Cranberry Pistachio Couscous

Couscous, such a versatile little grain! Couscous marries beautifully with a wide range of ingredients and flavors.  From the basic couscous recipe you can transform it with fruit and nuts, herbs and spices, and use it as a base for vegetable or meat dishes; it will even hold its own smothered in a green peppercorn gravy! It also mixes beautifully into salads. It’s remarkably easy to prepare too. When you are looking for the fastest starchy side dish you can can make, couscous is the answer! But what is it really?

Similar to rice or pasta, couscous is an inexpensive and highly nutritious product made from wheat or other cereals (barley, sorghum, corn, millet, or minor grains) with the capacity for long-term preservation.

The making of couscous was traditionally a female activity and very labor-intensive. On a large flat surface, the woman would place a handful of freshly ground hard wheat, sprinkle it with salted water to form small pellets, and then sprinkled it with dry flour to keep them separate. With her palms, she would break up the grain with rolling movements until the couscous granules appeared. Later she sifted the grain with sieves of different diameters to obtain granules of similar size. The pellets which were too small to be finished granules of couscous, fell through the sieve. They were gathered up, mixed with more semolina and the process was started all over again. Finally, the couscous was sun-dried and stored or cooked.

Let’s make a fruit, nut and herb version I like to serve with Chicken and Butternut Squash Tagine.

Cranberry Pistachio Couscous Ingredients
In a medium sauce pan, bring chicken broth, salt and butter or olive oil just to a boil. While the broth heats, prep the tasty bits of flavor you will be adding.

Add couscous to chicken broth
Stir in couscous and cover pot with a lid. Remove from the heat and let stand 5 minutes.

Add herbs, fruit and nuts
Add the cranberries, pistachio nuts and cilantro. Now doesn’t that look like a holiday party waiting to happen!

Fluff with a fork

Fluff couscous lightly with a fork before serving. The fork will separate the grains and not allow them to clump like when you stir with a spoon.

Cranberry Pistachio Couscous
Serves 6
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Total Time
10 min
Total Time
10 min
230 calories
39 g
5 g
5 g
8 g
2 g
137 g
387 g
4 g
0 g
3 g
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size
137g
Servings
6
Amount Per Serving
Calories 230
Calories from Fat 39
% Daily Value *
Total Fat 5g
7%
Saturated Fat 2g
8%
Trans Fat 0g
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g
Monounsaturated Fat 2g
Cholesterol 5mg
2%
Sodium 387mg
16%
Total Carbohydrates 39g
13%
Dietary Fiber 3g
12%
Sugars 4g
Protein 8g
Vitamin A
2%
Vitamin C
1%
Calcium
2%
Iron
5%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your Daily Values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
Ingredients
  1. 1 1/2 cups Couscous
  2. 2 cups chicken broth
  3. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  4. 1 tablespoon butter or olive oil
  5. 1/4 cup dried cranberries, rough chop
  6. 1/4 cup Pistachio nuts, rough chop
  7. 1/4 cup cilantro, rough chop
Instructions
  1. In a medium sauce pan, bring chicken broth, salt and butter or olive oil just to a boil.
  2. Stir in couscous and cover pot with a lid. Remove from the heat and let stand 5 minutes.
  3. Add the cranberries, pistachio nuts and cilantro and fluff couscous lightly with a fork before serving.
Notes
  1. Great side dish with Chicken and Butternut Squash Tagine recipe!
beta
calories
230
fat
5g
protein
8g
carbs
39g
more
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