How to cook couscous (in 5 minutes)

Couscous is an easy dish that you can serve hot or cold, as a starter or as a side to a meal, added to soups, salads, and stews.

Here we'll show you how to cook couscous in a bowl, with hot water, in just 5 minutes.

Ingredients and substitutions

• Couscous: the one you find in most western supermarkets that takes 5 minutes to cook. It looks like small granules of pasta (not the pearl variety which you can sometimes find in U.S. supermarkets). You can use regular or whole-wheat couscous.
  
• Water: hot water, almost boiling. For a richer and fuller flavor, you can replace water with vegetable stock.
  
• Salt: it's good practice to add some salt to make the dish a little tastier.
  
• Olive oil: extra virgin olive oil is commonly used. To spice things up you could use a lemon vinaigrette instead. Make it with lemon zest, lemon juice, chopped parsley, grated garlic, black pepper, and extra virgin olive oil.

Instructions

How much should I make?

Once you learn how to cook couscous you'll want to make it all the time because it's such an easy, versatile and healthy meal.

I usually make 1 cup or about 200 grams. That serves between 4 to 6 people, mostly depending on the type of sauce or stew you serve it with. In general, consider ¼ cup or 50 grams of couscous to serve 1 person.

You'll need 1 part of water for 1 part of couscous. So if you are making one cup of couscous you'll need one cup of water. If you are making half a cup you'll need half a cup of water.

If you don't have measuring cups at hand you can use any other cup, mug, ladle, or glass. What's important is that you use the same container to measure the couscous and the water.

Make it in a bowl

Start by boiling the water. I use a kettle to boil the water and boil a little more than necessary, as some of the water will evaporate. If you don't have a kettle you can certainly use a pot and boil the water on the stovetop.

While the water boils, prepare a large mixing bowl and a fork. Add the couscous to the mixing bowl.

Season with half a teaspoon of salt, ideally before adding the water. I find that the salt is distributed more evenly this way. I also like to add a few twists of peppers. But that's entirely optional.

When the water boils, turn off the kettle, wait a few seconds until it stops boiling, and pour it into the bowl over the couscous. The water needs to be very hot, but not boiling.

Give it a quick stir so that it's completely covered by the water. Then cover the bowl with a lid or with a plate to trap the steam in the bowl. Set aside for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes the couscous will have absorbed all the water, the granules should be puffy now, and all stuck together.

Fluff it up with a fork

All you have to do now is to fluff it up with a fork to separate the granules from each other. To do that gently scrape the couscous with the tips of a fork until all the granules and lumps are separated from each other and it becomes soft and fluffy.

Now add extra virgin olive oil, 1 to 2 tablespoons, then fluff it up again with the fork. And that's it, in less than 10 minutes you have a delicious dish that you can serve instead of pasta, rice, or even bread next to stews, soups, or to mix in salads.

Variation

To make couscous a little more interesting, instead of adding the olive oil try adding lemon vinaigrette with herbs.

To make the vinaigrette grate the zest of an organic lemon and add it to a small bowl. Add in two tablespoons of lemon juice, 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil, a pinch of salt, and whisk well till the ingredients are emulsified together. Now add a handful of finely chopped parsley, optionally you can add some chopped mint too.

Add the lemon vinaigrette and stir well with a fork until well combined. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve. You can top it with some toasted pine nuts, chopped or slivered almonds, or walnuts if you like.

Serving suggestions

Couscous is extremely versatile, and like grains and pastas, it can be served on many occasions. From buffet and starters in small bowls on a serving platter to make-ahead lunches and easy healthy dinners with stews and veggies. It definitely qualifies as a top pantry staple.

If you love something light and refreshing try our couscous salad with lemon herb vinaigrette. It's so easy, crunchy, healthy, and ready in just about 15 minutes.

For a richer meal, try Mediterranean couscous with vegetables. All you need is your favorite veggies (ours are zucchini, eggplant, bell peppers, peas, and tomatoes) cook them on a pan, then mix them with the couscous. You can eat this one warm, or cold, up to a few days after.

If you are looking for an easy dinner then try it with one-pot chickpea stew, with deliciously aromatic lentil curry, or with our easy but rich Italian bean stew.

You can also serve it instead of bread with our tofu with pizzaiola sauce, pan-fried tofu with mushrooms, tofu cacciatore, baked tofu with lemon, olives, and tomatoes, pan-fried tofu with lemon, or even with seitan steaks.

Use it to stuff roasted bell peppers, or as a side with roasted Brussels sprouts, Sicilian caponata, or with a simple tomato, onion, cucumber salad with tzatziki or hummus on top. So simple, yet so incredibly delicious and fulfilling.

Is couscous healthy?

Yes. We consider it a healthy food as it has virtually no fat or cholesterol, a good amount of plant-based protein, plenty of good carbs to keep you going for a long time, and dietary fiber. For an even healthier option, try the whole-wheat variety, which contains even more dietary fiber.

Couscous Nutrition Information

Nutritional values are for 1 cup (4 servings) of couscous cooked just with water and no salt, seasoning, or fat. Data from the U.S. Department of Agricolture.

• Calories: 176
• Fat: 0g
• Sodium: 8mg
• Carbohydrates: 36g
• Fiber: 2g
• Sugars: 0g
• Protein: 6g

From a nutritional point of view, it makes sense to serve it with legumes such as chickpeas, lentils, beans, and legumes derivatives such as tofu (tofu is made with soy, which is a legume), although that's not strictly necessary in a single meal.

What is certain is that eating couscous with a variety of legumes and vegetables will provide you with plenty of perfectly good protein just like the one from meat - but without the collateral damage of eating meat to your health and the environment.

Couscous contains gluten and it is not suitable for people with celiac disease on a gluten-free diet.

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