The VEGETABLE AND CHICKPEA COUSCOUS is a delightful vegetarian dish with Mediterranean aromas and North African roots. It’s the perfect recipe for anyone seeking a healthy, tasty, and colorful alternative to classic first courses. Easy to prepare, entirely plant-based, and incredibly versatile. Flavored with fresh herbs like parsley or mint, it’s ideal to serve either warm or cold, as a light lunch, a main dish, or a tasty side.
The light, fluffy grains of couscous combine with a mix of sautéed seasonal vegetables, enriched with tender chickpeas.
A perfect dish to bring to the office, a picnic, or to enjoy on the terrace with a glass of chilled white wine.
Colorful, nutritious and ready in under 30 minutes: vegetable and chickpea couscous proves that plant-based cooking can be anything but boring.
YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very economical
- Rest time: 2 Hours
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 4 servings
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
- Seasonality: Spring, Summer
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups couscous
- 1 cup water
- 1 red bell pepper
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1 spring onion
- 1 carrot
- 2 zucchini
- 1 1/4 cups canned chickpeas (drained)
- 2 oz green olives in brine
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tbsp honey
- to taste salt
- to taste black pepper
- mint
FOR THE VEGETABLE AND CHICKPEA COUSCOUS YOU WILL NEED
- 1 Pan
- 1 Pot
- 1 Knife
PREPARATION — VEGETABLE AND CHICKPEA COUSCOUS
To prepare the VEGETABLE AND CHICKPEA COUSCOUS, begin by washing and trimming all the vegetables. Cut them into strips and then dice them into evenly sized pieces.
Put a drizzle of oil in a pan and, once it is hot, start cooking the bell peppers over high heat. After about 5 minutes of cooking, add the honey and season with salt. Let them cook for a few more minutes so they caramelize slightly. Then turn off the heat and set the peppers aside.
In the same pan, with another drizzle of oil, cook the spring onion and the carrots for about 5 minutes — be careful, all the vegetables should remain crisp. Add the zucchini and cook for another 5 minutes, seasoning with a pinch of salt and, if you like, some pepper.
Once the vegetable mixture is ready, take care of the couscous.
Bring the water to a boil in a large pot and add salt. Turn off the heat, add 2 tablespoons of oil and the couscous. Fluff it with a fork, cover and let it rest for 5 minutes.
After the time has elapsed, remove the lid, fluff the couscous again and transfer it to a bowl. Add the vegetables, the olives sliced into rounds, the chickpeas drained of their liquid, the mint torn by hand, then mix everything together, adjusting if necessary with more oil and salt.
Cover it and transfer it to the fridge for 2 hours before enjoying.
