Couscous salad with garlic tahini yoghurt and beans
This simple couscous salad is super quick to put together and packed with flavour. It’s presented like a bake but there’s no baking involved. It’s a lovely side dish and my favourite part about it is that the bottom and middle layers are made using pantry staples.
Couscous salad with garlic tahini yoghurt and beans
Makes five to six side servings
2/3 cup of couscous
1 x 400g can of cannellini beans
350g natural or Greek yoghurt
1 tbsp tahini plus more to taste
1/2 tsp minced garlic plus more to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
Harissa spice for dusting
A large handful of fresh parsley, hand torn into pieces
Quality olive oil for drizzling
In a medium sized saucepan add the couscous and just cover it with water
Turn the heat on medium and allow to cook for about 15 minutes, stirring from time to time to ensure the couscous doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.
In the meantime, drain and rinse the cannellini beans and set aside
Once all the water has been absorbed and the couscous is cooked, take the pan off the heat and add a drizzle of olive oil, mix through using a spoon and allow the couscous to cool
In a small bowl mix the yoghurt with the tahini and the minced garlic. Taste the mixture and add a little bit of salt and pepper to taste as well as more tahini and garlic if you feel you’d like more flavour
Now you can add all the elements of the couscous salad together. Using a small serving dish, I like to use a small round or square shaped one, pour out the cooked and cooled couscous. Smooth out the surface a little and if the couscous appears dry, just add a little drizzle of olive oil over the surface
Next, add the cannellini beans over the couscous layer, again adding a drizzle of olive oil if they look dry
Finally, pour the yoghurt mixture over the beans and use the back of a regular spoon to smooth out the surface. Sprinkle the yoghurt top with harissa – just a light layer and then add the fresh parsley. And now your couscous salad is ready to serve!
Notes: The couscous in the recipe can also be substituted for bulgur or even quinoa.
If you don’t have cannellini beans, chickpeas are also fine.
You can use your own spice preferences for the top instead of harissa like paprika for example.
For the fresh herbs the more the better. We use parsley, tarragon even wild garlic – whatever combinations you like and what you have on hand.
