Tag: Cous cous

Lamb and Crispy Couscous Pie

Recipe taken from Lidl Easter magazine April 2021.

Serves : 4; Preparation time : 10 mins; Cook time : 65 mins

Ingredients :

2 packs Moroccan couscous
3 leeks, approx 450g, sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
2 x 400g tins plum tomatoes
1 tin chickpeas, including the liquid
400g leftover roast lamb, shredded
200g frozen peas
Small bunch parsley, stalks finely chopped, leaves roughly chopped
200g tenderstem broccoli, steamed to serve
Olive oil

  1. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large casserole dish and fry the leeks for 10 minutes over a gentle heat, until soft, golden and sweet (they’ll bring a real creaminess to your pie filling). Add the garlic, ginger and cinnamon for warmth and cook for 1 minute to bring out the flavours of the spices.
  2. Pour in the tinned tomatoes, fill one tin back up with water and add this in too, stirring well and lightly crushing the tomatoes with the back of the spoon to break down.
  3. To give the filling some bulk tip in the chickpeas and mix through the shredded lamb. Season well, bring to a simmer and leave to cook gently for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Preheat the oven to 200 C / 180 C Fan / Gas Mark 6.
  4. Add the peas, parsley stalks and a good handful of leaves to the lamb mix, stir and remove it from the heat – if you’d rather serve this in a pie dish, now’s the time to tip the mixture in.
  5. Stir the remaining parsley through the couscous and spread this over the top of the lamb in an even layer – once baked, the couscous will add welcome crispiness to the dish. Drizzle with 1 tsp oil and bake for 20 minutes, serving with the broccoli on the side.

Fruit and Nut Couscous with Fresh Herbs

Recipe courtesy of Psychologies Magazine (August 2019) and taken from Summer Every Day by Acland Geddes and Pedro Da Silva.

Fruit and Nut couscous

Serves : 6 – 8

Ingredients :
500g couscous
Olive oil, for frying and drizzling
50g whole almonds
50g whole cashews
50g whole pecans
1 pomegranate
2 tblsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tblsp chopped fresh mint
2 tblsp chopped fresh basil
50g dried apricots, chopped into small pieces
50g raisins

Step One : Put the couscous in a serving bowl and add cold water until it is covered by about 2 cm of water. Leave until all the water is absorbed (about 10 minutes), then fluff it up with your hands.

Step Two : Put all the nuts in a pan with a splash of olive oil and toast over medium heat until they are nicely browned. Set aside to cool.

Step Three : Remove the pomegranate seeds by cutting the fruit in half, holding it over a bowl and bashing the outside with the back of a wooden spoon so that the seeds fall into the bowl.

Step Four : Stir the herbs, nuts, pomegranate seeds and dried apricots into the couscous. Add a little olive oil, season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve.