Couscous

Name: Couscous
Yield: Makes about 500 g (18 oz)
Cuisine: Tunisian
Ingredients: small handful each of coriander and parsley leaves, chopped; bunch of spring onions, thinly sliced; small handful each of coriander and parsley leaves, chopped; a little extra virgin olive oil, plus more for greasing; 350 g (12 oz) couscous; salt and black pepper; salt and black pepper; 3–4 banana shallots, or 5–6 ordinary shallots, halved and sliced into crescents; 700 ml (1¼ pints) boiling water or stock; 100 g (3½ oz) shelled pistachio nuts; 3–4 banana shallots, or 5–6 ordinary shallots, halved and sliced into crescents

Preparation info

Makes about
500 g

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

The Gate Vegetarian Cookbook

By Adrian Daniel and Michael Daniel

Published 2004

About

This is our basic couscous recipe, which we adapt in many ways to suit different dishes.

Ingredients

350 g (12 oz) couscous
a little extra virgin olive oil, plus more f

Africa
Tunisia
Side dish
Vegan
North Africa
Mediterranean

Method

Put the couscous in a bowl and mix well with 2 tbsp of the olive oil and a tsp of salt. Pour over the boiling water and cover with cling film. Leave in a warm place for 1 hour.
Towards the end of this time, heat the remaining olive oil and sauté the shallots until very soft. Add to the couscous and mix well. Toast the pistachios in a dry pan, then grind into large