In our What’s Cooking series, Canadians in the food world share their favourite at-home recipes: the easy, delicious—even occasionally healthy!—meals that they go back to again and again. On today’s menu: Idil Farah’s Israeli couscous recipe.

 

IDIL FARAH’S ISRAELI COUSCOUS RECIPE

Serves 2

INGREDIENTS

For the couscous

  • 1 cup (150 g) Israeli or pearl couscous
  • 2 cups (400 g) cherry tomatoes, cut in half
  • 1 cup (150 g) feta cheese, cubed
  • 1/4 cup (15 g) fresh cilantro, chopped
  • 1/2 cup (90 g) pitted Kalamata olives
  • Salt and pepper, to taste

For the vinaigrette

  • 1/4 cup (60 mL) extra virgin olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons (30 mL) apple cider vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon (15 mL) lime juice
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 cloves of garlic, minced

For the green beans

  • 1 cup (150 g) green beans, topped and tailed
  • 2 tablespoons (30 mL) olive oil
  • 2-3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon chilli flakes

INSTRUCTIONS

For the couscous and vinaigrette

1. Cook the pearl couscous like you would pasta, in plenty of salted boiling water, until “al dente.” Drain and rinse under cold water until completely chilled.

2. While the couscous is cooking, combine the cherry tomatoes, feta, cilantro and olives in a bowl. Once the couscous is chilled, add it to the bowl with the other ingredients.

3. In a measuring cup, combine all the ingredients for the vinaigrette and whisk vigorously until emulsified. Pour the dressing over the contents in the bowl and toss gently until fully combined. Serve Immediately

Note: You can prep this couscous salad a few hours ahead of serving and store in the fridge to allow the flavours to develop.

For the green beans

1. Bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans, cover and let cook for 4-5 minutes.

2. Meanwhile in a skillet or wok, heat the oil over medium heat and cook the garlic and chili flakes until fragrant (around 30 seconds to 1 minute).

3. Give the beans a taste and drain once they’ve reached your preferred crispness. Toss them in with the garlic/chili flake mixture. Sauté the beans for a couple of minutes until coated in garlic/chili mixture, then set aside.

To assemble

Plate your couscous salad and top with green beans. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

IDIL’S KITCHEN ESSENTIALS

What’s your best cooking tip?

“Season and taste your food as you go—never wait until the end because it will be too late. Add a little salt to everything, even dessert, because it helps to bring out all sorts of flavours and makes the dessert taste more complex.”

What’s your favourite kitchen tool?

“My Vitamix blender. I’ve had mine since 2012 and I use it multiple times a day to make everything from smoothies to dips, soup and nut butters.”

What’s your favourite food scene in a movie?

“The opening scene in the movie Chef when Jon Favreau’s character is chopping and cutting vegetables at breakneck speed. It is beautiful to watch. He turns chopping into a dance, an art form.”

 

What’s next for you?

“I am currently working on an ancestral cookbook with my friend Abena from @addablooms that highlights how to incorporate ancestral African ingredients into your everyday cooking.”

If you could choose one meal to eat for the rest of your life, what would it be?

“Somali rice and beans. Somali style rice is made with a rich broth and is layered with tons of warming spices like cumin, coriander, cinnamon and cloves called xawaash. It’s an explosion of flavours like nothing you’ve ever experienced. Traditionally, this rice is made with basmati rice and green lentils. The nutritionist in me loves this because you get protein from the beans, nutrients from all those warming spices and carbohydrates from the rice.”

 

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