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
- Cloves, whole- 2
- Cardamom, whole- 2
- Cinnamon- 1 inch
- Ginger, minced- 1 tsp
- Garlic, minced- 1 tsp
- Green chili, chopped- 2
- Onion, chopped small- 1
- Ground beef- 1/2 lb or 1/4 kg
- Mixed veggies: carrot, corn, beans and peas (frozen or fresh)- 1 cup
- Garam masala- 1/2 tsp
- Chili powder- 3/4 tsp
- Turmeric powder- 1/8 tsp
- Coriander powder- 1 tsp
- Fennel powder- 1 tsp
- Cilantro, chopped- 1/4 cup
- Water- 1 cup
- Couscous- 1 cup
- Salt- 1 to 1 1/2 tsp
- Toasted skinless almonds, cut thin (optional)- 1/2 cup
Instruction
- 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 chilies, saute for a minute.
- Add onion, 1/2 tsp salt, saute till onions turn soft.
- Add the mixed veggies and ground beef.
- Cook covered till the ground beef has cooked well.
- Open the lid, saute till the beef turns light brown in color.
- Add garam masala, chili powder, coriander powder, fennel powder, salt saute for a minute and combine everything well.
- Add 1 cup 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 the pan from the heat.
- Let stand covered for 5 minutes.
- In a small pan, toast the almonds(skinless) till golden in color.
- Open the lid, 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.
- Oil- 2 tbsp
- Bay leaves- 2
- Cloves, whole- 2
- Cardamom, whole- 2
- Cinnamon- 1 inch
- Ginger, minced- 1 tsp
- Garlic, minced- 1 tsp
- Green chili, chopped- 2
- Onion, chopped small- 1
- Ground beef- ½ lb or ¼ kg
- Mixed veggies: carrot, corn, beans and peas (frozen or fresh)- 1 cup
- Garam masala- ½ tsp
- Chili powder- ¾ tsp
- Turmeric powder- ⅛ tsp
- Coriander powder- 1 tsp
- Fennel powder- 1 tsp
- Cilantro, chopped- ¼ cup
- Water- 1 cup
- Couscous- 1 cup
- Salt- 1 to 1½ tsp
- Toasted skinless almonds, cut thin (optional)- ½ cup
- 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 chilies, saute for a minute.
- Add onion, ½ tsp salt, saute till onions turn soft.
- Add the mixed veggies and ground beef.
- Cook covered till the ground beef has cooked well.
- Open the lid, saute till the beef turns light brown in color.
- Add garam masala, chili powder, coriander powder, fennel powder, salt saute for a minute and combine everything well.
- Add 1 cup 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 the pan from the heat.
- Let stand covered for 5 minutes.
- In a small pan, toast the almonds(skinless) till golden in color.
- Open the lid, combine the couscous and the ground beef using a fork.
- 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.
