Food & Cooking Recipes Ingredients Pasta and Grains 11 Couscous Recipes You’ll Want to Make for Dinner Tiny but mighty, this quick-cooking starch pairs well with robust sauces and all kinds of meat, fish, and vegetables. By Lynn Andriani Lynn Andriani Lynn is a freelance writer for MarthaStewart.com. Editorial Guidelines Published on June 14, 2024 Close Photo: Johnny Miller You should be making couscous more often. It's quick-cooking and versatile, as these couscous recipes prove. It comes in two varieties: standard and pearled (also known as Israeli couscous). Both variants are small—you might say regular couscous is itty-bitty and pearled couscous is just mini—and both are easygoing starches that cook quickly and go with practically any main course. You can pair couscous with a vast array of entrees, particularly Mediterranean ones (think: French, Italian, Greek, Middle Eastern). But these little granules, whether boiled, steamed, or baked, are worthy of much more than a side. They make a fantastic base for salads, are great stuffed into peppers, can stand up to robust sauces, and so much more. Take a look at the recipes here, and you’ll see why couscous is worthy of our admiration. 10 Farro Recipes That Will Inspire You to Cook This Versatile Grain 01 of 11 Miso Salmon With Asparagus and Carrots Ren Fuller Grated ginger and lemon zest are such lovely additions to couscous; you'll want to make this dish just for that. Of course, miso salmon and steamed asparagus are delicious, too. View Recipe 02 of 11 Roasted-Vegetable Couscous Bowl Justin Walker Toss chickpeas, cauliflower, and carrots with the spicy and salty ras el hanout, roast until browned, and the magic begins. Then add couscous and boiling water to the pan, cover everything with foil, and slide it back into the oven for 10 more minutes. A topping of lemon juice, feta, and cilantro is the perfect finishing touch. View Recipe 03 of 11 Spiced Beef Stew With Carrots and Chickpeas Con Poulos Fluffy couscous is the ideal accompaniment to an Ethiopian berebere-spiced stew that includes tender beef, bell peppers, carrots, and chickpeas. You can cook the couscous after the stew is finished, letting its flavors come together while the grains gently simmer. View Recipe 04 of 11 Steamed Flounder With Vegetable Couscous Did you know you can cook couscous in the microwave? And not only that—but you can cook this entire meal in the handy appliance. This healthy and speedy recipe will have your entire supper, including flounder, vegetables, and couscous, on the table in 20 minutes. View Recipe 05 of 11 Eggplant Salad With Israeli Couscous and Basil When summer produce is at its peak, make this delicious dish, which combines mild and gently sweet eggplant, zippy and fresh basil, and chewy, nutty Israeli couscous. View Recipe 06 of 11 Pork Tenderloin With Summer-Squash Couscous Bryan Gardner Pearled couscous stands up well to a smoky and sweet relish made with grilled grilled scallions, vinegar, oil, and mint. Add grilled pork and vegetables, and you’ve got a wonderful summer supper. View Recipe 07 of 11 Stuffed Peppers There's a lot to love about this wholesome dinner. You can prepare the peppers the day before baking them, you don’t even have to cook the couscous ahead of time—and they’re great for entertaining since each person gets their own. View Recipe 08 of 11 Green Couscous A paste made from cilantro, dill, mint, parsley, and tarragon infuses this tasty side dish with lots of fresh flavor. View Recipe 09 of 11 Shrimp With Zucchini and Spicy Couscous Johnny Miller This one-skillet meal gives paella vibes, with its combination of seafood, peas, and grains. Couscous is a terrific stand-in for rice, as it cooks in a flash and works beautifully with the other flavors here, which include green salsa and green chiles. View Recipe 10 of 11 Coconut-Curry Shrimp and Couscous Bryan Gardner Like our Shrimp with Zucchini and Spicy Couscous above, this delicious dish combines shellfish, couscous, and peas, but the result is a very different dish. That's because this recipe leans on red curry paste and coconut milk to infuse rich flavor. View Recipe 11 of 11 Martha’s Lamb and Squash Tagine Bryan Gardner This great recipe brings couscous back to where it started, in Northwest Africa. It combines boneless lamb shoulder and cubes of butternut squash with cinnamon and prunes for a cozy and piquant supper. View Recipe Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit