Quick Store-Cupboard Couscous

📝 Ingredients

• 250 g medium couscous
• 300 ml boiling water (for the couscous)
• 800 g frozen couscous vegetables (carrots, courgettes, turnips)
• 2 tins chickpeas (530 g drained)
• 1 brown onion (about 100 g)
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tbsp tomato purée
• 1 tbsp ras el hanout
• 1 vegetable stock cube + 500 ml hot water
• 3 tbsp olive oil (2 for the vegetables, 1 for the couscous)
• 40 g raisins
• Salt, black pepper

🍴 Utensils

• Large sauté pan with lid
• Mixing bowl
• Small saucepan or kettle
• Colander
• Fork

📖 Steps

1. Peel and finely slice the onion; peel and chop the garlic. Dissolve the stock cube in 500 ml hot water. Drain the chickpeas in a sieve and rinse under cold water to remove the liquid from the tin.
2. Heat 2 tbsp oil in a large sauté pan over a medium heat. Fry the onion for 4 to 5 min, stirring, until translucent. Add the garlic and ras el hanout and stir for 1 min: the spices should smell fragrant without burning.
3. Add the tomato purée and stir for 1 min so it colours the onions. Tip in the frozen vegetables straight from the freezer, without thawing, and stir to coat them well in the spices.
4. Pour in the stock and chickpeas, bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for 15 min over a medium-low heat, until the vegetables are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife. Taste before seasoning with salt and pepper: the stock is already salty.
5. Meanwhile, put the couscous and raisins in a bowl, add 1 tbsp oil and rub the couscous between your hands to coat every grain: this is what stops it going lumpy.
6. Bring 300 ml water to the boil with a pinch of salt, pour it all at once over the couscous, cover with a plate and leave to swell for 5 min off the heat, without touching it. The raisins plump up at the same time.
7. Fluff up the couscous with a fork, scraping to separate the grains well. If it's still firm to the bite, add 3 tbsp of the vegetable broth, cover for 2 min and fluff up again.
8. Serve the couscous in shallow bowls and top generously with the vegetables and chickpeas. Serve the rest of the broth separately in a bowl, so everyone can pour it over their couscous to taste.