I could probably knock three or four countries off the to do list with my preparation of the national dish from Tunisia. Seriously, three African countries - Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia - claim couscous as their national specialty.
Either way, I wasn't going to, like, go roll my own semolina flour (maybe next time : ) So I thought I would prepare a traditional vegetable and chick pea stew to serve over some boxed couscous.
I made some variations to a a recipe I picked up one year at the Epcot Food and Wine Festival for a traditional veggies and couscous. This is a really simple one pot meal with loads of veggies in it!
Ingredients:
1 box (4 cups) chicken stock (I use an all natural kind by Kitchen Basics because it has no preservatives and SIGNIFICANTLY less sodium)
2 tbsps. olive oil
salt
pepper
1 pinch of saffron
1 yellow onion, diced
About 2 cups cabbage, chopped
3 turnips, peeled and diced
4 carrots, peeled and diced
3 tomatoes diced
1 zucchini, diced
2 cans of chick peas
1 more cup chicken broth
couscous
What to do:
Put the first four cups of chicken broth in a pot with four cups of water, some salt, pepper and the saffron. Bring to a boil then add the onions. Let boil for a few minutes. Add the rest of the veggies and chick peas. Let boil until the veggies are tender and the liquid has evaporated. This could take an hour. If the veggies are too firm when the liquid starts evaporating, add more water.
Prepare the couscous following the directions on the box. I use the chicken broth instead of water to give it more flavor. When the couscous and veggies are done, serve the veggies over the couscous.
Well, that's it. Another cooking weekend done. I have survived to cook another day : )
After my brief weekend of laziness (if one would call preparing four dishes for a dinner party lazy) I've dipped back into the wine bag of fun and pulled out the next two countries.