How to Cook Couscous Perfectly (in 5 Minutes!)

An easy guide for how to cook couscous perfectly every time. It only takes 5 minutes to make this versatile, healthy side dish!

I feel like couscous is an entirely underrated food. It’s super versatile, it’s good for you, and it’s so quick and easy to make! In literally less than 5 minutes, you can have a healthy side dish on the table. Here’s how to cook couscous perfectly every time, in just 5 minutes!

What is couscous?

Couscous is tiny pieces of durum wheat semolina. Essentially, it’s teeny tiny pasta (and that’s how I sell it to my kids…).

It’s actually a North African ingredient, which is commonly used in countries such as Algeria, Tunisia, and Morocco. Therefore, couscous is great served with North African-inspired meals, such as a vegetarian tagine or stew. I also love to make a simple couscous salad, like I did for the photos in this post!

It’s such a versatile ingredient, and if you’re looking for a super quick and healthy side dish, couscous is probably it.

How to cook couscous perfectly every time

A lot of people have trouble cooking couscous. The grains are so tiny that if you try to cook it like you would any other type of pasta, in a pan of water, you will very quickly end up with an overcooked, soggy mush.

Luckily, cooking couscous is even easier than cooking pasta. Here’s how to cook couscous!

1. Make up some vegetable stock

You can cook couscous using just hot water, but I prefer to use vegetable stock. Like a lot of plain carbs (pasta, rice, etc.), couscous has very little flavour on its own, so it’s important to get some flavour in where you can, and using stock to cook the couscous is an easy way to do that.

I used a veggie stock cube, mixed up with boiling water. You could also use liquid stock, a jelly stock pot, or whatever else you have.

You’ll need your stock to be very hot, so either use boiled water, or if you’re using a liquid stock, heat it up in the microwave first.

2. Add stock to the couscous

Put the couscous in a large bowl, and add the hot vegetable stock. Mix well.

You should always use a fork to mix your couscous, at all stages of preparation. Stirring with a spoon can clump the couscous together, giving a lumpy end result. Mixing with a fork keeps the grains separate, giving fluffy couscous that’s cooked perfectly evenly.

3. Cover with a plate

All you need to do now is to leave the couscous to absorb the hot liquid. Cover the bowl with a plate, so that all the heat is contained, and soaks into the dry grains.

Couscous is so tiny that it really doesn’t take long to cook at all – literally just 3 or 4 minutes.

4. Fluff up the couscous with a fork

When a few minutes have passed, give the couscous a quick taste, to check if it’s cooked to your liking. You can always add a splash more hot water, and leave it for another minute or two, if it’s still a little firm.

Then just fluff it up, using a fork again, to separate the grains.

That’s all there is to it – 5 minutes to cook couscous perfectly.

How to serve couscous

Unlike pasta, which tends to be the main focal point of a meal, couscous tends to serve as more of a side dish.

It can be served on its own, especially if you’ve already made it tasty by using vegetable stock instead of plain hot water.

I also love adding a few extra ingredients, to create a simple couscous salad.

Simple couscous salad

You don’t need to add much to make a couscous salad. I tend to take inspiration from a Greek salad (my favourite salad of all time), as just a few simple ingredients can combine to produce something really irresistible.

Here are a few ideas of ingredients you could include in you couscous salad. You definitely don’t need to use all of these – just choose four or five, and add them to the couscous once it’s cooked, along with a good glug of extra virgin olive oil and a bit of salt and pepper.

• cucumber
• tomatoes
• black olives
• fresh parsley or mint
• chopped spring onions
• lemon juice
• fried halloumi cheese
• crumbled feta cheese
• chickpeas

Other couscous recipes

Here are a few other ideas for ways to serve couscous:

• alongside some homemade falafel or vegetarian koftas
• with roasted vegetable ratatouille
• alongside a vegetarian tagine (this one’s made in the slow cooker!)
• with veggies and roasted feta (this one uses quinoa, but it would be great with couscous too!)
• in a tasty couscous salad (ditto above)

Do you struggle to cook tofu well too? Here’s how to cook tofu perfectly!