Vegetable couscous

Ingredients for 4 servings:

• 1 large onion(s)
• 2 large carrots
• 4 m.-sized potatoes
• 2 m.-large zucchini
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small can of tomatoes, peeled
• 50 g raisins
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 1 tsp harissa
• 1,000 ml vegetable broth
• 1 small can of chickpeas
• 400 g couscous, instant
• 1 tsp vegetable broth
• 2 tsp butter
• salt and pepper

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 50 minutes; Total time approx. 1 hour 10 minutes

from North Africa, Maghreb, without meat

Clean the vegetables. Dice the onion and sauté in a large pot with olive oil. Halve the potatoes lengthwise, quarter the carrots, and cut the zucchini crosswise into 4 large pieces and add to the pot. Add the peeled tomatoes. Deglaze with approximately 1-1.2 liters of vegetable stock. The vegetables should be completely covered with stock. Soak the raisins in a bowl in hot water for 1 minute, rinse, and add to the pot. If you don’t like raisins, you can also cook 2 unpeeled garlic cloves instead. Add tomato paste and harissa (1 teaspoon or more to taste). Cover and cook for approximately 40 minutes over low to medium heat. After 25-30 minutes of cooking time, begin to swell the couscous. Follow the package instructions. Instead of salt and oil, use 1 teaspoon of vegetable stock powder. After the butter has swelled for about 5-10 minutes, add the butter and work it in with a fork, loosening the grains as you go. After 35 minutes of cooking, drain the chickpeas and add them to the pot with the remaining vegetables. At the end of the cooking time, season the vegetables with salt and pepper. Place the couscous in deep plates and make a well in the center. Fill this well with the vegetables and stock. This dish tastes even better when used with dried chickpeas: Take 150g of dried small chickpeas and soak them overnight in 1 liter of hot water. The chickpeas are cooked along with the vegetables from the beginning. The cooking time is then about 1 hour, or until the chickpeas are al dente.