Cous Cous (Indian Style) (Serves 2)

A few years ago, when I was planning a trip to India, I asked my mom if she wanted anything specific from here. And she mentioned a dish that one of her friends used to bring to work. She did not remember the name and all she could give was a description of how it looked. I had heard of Cous Cous then, but had no idea what it was and how it was cooked. I did a little looking around and found this mysterious new food item in the nearby supermarket.

According to Wikipedia, ‘Couscous is a North African and Sicilian dish of semolina traditionally served with a meat or vegetable stew spooned over it.’ The best thing I like about it is its quick cooking time.

We Indians are experts in giving foreign foods a Desi (Indian) touch. The result…is given below.

Ingredients 

3/4^th cup - Cous Cous

2-3 tbsps - Capsicum (finely chopped)

2-3 tbsps - Carrot (Shredded)

5  - Cherry tomatoes (chopped into thin circles)

1 tbsp - Oil 

1 tsp - Mustard seeds

3-4 - Mint leaves

3/4^th cup - Water

Coriander leaves for garnishing

Lemon juice to taste

Salt to taste
 

Method
Take equal amounts of cous cous and water. Place the cous cous in a wide mouthed vessel. Boil the water, add salt and pour onto the cous cous. Cover and let it sit for ten minutes. By the end of the ten minutes, the cous cous would have doubled in quantity. With a fork, fluff the cous cous to create a nice soft texture. These instructions are usually given on the cous cous packet.

In a small pan, add a little bit of oil and once it is warm, add mustard seeds and wait till they sputter. Add the cut vegetables and mint leaves. You can leave the mint leaves for garnish if you prefer the raw taste and smell of mint. Saute for 2-3 minutes and add to the cous cous and mix well. Add lemon juice and mix. Garnish with coriander leaves and serve warm. 

As all other recipes, this one too is open to improvisations. Feel free to substitute vegetables that you like and play around with the ingredients. Bon Appétit!