Here’s a delicious Curried Couscous Salad Recipe that perfectly combines sweetness and heat! This recipe blends Pearl Israeli Couscous, roasted carrots, cauliflower, curry, cumin, cilantro, lime, and a bit of cayenne for the heat. This recipe is from a California restaurant chain, Mendocino Farms.
This couscous side dish accompanies salmon, chicken, or even a salad. Make it ahead of time and store it in the refrigerator. Serve for a dinner party or bring it along for a picnic.
I love all salads!
Over the years, I have made various salads over here on the blog. Here is a list of a few of them.
I recently made this couscous dish for the family, and they really enjoyed it.
The next day, I mentioned to my walking friend, Kelly how delicious this recipe is and she immediately wanted to taste the couscous. So, I dropped a little sample off at her house, and she said her family loved it!
Between my family’s response and Kelly’s family, I decided to share it over here on the blog.
It’s an unusual recipe with all its beautiful spices, the sweetness, and the heat from the pepper make it a winner.
You must try this recipe if you like couscous, roasted vegetables, and spices!
This is a copycat recipe from our favorite restaurant, Mendocino Farms. If you are ever in California, make sure to drop by and try their amazing salads and sandwiches.
But, if you don’t live in the area, here is one of their delicious salads!
Curried Couscous Recipe
Uusually, I’m not a big fan of couscous that’s drowning in a cream sauce. Well, thank goodness, this curried couscous recipe doesn’t have a cream sauce.
Instead, it’s a beautiful blend of Indian spices and roasted vegetables with a bold flavor from the cayenne pepper, cilantro, and lime juice.
Let’s take a deeper look into what’s in this salad.
Ingredients You’ll Need For This Side Dish
- Peal Israeli Couscous
- Water
- 1 Small Head of Cauliflower
- 2 Carrots
- Mayo
- Cilantro
- Lime Juice
- Brown Sugar
- Curry Powder
- Turmeric
- Cumin
- Coriander
- Salt
- Cayenne Pepper
A Few Tips About This Salad
- The Spiciness – Adjust the amount of cayenne pepper you add to this salad.
- Creaminess – Adjust the amount of mayonnaise. This recipe calls for one cup but tastes excellent at half a cup.
- Vegan Option – Substitute the mayonnaise for veganaise.
- How to Serve – You can serve the curried couscous salad at room temperature or cold.
How to Make Couscous Salad
Step 1 – Cook Pearled Couscous
Place in medium saucepan water, olive oil, and couscous. When cooked, set aside couscous.
Step 3 – Preheat the Oven to 450 F
Step 4 – Prep Carrots and Cauliflower
Dice carrots and cauliflower florets into small pieces.
Step 5 – Mix Spices
Mix curry powder, turmeric, cumin, coriander, salt, cayenne pepper, and brown sugar in a large bowl. Toss carrots and cauliflower in with the spices and sprinkle with oil. Lay out vegetables and spices on a tin foil-lined baking tray.
Step 6 – Roast Veggies
Place spiced vegetables in preheated oven and roast for 7-9 minutes.
Step 7 – Combine All Ingredients
Combine cooked couscous, vegetables, mayonnaise, cilantro, and lime juice. Store in a container in the refrigerator.
Curried Couscous Salad
Ingredients
Couscous
- 1 cup Pearl Israeli Couscous
- 1¾ cup water can use broth
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Roasting Vegetables
- 1 small head cauliflower florets chop into somewhat fine pieces
- 2 carrots diced finely
- 1 tbsp curry powder
- 1 tbsp turmeric
- 1 tbsp ground cumin
- 1 tbsp ground coriander
- ½ tsp salt
- 1½ tsp cayenne pepper adjust to taste
- 3 tbsp brown sugar
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
Sauce
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- ½ bunch cilantro chopped
Instructions
Couscous
- Place water, olive oil, and couscous in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook for about 8 minutes uncovered. The pasta is done when it's tender and just a tiny amount of water remains.
- Take off the stove and let stand covered for 4 to 5 minutes.
Roasting Vegetables
- Preheat oven to 450°
- Dice carrots and cauliflower florets into small pieces.
- Mix curry powder, turmeric, cumin, coriander, salt, cayenne, and brown sugar in a large bowl. Toss carrots and cauliflower in with the spices and sprinkle with oil.
- Lay out vegetables and spices on a tin foil-lined baking tray.
- Bake for about 10 minutes until vegetables are tender and cook. You cook them a bit long and brown the edges of the veggies.
- Combine couscous, roasted vegetables, mayonnaise, cilantro, and lime juice.
- Once the couscous is cool, store it in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Nutrition
This salad pairs well with these dishes:
- Grilled Salmon
- Roasted Chicken
- Steak
- Hamburgers
I’m excited to share this curried couscous salad recipe with you today. I don’t want to oversell this side dish’s yumminess, but it’s a stand-out recipe with my family.
Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have a lovely day!
Cheers,
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