Israeli couscous salad is packed with vegetables and cooked pearl couscous and chickpeas. With simple lemon dressing and loads of fresh herbs, this salad is great for a light lunch, picnics and potlucks on any day.
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Pearl couscous salad with chickpeas
- This salad is fresh, vibrant, easy to make, and packed with nutrients, fiber, and protein.
- It’s light yet filling and satisfying. Couscous is a complex carb that makes the salad filling/hearty meal rather than just a side. It’s a great summer salad.
- Salad is loaded with fresh vegetables and loads of fresh herbs too.
- Easy to customize, pearl couscous can be substituted with regular tiny couscous. You can add vegetables of your choice.
What is pearl couscous?
While many believe that it’s a grain like rice or barley, couscous is a type of pasta. Couscous is made of semolina flour mixed with water.
Pearl couscous is bigger than regular tiny couscous and when pearl couscous is cooked, it looks like pearls of pasta. Regular tiny couscous is prepared to be soaked in water before use, pearl couscous is required to be cooked on the stove. You can infuse by cooking with aromats like onion, garlic, and chicken stock. I sometimes use bone broth to cook couscous and it tastes wonderful. Once cooked it turns out light, and fluffy, and each bead is separated.
Ingredients
Here’s what you need –
All the ingredient’s exact measurements are mentioned in the recipe card below. Scroll down to the recipe card or click on the “Jump to recipe” tab on top for a quick scroll.
Ingredients notes
- Pearl couscous – Pearl couscous is bigger than regular couscous. Works great in salads.
- Garlic – garlic adds more flavor to couscous, used while cooking it in stock.
- Chickpeas – use canned chickpeas or cook chickpeas easily at home using an instant pot. No need to soak them, just cook chickpeas that are ready in an hour.
- Cherry tomatoes – Cherry tomatoes make the salad look pretty. Tang of the tomatoes enhances the flavor of the salad.
- Cucumbers – add freshness and crunch.
- Red onions – adds crispy crunchy texture to the salad. Note – If you can’t handle the astringent flavor of raw onion, pickled onion is can be used as substitute!
- Baby spinach – spinach for phytonutrients. Make the salad more nutritious.
- Fresh herbs – use any fresh herbs like parsley, cilantro, fresh mint, dill leaves, and fresh basil. I used a mix of cilantro and fresh mint.
- Green onions – for an extra load of crunch and flavor.
- Jalapenos (optional) – for an extra kick in the salad use finely chopped Jalapenos.
Mediterranean couscous salad dressing –
- EVOO – extra virgin olive oil is best. Use the best quality EVOO for the best taste.
- Lemon zest – The zest of one lemon, adds fresh, tang flavors.
- Lemon juice – freshly squeezed lemon juice.
- Mustard – use Dijon mustard or stone ground mustard. I used stone ground mustard paste.
- Salt & pepper – for seasoning, as required per taste.
Ingredients additions and substitutions
This pearl couscous salad is easy to customize by adding any vegetable that’s available to you. Feel free to change the flavors of the dressing.
Add crumbled or cubed feta cheese.
Vegetables:
Chop zucchini, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes and red onion, spread it on baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle salt and pepper or use seasoning salt. Roast in preheated oven at 400F for 30-30 minutes. Allow roast vegetables to cool and then stir into pearl couscous salad.
Fruits:
Use pomegranate arils, chopped green apples, dried cranberries, dried raisins, dried apricots (chopped), soft da to the salad.
Nuts:
- Silvered almonds (toasted)
- Pine nuts (toasted)
- Walnuts
- Macadamia nuts
Step-by-step instructions
No canned chickpeas? No problem. Cook chickpeas easily at home. No need to soak overnight, check out the recipe.
If using canned chickpeas, drain chickpeas from the liquid and rinse it once in a colander before using.
Step 1: In a large pot, heat EVOO. Sauté minced garlic and onions for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
Step 2: Once onions begin to sweat, add in pearl couscous.
Step 3: Pour water or chicken stock (or any other stock), and stir well.
Step 4: When water begins to boil, reduce heat to medium-low.
Step 5: Cover the pot with the lid and let it simmer for 8 to 10 minutes.
Step 6: Couscous should be light and fluffy. Open the lid, and fluff it with a fork gently. Set aside to cool.
Israeli couscous salad dressing:
Step 7: While couscous cools down, make salad dressing. Add EVOO, lemon zest, lemon juice, mustard, salt, and pepper into a jar.
Step 8: Cover tightly with a lid. Shake well.
Toss salad
Step 9: Into a large salad bowl, add cooked couscous. Add in the rest of the salad ingredients – halved cherry tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, red onions, roughly chopped baby spinach, cooked chickpeas (or canned), chopped fresh herbs (cilantro or parsley, dill and fresh mint), chopped green onions, chopped jalapenos (leave the seeds on if you like it hot).
Step 10: Pour salad dressing over it.
Step 11: Gently toss the salad until well combined.
Serve the salad immediately for the side dish.
Tips to make best Israeli couscous salad
- Perfectly cooked couscous– Ensure to cook it perfectly, every bead separated, light, and fluffy. For 1 cup of pearl couscous use 1 ½ cups liquid. Gummy, sticky, or overcooked couscous will ruin the salad.
- Cook pearl couscous in advance – Regular tiny couscous is prepared to be soaked in water before use, pearl couscous is required to be cooked on the stove. You’ll need to cook pearl couscous at least 1 hour before so it has ample time to cool completely.
- Fresh is best – use fresh, best quality vegetables and herbs. I’d also recommend you chop the veggies just before you make the salad. It’ll have wonderful freshness and crunch intact.
- Best quality EVOO – Salad dressing is a flavor enhancer for any salad. Using the best quality EVOO will make the salad taste its best.
- Cook chickpeas– Though you can use canned chickpeas, cooking chickpeas from scratch is better in terms of texture and taste, especially in salads. Chickpeas cooked at home are perfect in texture, hold their shape, and taste richer and creamier.
- Serve it the same day – as soon as the salad is dressed in the dressing, leave it at room temperature for an hour and serve it the same day. Couscous will soak in all the flavors from the dressing. The salad tastes better after a few hours but on the same day. Also highly recommend serving the salad at room temperature.
Recipe variations
This pearl couscous salad is easy to customize by adding any vegetable that’s available to you. Feel free to change the flavors of the dressing.
Add crumbled or cubed feta cheese.
Vegetables:
Chop zucchini, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes and red onion, spread it on baking tray. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle salt and pepper or use seasoning salt. Roast in preheated oven at 400F for 30-30 minutes. Allow roast vegetables to cool and then stir into pearl couscous salad.
Fruits:
Use pomegranate arils, chopped green apples, dried cranberries, dried raisins, dried apricots (chopped), soft da to the salad.
Nuts:
- Silvered almonds (toasted)
- Pine nuts (toasted)
- Walnuts
- Macadamia nuts
Recipe FAQs
Couscous looks like a grain, but it is pasta made from semolina. It’s a staple in Arabic countries and Northern Africa. It cooks quickly and it’s pretty much like you cook rice. Just follow the packet instructions, or test it on your own to get the perfect couscous-to-liquid ratio.
NOTE – though in the packet the instruction was to add 2 cups liquid to every 1 cup of couscous, I use 1.5 cups liquid for every 1 cup of couscous. Adding 2 cups made couscous too soft and it turns gummy. Be careful with the liquid ratio. Test it out first.
Couscous is mostly served with meat or stew in countries like Morocco. Dressing it as a salad is another common dish one makes with couscous. The salad is very versatile; you can add any vegetable of your choice.
Well not exactly! It may be called pasta of the Middle Eastern countries, but it’s smaller in size compared to pasta and has a slightly slippery texture, so my mind might not be able to register it as pasta.
Regular couscous is usually soaked in hot/warm water for a few minutes until it’s light and fluffy.
Pearl couscous however needs to be cooked in water on a stovetop just like pasta. You can cook it in plenty of water just like pasta and then drain it as soon as it turns light and fluffy and each bead grows in size a bit. Or you can cook it like steamed rice, adding just enough water to cook the pearl couscous.
I like to enhance the taste of couscous while cooking it, sautéing minced garlic and onions in olive oil, then add pearl couscous along with the liquid. Following the packet instructions to cook perfect couscous can be tricky sometimes.
I noticed that following the packet instructions to cook 1 cup of couscous in 2 cups of water turned it gummy and very soft. So I always follow the ratio – 1 cup couscous cooked in 1 ½ cup water or stock. You get perfect, each bead separated couscous every time.
Couscous salad can be served immediately or can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days. It’s best to serve it after a few hours the same day. Couscous soaks in all the wonderful flavors from the lemon salad dressing and tastes great.
Please do not store this salad beyond 2 days, it won’t taste its best. Fresh herbs will begin to wilt and loose it’s flavors.
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📋Israeli Couscous Salad
Ingredients
Couscous-
- 1 cup pearl couscous
- ¼ cup cooked chickpeas (canned chickpeas works too)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tablespoons onion finely chopped
- 1 ½ tablespoons EVOO
- 1 ½ cups water or stock use vegetable stock for vegetarian option
For Salad-
- 8 oz cherry tomatoes halved
- 2 small cucumbers diced
- ¼ red onion diced
- 1 cup baby spinach finely sliced
- ½ cup chopped parsley or cilantro, chopped
- ½ cup fresh mint chopped
- 3 stalks of green onions chopped fine
- 1 jalapenos chopped fine (reduce it to half if you don’t want too spicy and remove seeds)
For Lemon Salad Dressing-
- â…“ cups EVOO use best quality
- 1 lemon zest
- 1 lemon juice freshly squeezed
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- No canned chickpeas? No problem. Cook chickpeas easily at home. Start by soaking dried chickpeas overnight and cook them in a pressure cooker the next morning for 20 minutes (for 1 cup of chickpeas use ¼ to ½ cup water to cook).
- If using canned chickpeas simply drain chickpeas from the liquid and rinse it once in a colander before using.
- In a large pot, heat EVOO. Sauté minced garlic and onions for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Once onions begin to sweat, add in pearl couscous.
- Pour water or stock (use vegetable stock for the vegetarian option), stir well.
- When water begins to boil, reduce heat to medium-low. Cover the pot with the lid and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Open the lid, and fluff it with a fork gently. Keep it aside to cool completely.
- While couscous cools, make salad dressing. Into a jar, add EVOO, lemon zest, lemon juice, mustard, salt, and pepper. Shake well.
- Into a large salad bowl, add cooked couscous. Add in the rest of the salad ingredients – halved cherry tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, red onions, roughly chopped baby spinach, cooked (or canned) chickpeas, chopped fresh herbs (cilantro or parsley and fresh mint), chopped green onions, chopped jalapenos (leave the seeds on if you like it hot).
- Pour salad dressing over it. Gently toss the salad.
- Rest for a while at room temperature, and serve immediately.
Video
Notes
- Perfectly cooked couscous– Ensure to cook it perfectly, every bead separated, light, and fluffy. For 1 cup of pearl couscous use 1 ½ cups liquid. Gummy, sticky, or overcooked couscous will ruin the salad.
- Cook pearl couscous in advance – Regular tiny couscous is prepared to be soaked in water before use, pearl couscous is required to be cooked on the stove. You’ll need to cook pearl couscous at least 1 hour before so it has ample time to cool completely.
- Fresh is best – use fresh, best-quality vegetables and herbs. I’d also recommend you chop the veggies just before you make the salad. It’ll have wonderful freshness and crunch intact.
- Best quality EVOO – Salad dressing is a flavor enhancer for any salad. Using the best quality EVOO will make the salad taste its best.
- Cook chickpeas– Though you can use canned chickpeas, cooking chickpeas from scratch is better in terms of texture and taste, especially in salads. Chickpeas cooked at home are perfect in texture, hold their shape, and taste richer and creamier.
- Serve it the same day – as soon as the salad is dressed in the dressing, leave it at room temperature for an hour and serve it the same day. Couscous will soak in all the flavors from the dressing. The salad tastes better after a few hours but on the same day. Also highly recommend serving the salad at room temperature.
Nutrition
Created by Jyothi Rajesh
Thank you for stopping by.
I’m Jyothi Rajesh (Jo for short) and i’m the founder of the food blog, Curry Trail where I share my culinary Adventures. I live in Bangalore, India. I’m a mom of two beautiful kids. My passion is creating and sharing delicious and easy recipes for the home cook. I have been blogging since 2007 and many of my recipes have appeared in both online and print publications over the years. Learn more about Jyothi Rajesh.
Comments & Reviews
Linda says
The quantity of chickpeas, either canned or dried, is missing from the ingredients list.
Jyothi Rajesh says
Oops, sorry about that. Corrected it now. Thanks for pointing it out.