Couscous Royale
It's been a month since we had couscous for dinner. The giant hubby had a craving for this for the past two days and asked me if we could have it for tonight's dinner. So, this morning, after taking our giantess daughter to school, I went to the supermarket and bought the necessary ingredients.
If you look at my previous post, Giving It A Try, my first real entry actually, I talked about couscous and promised to post the recipe when I have the time. Trouble is, I forgot about it. But who cares anyway? Who would care about Bokbok's couscous recipe? You have no choice, I'm posting it anyways, hehe...
Oopps, for the ones visiting this blog for the first time, no, this is not a food blog. I'll leave it to the experts. It's just that I feel obliged to post it. I'm not a cordon bleu (an exceptional cook). But at least I try and I guess I'm progressing. CRITICS are WELCOME. ^_^
Not long ago, I would take even the most simple recipe from a cookbook, carefully following the instructions, cautiously measuring the ingredients and the dish would turn out bland. But now I guess I'm doing better. The Green Giant and I have been married for 8 years now. So having a voracious husband plus two voracious kids, and with a little flick of my magic wand in the kitchen, I think I'm ready to show off some of Philippines' culinary treasures to my in-laws.
So, what is couscous royale? Well, Its a North African dish consisting of semoule (semolina) served with a meat stew.
Couscous is yellow granules of semoule (semolina) made from durum wheat. It is for the North Africans what rice and pasta are for the Filipinos and Italians. The key to preparing an authentic couscous is patience and care. It's too much work, I assure you. Experience will prove the best guide. But there are instant couscous (pre-cooked) available in the supermarkets and the directions will only require you to boil it for 1-2 minutes, drain and serve. That easy and it's as good as the one authentically prepared.
...Royale, when it is served with different kinds of meat and vegetables. Like our very own kare-kare (a meat stew with a rich nutty sauce served with a variety of vegetables) in which bagoong (a salty paste made from fermented fish or shrimp) is traditionally served with, couscous royale is served with hot sauce called harissa.
harissa hot sauce
This is how it's usually presented. I don't know if it will affect your appetite but it's how I managed to present it. This is good for one person.
Couscous Royale (for approx. 4 persons)
2 x packs of 250 gms. 'instant' couscous
1 kg. lamb ribs/shoulder-- cut into serving pieces
4 chicken legs-- cut the drumsticks off from the thighs, fried till golden brown (half-cooked), set aside
8 merguez sausages--grilled, set aside (2 sausages /person)
500 gms. zucchini--peeled (most of the skin left on) and cut into 2-inch chunks
300 gms. carrots--peeled, cut into quarters
2 bell peppers(red & green)--cored, seeded and diced
3 turnips--cut into wedges
300 gms. cooked garbanzo beans
1-2 tbsp. Ras el Hanout or 4-spice powder
2 tbsp. tomato paste
paprika-- optional
salt
Place lamb ribs/shoulder pieces in a large casserole and cover with water. Set over medium heat and bring to a boil. Removes scums. Add the ras el hanout or 4-spice powder, salt and all the vegetables except bell peppers. Dissolve the tomato paste in the stock and add to the casserole. Simmer for 30 minutes. Next, add the chicken pieces and let simmer for 1 hour. Then add the diced bell peppers and simmer for about 15 minutes. Lastly, put grilled merguez and simmer for another 5 minutes.
Cook the couscous according to package directions.
Serve with harissa sauce dissolved in 1-2 tbsp. of stock.
Done. Whew!
If you look at my previous post, Giving It A Try, my first real entry actually, I talked about couscous and promised to post the recipe when I have the time. Trouble is, I forgot about it. But who cares anyway? Who would care about Bokbok's couscous recipe? You have no choice, I'm posting it anyways, hehe...
Oopps, for the ones visiting this blog for the first time, no, this is not a food blog. I'll leave it to the experts. It's just that I feel obliged to post it. I'm not a cordon bleu (an exceptional cook). But at least I try and I guess I'm progressing. CRITICS are WELCOME. ^_^
Not long ago, I would take even the most simple recipe from a cookbook, carefully following the instructions, cautiously measuring the ingredients and the dish would turn out bland. But now I guess I'm doing better. The Green Giant and I have been married for 8 years now. So having a voracious husband plus two voracious kids, and with a little flick of my magic wand in the kitchen, I think I'm ready to show off some of Philippines' culinary treasures to my in-laws.
So, what is couscous royale? Well, Its a North African dish consisting of semoule (semolina) served with a meat stew.
Couscous is yellow granules of semoule (semolina) made from durum wheat. It is for the North Africans what rice and pasta are for the Filipinos and Italians. The key to preparing an authentic couscous is patience and care. It's too much work, I assure you. Experience will prove the best guide. But there are instant couscous (pre-cooked) available in the supermarkets and the directions will only require you to boil it for 1-2 minutes, drain and serve. That easy and it's as good as the one authentically prepared.
...Royale, when it is served with different kinds of meat and vegetables. Like our very own kare-kare (a meat stew with a rich nutty sauce served with a variety of vegetables) in which bagoong (a salty paste made from fermented fish or shrimp) is traditionally served with, couscous royale is served with hot sauce called harissa.
harissa hot sauce
This is how it's usually presented. I don't know if it will affect your appetite but it's how I managed to present it. This is good for one person.
Couscous Royale (for approx. 4 persons)
2 x packs of 250 gms. 'instant' couscous
1 kg. lamb ribs/shoulder-- cut into serving pieces
4 chicken legs-- cut the drumsticks off from the thighs, fried till golden brown (half-cooked), set aside
8 merguez sausages--grilled, set aside (2 sausages /person)
500 gms. zucchini--peeled (most of the skin left on) and cut into 2-inch chunks
300 gms. carrots--peeled, cut into quarters
2 bell peppers(red & green)--cored, seeded and diced
3 turnips--cut into wedges
300 gms. cooked garbanzo beans
1-2 tbsp. Ras el Hanout or 4-spice powder
2 tbsp. tomato paste
paprika-- optional
salt
Place lamb ribs/shoulder pieces in a large casserole and cover with water. Set over medium heat and bring to a boil. Removes scums. Add the ras el hanout or 4-spice powder, salt and all the vegetables except bell peppers. Dissolve the tomato paste in the stock and add to the casserole. Simmer for 30 minutes. Next, add the chicken pieces and let simmer for 1 hour. Then add the diced bell peppers and simmer for about 15 minutes. Lastly, put grilled merguez and simmer for another 5 minutes.
Cook the couscous according to package directions.
Serve with harissa sauce dissolved in 1-2 tbsp. of stock.
Done. Whew!
posted by Bokbok @ 11:57 PM
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