25-Minute Tunisian Vegetable Couscous
"A perfect summer meal. What I love about this recipe is the practicality: it is both quick to make and can wait for you; there's no hurry to serve. It's also a satisfying vegetarian meal that even carnivores love, or if a member of your household prefers meat, a chicken breast poached in water, wine, and paprika and then sliced very thin can be added. I do highly recommend the garnish I devised; it can be made very quickly while the couscous is cooking. Or even if you just zest a navel orange over this dish, the aroma is heavenly and it brings the flavors together. Enjoy!"
Estimated Nutrition (whole recipe, rough)
Counts 15 of 16 ingredients — the other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and contribute nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume — 15 portions →
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Couscous | 1 cup cooked (157g) | 176 |
| Chickpea | 1/2 cup canned (120g) drained | 134 |
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Parmesan Cheese | 1 oz (28g) | 110 |
| Orange | 1 medium (131g) | 62 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Bell Pepper | 1 medium (119g) | 31 |
| Carrot | 1 medium (61g) | 25 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| Cucumber | 1/2 cup sliced (52g) | 16 |
| Mushroom | 1/2 cup sliced (35g) | 15 |
| Almond | 1 almond (1.2g) | 7 |
| Cardamom | 1 tsp ground (2g) | 6 |
| Cilantro | 1 tbsp chopped fresh (1g) | 1 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Pumpkin | not in our table | 0 |
Totals for the whole recipe, adding one typical portion per ingredient — listed above. Quantities in the recipe are not counted, so this is a rough guide only — not suitable for medical or dietary planning.
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion, chopped
- 1 zucchini, coarsely chopped
- 1 yellow squash, coarsely chopped
- 1 carrot, coarsely chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped
- 1 yellow bell pepper, coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup sliced baby portabella mushrooms
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked sweet paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro
- 1 (16 ounce) can chickpeas, drained
- 2 Roma tomatoes, sliced
- 2 cups dry couscous
- 1 teaspoon grated orange zest
- 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika (optional)
- 1 tablespoon finely chopped toasted almonds (optional)