This is one of my very favorite weeknight meals – it’s simple, it contains some of my favorite flavors/ingredients, and it’s fast. Really, blink and you might miss it.
1 cup whole wheat couscous
1 1/4 cup water
1 can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1-3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup tahini
3-4T lemon juice
2T olive oil
2T hot water
1/2 tsp salt
In a small saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Throw in a dash each of salt and olive oil, then add the couscous.
Immediately take the pan off the heat and put a tight lid on it. Start a timer for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl (or in my case, the tahini can, since I was using the last of it anyway), combine all remaining ingredients except chickpeas. Whisk (or shake in a closed container, like me) until smooth.
Even though it’s a little off-topic, check out my new mini-strainer! It’s the perfect size for one can of beans. Adorable.
By now, your timer has probably gone off, or is about to. When it does, take the lid off the pan and fluff up the couscous with a fork.
Fluff that couscous right into a large bowl, add the chickpeas, pour in the dressing, and toss to combine. And that’s it – I told you it was easy! For five minutes’ work, you have a savory, garlicky, sesame-y, lemony pasta studded with creamy chickpeas.
Psst…if you have a little extra time, this is also wonderful made with quinoa in place of the couscous.
Yield: 4 servings. Per serving: 395 calories, 12.7g fat (1.6g sat), 59g carbs, 10.8g fiber, 15.3g protein.
oh my gosh, your pb collection looks awesome! You’re gonna have fun with that one
that’s hilarious about the swiffer!! especially because when I told my husband i was going to make these but didn’t have a rolling pin, he goes, you could just use the broom handle. ha ha
I took the suggestion and used quinoa instead. I might try it again with peanut butter because I don’t always have tahini on hand.
Peanut butter would definitely be worth trying. It would give it a different flavor profile, more Asian-inspired than Middle Eastern – I’d use a couple Tbsp of soy sauce in place of the water + salt. I bet it’d be great. You can’t really go wrong with PB.
Mmmm….so I did not have any couscous, but wanted to try out this recipe, especially since I was looking for something that would cook quickly. I used vermicelli instead of couscous. It’s pretty good! It tastes like it’s missing a little something, so I added a little more salt…could probably add a little more, too. The only downfall, was that I was not including mincing my garlic in the preparation, so it took me a little longer than I had hoped. But a pretty good outcome!!
I’m glad the vermicelli worked! You should still try it with couscous or quinoa, and definitely include the lemon juice next time—it doesn’t make it super-lemony, it just cuts the richness of the tahini and makes the whole thing taste brighter. That might be what you felt was missing :]
only thing I would add to this is something green like chopped fresh parsely.
Parsley would make a great addition!
I added chopped baby spinach, parsley, a red bell pepper and cut a cucumber in half then sliced thinly. I also doubled the salt. This was my first time having couscous and I really like how it turned out. My husband wanted it to be saltier so he added more lemon and salt afterwards. I definitely will make this again! Thanks for a great base recipe!
That sounds wonderful! Thanks for sharing, Brooke!