Couscous

Anyone have any good ideas for couscous. I made some whole wheat garlic couscous the other day to go with some meat I had made, but I had more couscous left over and I was wondering if anyone had a recipe to make it more of a whole meal instead of a side dish. Thanks!

I like to put a whole lot of lightly sauteed spinach in the couscous and squish in juice from a lemon and then add some feta cheese. I've had it as a meal with hot mixed veges on top. Yum!

Sometimes I've just made an individual serving of the dish minus the extra veges and that's lunch...all by itself!

I fix it cold like you would tabouli - lemon juice, finely chopped tomato, cucumber, green peppers, onions, lots of fresh parsley, and, if you have it, fresh mint. 

Saute some zuchinni, onions, carrots, eggplant and red peppers until lightly browned, add some canned or fresh tomatoes and simmer for a minute or until the veggies are tender, add some harissa or siratcha or other hot sauce, and toss with the couscous. Add some shredded cooked chicken and your have a full meal. I haven't had that in ages, it's so YUM, I think I might make that tonight!

Thanks everyone! I'll definitely have to try all of them at some point.

Victoriagirl: That's a really good idea with the shredded cooked chicken. It be so easy. You could even buy one of those rotisserie chicken's at the grocery store and just shred some of it in there. Thanks!

My personal favourite couscous recipe is roasted sweet potato bites, dried cranberries, shelled baby peas and slivered almonds all mixed in to the cooked couscous! It's SO good.

the only time I ever had couscous was at a restaurant and it was NASTY

I dunno if they made it bad or what, but I'm scared to try it again

When I first started learning to eat healthy I investigated couscous as a potentially healthy option but I soon learned it's just little balls of flour.   Whole wheat couscous is about the same as eating whole wheat bread which isn't too bad but regular couscous is made from essential white flour and would be the same as eating white bread...not the healthiest alternative.  

What you might also try is some incredibly healthy and nutritious whole grains like quinoa or millet that are tiny little grains much the same size as couscous but with a taste and texture all their own and a much better or at least different nutritional profile.  Quinoa for example is one of the rare vegetable/grain sources of complete proteins, meaning it contains all the essential amino acids.  There are lots of whole grain options that cook up quickly in a rice cooker or on the stove that would be a great compliment or substitute for couscous.