. But again, it’s your couscous now!
Have you had couscous before? Got any questions? I’d love to hear about you in the comments below!
Couscous de légumes — Vegetable Couscous
Equipment
- medium-large cooking pot
- clean hands
Ingredients
for the chickpeas
- 1 cup dry chickpeas – or 2 x 16oz cans, with liquid
- 1/4 onion, peeled
- 1 clove garlic, peeled
- 1 quart water
- 1 tsp salt
for the grain
- 2 cups fine or medium durum wheat semolina couscous – 18 oz (500g)
- 2 tbsp grass-fed butter or cultured butter – sub with vegan butter or more oil if vegan
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil – or sunflower oil
- 1 tsp salt – or to taste
- 2 cups water
for the stew
- 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 large yellow onion – about 2 cups diced
- 1 tbsp sea salt – or to taste
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 handful cilantro stems – save leaves for garnish
- 4 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 cups water
- 2 tbsp soy sauce – secret ingredient
- 3 carrots, peeled
- 4 Yukon-type potatoes
- 2 celery ribs
- 1 turnips
- 2 bell peppers, any color
- 2 handfuls green beans, ends trimmed
- 2 medium zucchinis, on the thinner side
spice blend
- 1 tbsp smoked paprika – or plain
- 2 tsp curry powder
- 2 tsp ceylon cinnamon
- 1 tsp rogan josh seasoning – or saffron
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- 1/2 tsp coriander powder
- 1/2 tsp chili flake – optional
- 10 twists black pepper – optional
- 1/4 tsp ginger powder – optional
for serving
- fresh cilantro leaves
- fresh mint leaves – optional
- 2 boiled eggs, halved – optional
- 1 tbsp spicy harissa paste – optional
- 1 handful sprouted almonds – optional
Instructions
Prepare the chickpeas
- Start a day ahead by adding the dry chickpeas to a bowl and covering with a generous amount of warm water. Stir and let soak at room temperature overnight, or anywhere between 8 and 24 hours. Then drain and rinse thoroughly.
- Add the chickpeas to a medium pot along with the onion, garlic, and 1 quart of water. Cover, bring to a boil over medium-high. Immediately lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until very tender. This can take anywhere from 30 to 90 min. When done, turn the heat off, add 1 tsp salt and mix well.
- These can be cooked up to 1 week ahead, cooled at room temp, and stored in their bean liquor in the fridge, or in the freezer up to 6 months. Alternatively, you can use a couple cans of chickpeas with their liquid.
Make the stew
- Dice the onion, mince the garlic and set aside. Peel the carrots, leaving the other veggies as is, then chop them all in large, even chunks, and set aside. Remove the cilantro leaves from their stems and mince the stems.
- In a large pot or stockpot, heat up the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the diced onion with 1 tsp of salt, and cook until soft and translucent, stirring occasionally. After about 5 min, add the garlic and cilantro stems and continue cooking for another 5 min. Add the tomato paste and the spices and let them bloom by stir-frying for another minute, making sure not to burn them.
- Add all the chopped veggies, the chickpea liquid, 2 tsp of salt, 2 tbsp soy sauce, and 2 cups of water (more if using canned chickpeas: 1.5 quarts total). Increase the heat to medium-high. As soon as the sauce boils, lower the heat to a bare minimum. At this point, it might look like it isn't cooking, but that's the point. Let the veggies stew while you ruminate on your life.Stir once in a while from bottom to top to ensure even cooking, tasting and adding more salt if necessary. You can start checking for doneness after about 20 min. All the veggies should be easily cut with the side of a fork or spoon. Continue stewing as needed.
- When the veggies no longer show resistance, add the cooked chickpeas and leave to heat through for 15 minutes. Then turn the heat off and keep covered until ready to serve.
Cook the couscous grain
- While the stew comes together, proceed to cook the grain — arguably the most relaxing part. Add the dry couscous to a large bowl, drizzle the olive oil, sprinkle the salt, and mix well with your hands. Rub every grain to coat it with oil.
- Bring 2 cups of water to a boil. Carefully pour the boiling water over the prepared grain, even the top with a spoon if needed so every grain is submerged, cover with a plate or lid, and let sit undisturbed for 20 minutes.
- When the time's up, gently scrape the grains with a wooden spoon to break up any clumps. Add the butter and mix it in. When cool enough to handle, finish breaking up the clumps by hand, gently rubbing the fluffy grains between your palms once more until everything is fine and uniform. Cover to keep warm until ready to serve.
- To serve, either add the grain to a bowl and cover it with broth and veggies. Or serve the grain and the stew each in a bowl. Top with cilantro leaves, and fresh mint, sprouted nuts, or boiled eggs, if using.If you want a spicy kick, dilute a spoon of harissa in a bowl with a bit of broth and pass around the table.