Bare with the long introduction, else jump to the bottom and scroll up a little:
My husband and I are total vegan lovers. He was the biggest carnivore ever when I met him (He's the Algerian), and I was a crazy on again/ off again vegetarian vegan American (it was the scrabble eggs). I guess opposites do attract. Haha!
A few months ago, after watching a dozen of so pro-vegan documentaries (Thank you PETA.org and Netflix) we made the switch overnight to vegan. And not just vegan but a strictly natural sourced wholefoods vegan diet. I have felt clearer and happier. It's regulated my hormones, mood, and I'm continuing to lose weight (a lot of it, which I desperately needed to do). The rule in our house is: If it can live longer than 2 weeks in the fridge without changing color, texture, or smell, it's got something in it that is preserving it. OUT! So we don't eat junk food, boxed food, and certainly not fast food.
But as part of my husbands culture, among others, one of the most famous and utterly defining dishes is Couscous. I mean this is so important to the culture that this is what your mother-in-law must teach you (the lady) how to cook before the wedding, and your husband to be must judge if your couscous is good enough or at least edible, as a qualifier for marriage. Hey, America's have the ring and the finances, Algerian's have couscous. Of course, I was not taught by my husband's mom because we were in America and she is in Alergia, AND I speak English and she speaks Algerian (which is a French-Arabic slang). So I had to teach myself. And add in the fact that as part of middle eastern culture, one is expected to entertain and throw parties (multiple) after getting married so that all the friends may enjoy the new wife's cooking, which then they use to either praise or torture to new groom for his choice in women, I was under a lot of pressure to make at least good couscous.
This evening was the last of the parties. And I finally figured out the perfect recipe for making Old-School Handmade Vegan Couscous (not Instant)... And it was AMAZING! There were six big burly men begging for the secrets to my couscous because even their middle eastern born and raised wives could not make it so well. (Check for Ego) My husband even said it was a good as his own mothers, and she had been making it for 50+years! *Claps madly with happiness*
Important note: Couscous is not a grain, but a pasta (I know, right?). AND Couscous by definition means the pasta AND the stew, not just the pasta. Couscous is made from the grain called Semolina. And couscous is not something you can make just whenever, it takes me about 3 hrs -3.5 hrs (but that includes prep time, cooking time, and cleaning up, so fear not)
Is anyone interested in the idea of me making a video tutorial of Vegan couscous, Algerian style? Or does everyone just want me to write a recipe out in mass detail? or do we not care at all? Let me know please and thank you.
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