Real Couscous Recipe

This is the very traditional couscous recipe for making the actual grains themselves. A long winded way of creating an authentic iconic staple foodstuff of great cultural significance. I'm not suggesting you should abandon your packet of instant pre-cooked couscous, it is so convenient, but I think it's good to know more about the origins and history behind our favourite dish.

Real Traditional Couscous Recipe

PREPARATION of the couscous grain

In the arabic, moorish and berberic societies where couscous originally developed, the making of the couscous is an activity of the women, with much time consuming work involved. This is the process:

• Take a large, flat plate and place a handful of freshly ground hard durum wheat kernel pieces.
• Sprinkle on some salted water and some of the wheat flour.
• With the palms of the hands, gently massage the grains with rolling circular movements until granules of couscous begin to form. Continue until the granules are mostly of a sufficient size or slightly larger.
• Sift the grains with sieves of different diameter, starting with the smallest, to obtain piles of granules of similar sizes. Fine, medium and coarse.
• Finally, leave the couscous grains spread thinly in a large flat pan out in the sun to dry, then store or cook.