Easy to whip up and tastes extremely delicious…

I love couscous and admire how it can be mixed with almost anything: veggies, chicken, shrimp, beef, nuts, fruits etc etc.On busy days and lazy days, couscous comes in super handy to me. The good thing is that couscous dishes make a complete meal when it is combined with your favorite veggies or meat. I even made a breakfast dish using couscous and dates, so any time of the day couscous is just delicious. I am the kind of person who doesn’t like to repeat any dishes over and over. Even while making my favorite dish, I tweak a bit the next time I make it. Had it not been for such a nature, my blog would have been buried somewhere deep.

Last week, when I had to make couscous, I was willing to add anything other than shrimp and chicken. Ground beef was in my freezer and so I combined ground beef and couscous. I even sprinkled some toasted almonds into the cooked couscous which added a nutty and crunchy flavor to the dish. It was so flavorful that gave me the feel of having biryani. A complete meal whipped up so easily, after that I was seen busy gobbling up.

Ground Beef Couscous

Ingredients:

  • Oil- 2 tbsp
  • Bay leaves- 2 no’s
  • Cloves, whole- 2 no’s
  • Cardamom, whole- 2 no’s
  • Cinnamon- 1 inch, broken into small pieces
  • Ginger, minced- 1 tsp
  • Garlic, minced- 1 tsp
  • Green chilly, chopped- 2 no’s
  • Onion, chopped small- 1
  • Ground beef- 1/2 pound
  • Mixed veggies: carrot, corn, beans and peas (frozen or fresh)- 1 cup
  • Garam masala- 1/2 tsp
  • Chilly powder- 3/4 tsp
  • Turmeric powder- 2 pinches
  • Coriander powder- 1 tsp
  • Fennel powder- 1 tsp
  • Cilantro, chopped- 1 handful
  • Water- 1 cup
  • Couscous- 1 cup
  • Salt- to taste
  • Toasted skinless almonds, cut thin (optional)- 1/2 cup

Preparation:

  • Place a large pan over medium heat, add oil.
  • When the oil gets hot; add bay leaves, cloves, cardamom, cinnamon, saute for a second.
  • Add ginger, garlic and chillies, saute for a minute.
  • Add onion, little salt and saute till tender.
  • Add the mixed veggies and ground beef to the onion.
  • Using your spoon, gently break the ground beef.
  • Cook covered till the ground beef has cooked well.
  • Open the lid and saute till the beef turns light brown in color.
  • Add garam masala, chilly powder, coriander powder, fennel powder, salt saute for a few seconds and combine everything well.
  • Add 1 cup of water and cilantro to the ground beef mixture.
  • Let the water come to a boil.
  • Add couscous to the boiling water.
  • Cover the pan with its lid and remove from the heat.
  • Let stand for 3 minutes.
  • In a small pan, toast the almonds(skinless) till golden in color.
  • Open the lid and combine the couscous and the ground beef using a fork.
  • Sprinkle the toasted almonds over the cooked couscous.
  • Serve hot along with Raita or Pickle.

Tips:

  • Adjust the spice level according to your needs.