Tunisian Couscous
User Reviews
5
-
Prep Time
20 mins
-
Cook Time
1 hr 40 mins
-
Total Time
2 hrs
-
Servings
6 people
-
Course
Main Course
-
Cuisine
Tunisian, North African
Tunisian Couscous
Description
This recipe begins by sautéing onions, garlic, tomato paste, and harissa, combined with ground caraway, coriander, and chili powder to make a fragrant base. Lamb stew meat is coated and browned in this spicy sauce before adding turnips and carrots for slow cooking. Later, zucchini, potatoes, and chickpeas are introduced to cook until tender, maintaining their texture by removing them as they finish before the entire dish completes. The couscous is prepared separately with boiling water, salt, and oil following package instructions to create a fluffy bed for the stew. The combination of slow simmering and stepwise vegetable cooking ensures an even distribution of flavors and perfectly cooked components. This hearty preparation is served traditionally with the couscous topped by the meat and vegetables, absorbing the rich, spiced juices.
Ingredients
- 2 lb lamb cut into large pieces, stew meat
- 6 cups couscous or medium, fine semolina
- 2 onion finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic , pressed
- 4 tablespoons tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons harissa
- 2 tablespoons caraway seeds ground
- 1 tablespoon ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 4 turnips , cut in half
- 6 medium carrot peeled
- 4 zucchini , peeled lengthwise, alternately leaving a layer of skin
- 6 small potato peeled
- 10 oz. chickpeas (canned)
- 4 green hot pepper fried in oil (optional
- vegetable oil
- salt
- black pepper
Equipment
- Tajine pot
Instructions
- Add ½ cup (120ml) of oil into a large pan. Fry the onion over medium heat for 2 minutes.
- Add the garlic, tomato paste and harissa and continue frying for 2 minutes.
- Add the caraway, coriander, and chili powder. Mix and continue cooking for another 2 minutes.
- Add the lamb meat and mix well so that the pieces are covered with the sauce. Cook for 5 minutes stirring regularly.
- Cover with water. Add the turnips and carrots, and cook on low/medium heat for 45 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the couscous semolina as indicated on the package, with boiling water, salt, and oil.
- After 45 minutes, add the zucchini, potatoes and chickpeas.
- Cook for at least another 30 to 40 minutes over low to medium heat. Monitor the cooking of the vegetables. If some vegetables are cooked before the meat, remove them from the pan and place them on a serving platter. Proceed in the same way with all the vegetables to prevent them from cooking too much.
- 10 minutes before the end of cooking, get a few ladles of broth (one at a time) and wet the couscous semolina. Mix the semolina well after each ladle until it gets moistened enough.
- Arrange the semolina in a tajine pot. Decorate the dish with the vegetables and the meat all around. Garnish with fried green hot peppers (optional).
User Reviews
Overall Rating
5
You'll Also Love
