Couscous With Pumpkin Stew Recipes

COUSCOUS WITH LAMB STEW

Steps:

• Make lamb stew:
• Pat lamb dry. Heat oil in a 7- to 8-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then brown lamb in 3 batches, transferring to a bowl.
• Add onions to pot and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 10 minutes. Stir in lamb with any juices that have accumulated in bowl, tomatoes, tomato juice, salt, black pepper, chile, herbs, and saffron and simmer, covered, 1 1/2 hours.
• Stir in carrots, turnips, bell peppers, and pumpkin and simmer, covered, 30 minutes. Stir in zucchini and chickpeas and simmer, covered, until zucchini is tender, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Make spicy tomato sauce:
• Pour 1 cup broth from pot into a small heavy saucepan and add tomato paste, whisking until smooth. Simmer, stirring, until thick, about 10 minutes, then stir in paprika, rose petals, and cayenne.
• Cook and serve couscous:
• Bring water to a boil with butter and salt in a 4-quart heavy saucepan. Stir in couscous, cover, and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork. Mound couscous on a platter and top with stew, using a slotted spoon. Serve broth and tomato sauce on the side.

HEARTY VEGETARIAN STEW WITH COUSCOUS

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook onion and garlic in the hot oil until softened, about 5 minutes. Add potatoes, squash, beans, tomatoes with juice, vegetable broth, cumin, and coriander; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until squash and potatoes are soft enough to eat, 30 to 50 minutes.
• Ten minutes before the stew is finished cooking, bring 1 3/4 cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Stir in couscous; cover, and remove from the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes, then season with salt and stir in butter.
• Remove stew from the heat and stir in lime zest, 1/2 of the cilantro, and 1/2 of the mint.
• Serve stew next to couscous on a plate with a tablespoon of yogurt. Sprinkle with remaining cilantro and mint and serve with a lime wedge.

COUSCOUS WITH PUMPKIN STEW

Steps:

• Heat a tablespoon of the oil in a heavy three-quart saucepan. Add the onion and garlic and saute over medium heat until lightly browned. Stir in the raisins, cinnamon, cumin and orange peel.
• Add the pumpkin, chickpeas and a cup of the stock. Cover and cook over very low heat until the pumpkin is tender, about 20 minutes. Add a little additional stock, if necessary, to keep the pumpkin moist. When the pumpkin is tender, remove it from the heat and season it with the cayenne pepper and salt. Add all but one and a fourth cups of the stock. The stew should be almost soupy.
• Bring the remaining one and a fourth cups of stock to a simmer in a small saucepan. Pour it into a bowl. Add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil and stir in the couscous. Cover and set it aside for five to eight minutes, until the couscous is tender and fluffy. Season it to taste with salt.
• To serve, spread the couscous on a serving dish. Reheat the pumpkin stew and spoon it, draining it well, into the center of the couscous. Sprinkle with coriander.
• Pour the liquid from the pumpkin into another serving bowl or sauce dish and serve it alongside the couscous with pumpkin stew to be used to moisten the couscous.

STEAMED COUSCOUS, THE AUTHENTIC WAY

Steps:

• Set couscous in a bowl and pour 2 quarts water over it. Swish around and drain water off. Spread couscous grain in a baking pan and leave them to swell for 10 minutes. Rub couscous between your wet hands to break up lumps. Let stand another 10 minutes.
• Combine the broth, water cinnamon stick, ginger and cumin in the bottom of a couscousiere. Secure the top of the couscousiere to the bottom with a dampened piece of cheesecloth, lightly dusted with flour and large enough to go around the rim of the top. When the liquid comes to a boil, slowly dribble 1/4 of the swollen couscous into steamer, forming them into a mound. Steam uncovered for 5 minutes, then add the remaining couscous. Steam over low heat, uncovered, for 20 minutes.
• Remove the top of the couscousiere (if the liquid in the bottom seems low, add some more water or broth) and dump the couscous into a large shallow pan and spread it out with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle 1/2 cup cold water and 1/2 teaspoon salt over the couscous. Break up lumps by lifting couscous and stirring the grains with a fork. Lightly oil your hands and rework grains, rubbing them through your fingertips, to keep them separate. Dry for 10 minutes. (Can do in advance up to this point and keep until the final steaming with a damp cloth over top).
• Return the dried couscous to the top of the couscousiere (resealing it with cheesecloth again) and dribble couscous in as before, in a soft mound. Steam uncovered for 20 minutes more. Serve with chick peas stew and garnish with sliced toasted almonds.

STEAMED COUSCOUS WITH TOASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS

Steps:

• Soak couscous in water to cover 10 minutes, then drain. Steam couscous in a steamer (lined with cheesecloth if holes are large) set over 1 inch simmering water, tightly covered, 20 minutes. Transfer couscous to a bowl and fluff with a fork. Pour 1 cup water over couscous and season with salt. Let stand, uncovered, 10 minutes.
• While couscous stands, toast pumpkin and fennel seeds in oil in a skillet over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until pumpkin seeds are puffed and beginning to pop, 4 to 5 minutes. Season with salt.
• Return couscous to steamer and steam, tightly covered, 20 minutes more. Transfer couscous to bowl and toss with pumpkin and fennel seeds.

COUSCOUS WITH ROAST PUMPKIN, RAISINS AND ALMONDS

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 200 degrees Celsius Cut pumpkin into 2 cm cubes and place in an oven pan.
• Drizzle with a little olive oil, season with salt and pepper and toss well.
• Roast for 30 minutes, tossing once during cooking, until pumpkin is tender and golden.
• Meanwhile heat 2 - 3 tblsps olive oil in a large saucepan and cook onion and garlic over a moderate heat for 5 - 10 minutes, until soften but not coloured. Add stock and bring to boil.
• Stir in couscous, then remove pan from heat, cover and leave to steam for 10 minutes to soften.
• Remove covering and fluff up couscous with a fork.
• Season well with salt and pepper to taste.
• Combine couscous with raisins, toasted almonds, corriander and hot pumpkin and toss well.
• Enjoy.