Like pasta and rice, couscous is versatile.
(I won’t add to the debate over whether or not couscous is technically a pasta. There are some strong opinions out there…!)
Why Couscous
Couscous is delicious and incredibly easy to prepare. It’s budget-friendly, cooks in minutes, has great texture, and takes on the flavors of the other ingredients around it.
(Try my couscous tabbouleh.)
One of my favorite ways to flavor couscous is with curry powder.
Loaded Curry Couscous
In this loaded curry couscous, the curry flavor comes from my curry yogurt sauce. Curry powder, greek yogurt, freshly squeezed lime juice, and a few other ingredients come together to form this creamy sauce. The sauce steams into the couscous during cooking, and adds lots of flavor.
More of the yogurt curry sauce is added to the sautéed broccoli, potatoes, kidney beans, pine nuts, cilantro, and minced cherries that make this a “loaded” curry couscous.
Make Loaded Curry Couscous!
Once you bring everything together, this couscous becomes a one bowl meal that’s both filling and refreshing. It’s a unique, delicious way to incorporate more couscous into your life. 😋
A Few Things!
Be sure to use a good curry powder for the sauce. Curry is a central flavor to this dish, so you want to use a curry powder you love. Here’s my favorite curry powder on Amazon [aff. link]. You can also find it in my Amazon store here.
Couscous is a budget-friendly grain if you shop for it at the right place. Trader Joe’s has the best couscous price I’ve found. It’s usually next to the pasta and rice.
Loaded Curry Couscous
Ingredients
For the broccoli:
- 2 cups broccoli, chopped to small florets
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
For the potatoes and onion:
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 2 potatoes, preferably Red or Yukon Gold, diced to ½ inch pieces
- 1 small onion, chopped
- ⅓ cup water
For the couscous:
- 1 ½ cup couscous, rinsed
- 1 ½ cup water
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 5 Tbsp yogurt sauce, recipe below
For the curry yogurt sauce:
- 1 cup Greek yogurt
- 1 tsp curry powder
- ½ Tbsp brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp water
- 3 tsp lime juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 pinch of salt
Everything else:
- 1 15 oz can dark red kidney beans, drained
- ⅓ cup cilantro, minced
- 2 Tbsp pine nuts
- 2-4 Tbsp dried cherries, diced
Instructions
Cook the broccoli
- To a large skillet, add 1 Tbsp olive oil, the broccoli, and ¼ tsp sea salt. Cook the broccoli over medium heat until it turns bright green and gets a little charred, about 3-5 minutes. Put the broccoli in a large mixing bowl, and set aside.
Cook the onion and the potatoes
- To the same skillet you made the broccoli in, now add 2 Tbsp olive oil, ¼ tsp salt, and the diced potatoes. Cook the potatoes over medium-high heat for 8 minutes.
- Now add the onion, remaining ¼ tsp salt, and ⅓ cup water. Cook the potatoes for another 6-7 min over medium heat. Stir frequently and add a little more oil or water if the pan gets dry.
- Transfer the potatoes and onion to the bowl with the broccoli.
Make the yogurt sauce
- While the potatoes and onion cook, make the curry yogurt sauce. Simply add all the sauce ingredients—except the lime juice—to a small mixing bowl. Whisk it all together until a smooth sauce forms.
- Now add 1 tsp freshly squeezed lime juice. Taste, and add the remaining 2 tsp lime juice if necessary. Curry yogurt sauce is done.
Make the couscous
- Now make the couscous. Add the rinsed couscous to a medium-sized mixing bowl. Sprinkle 1 tsp salt over the couscous. Next, drizzle 5 Tbsp of the curry sauce over the couscous.
- Bring 1 ½ cups water to a boil in a saucepan. Once boiling, pour the water over the couscous. Shake the bowl a bit so the water washes over the couscous and incorporates with the yogurt sauce a bit. Immediately cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plate. Keep the couscous covered for 10 minutes.
- After 10 minutes, uncover the bowl, and fluff the couscous with a spoon or fork. Taste, and add an additional 1 tsp brown sugar and 2 tsp lime juice if the curry flavor is a little too bitter.
Bring it all together
- Add the drained kidney beans, pine nuts, and diced dried cherries to the mixing bowl with the broccoli, potatoes, and onion. Toss everything together, then add 3 Tbsp of the curry yogurt sauce to the bowl. Stir until the sauce coats everything in the bowl.
- Now add the couscous to the bowl, and toss until the broccoli, potatoes, onion, kidney beans, cherries, and pine nuts are evenly distributed throughout the couscous.
- Last, add the minced cilantro to the bowl, and mix until the cilantro is evenly distributed throughout the couscous.
Serve and enjoy
- Drizzle each individual serving with some of the extra curry yogurt sauce, if desired, and serve.
3 Responses
I’ve never had couscous with curry before. What a great idea!
This was my first time making couscous and it was delicious! I got the curry powder you use, and it’s amazing.
Thanks Elle! I’m so glad you enjoyed the recipe, and that you love the curry powder!