Seven Vegetable Couscous

Recipe from "Vegan Holiday Kitchen"

Adapted by Tara Parker-Pope

Seven Vegetable Couscous
Total Time
1 hour
Rating
4(349)
Comments
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Seven-vegetable couscous is a well-known offering at Sephardic Jewish New Year celebrations, but since it's a bountiful, colorful tribute to the harvest, it makes a great meat-free main dish for Thanksgiving as well. Despite the long ingredient list, it's as easy as can be to make. —Tara Parker-Pope

Featured in: Well's Vegetarian Thanksgiving 2011

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Ingredients

Yield:8 servings
  • 1½cups couscous, uncooked
  • 1tablespoon vegan margarine
  • 1teaspoon turmeric
  • 1teaspoon salt
  • 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2medium onions, chopped
  • 1cup finely shredded white cabbage
  • 1medium turnip, peeled and diced
  • 1medium yellow summer squash, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
  • 1medium zucchini, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
  • 115- to 16-ounce can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
  • 1½cups diced ripe tomatoes
  • 2teaspoons grated fresh or jarred ginger, or more, to taste
  • 1teaspoon ground cumin
  • ½teaspoon ground coriander
  • Dried hot red pepper flakes, to taste, optional
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

    • Garnish

    • ½cup golden raisins (for garnish)
    • ⅓cup minced fresh parsley (for garnish)
    • Sliced or slivered toasted almonds (for garnish)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)

304 calories; 7 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 53 grams carbohydrates; 8 grams dietary fiber; 12 grams sugars; 10 grams protein; 545 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Combine the couscous and 3 cups boiling water in a heatproof bowl. Cover and let stand until the water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork, then stir in the margarine, turmeric and salt. Cover and set aside.

  2. Step 2

    For the vegetable stew, heat the oil in a large saucepan or soup pot. Add the onions and sauté over medium heat until translucent. Stir in cabbage and sauté until both it and the onion are lightly golden.

  3. Step 3

    Add the remaining stew ingredients. Bring to a simmer, then cover and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes. Add water as needed to produce a moist, but not soupy, consistency. The vegetables should be just tender, but still firm.

  4. Step 4

    To serve, arrange the couscous on the outer edge of a large serving platter and make a well in the center. Pour the vegetable mixture in the center, then sprinkle with the garnishes, topping with sliced or slivered toasted almonds. Let each guest place a mound of couscous on his or her dinner plate and top it with the vegetable mixture.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
349 user ratings
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Comments

KensCooking

Found the taste, per recipe, okay albeit underwhelming.

The couscous was rather boring and we turned it up with garlic salt and parmesan along with another 1/2 tsp. of tumeric.

The vegetables (all per recipe) were good but dramatically improved with the addition of chicken broth over water.

Mark R

I made this a second time and I concur about the additional turmeric. Personally I wouldn't add the garlic salt and parmesan, both for taste (unnecessary and very tasty without them) and calories/sodium. To each their own.

I didn't find any need for water. Everything was moist without it. That's fortunate as I want to keep it vegetarian so chicken broth would not be an option for me. Thanks for the thoughts though.

Naomi

Came out great and was well received. I used fresh cilantro instead of the powder and added lots of chopped garlic. I also used butternut squash so it needed to cook a little longer but the other veggies did not get mushy. Easy to make. Refrigerates well. The chickpeas make it a good meal protein-wise.

Frank

I didn't have any cabbage, so I used a spicy kimchee as a substitute. This came out very well; the kimchee added a lot of flavor to the stew. The preparation method for the couscous also worked well. You may have to drain the couscous if you used too much water for the soak. I mixed the couscous in at the end, just before serving, Next time I may add some greens at the end--spinach if I have it. Finally, I think a pound of shrimp would be very good as a variation. Excellent recipe!!

KG

we served this with yogurt as a topping- it was terrific.

ConnieM

Excellent but made changes. No cabbage and instead added shaved brussel sprouts. Olive oil versus butter or margarine. Double the turmeric and be sure to not shy away from seasoning to your liking. I roasted and salted the almonds in olive oil as well before adding.

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Credits

From "Vegan Holiday Kitchen"

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