Mediterranean Pearl Couscous Salad

This salad features loads of flavours and is so quick to make you won’t believe it. In the time it takes to cook the couscous, you’ll have all the other ingredients prepped and your Mediterranean Pearl Couscous Salad is ready to serve.

The secret to all the amazing flavour in this salad is using jarred preserved ingredients. Sundried tomatoes, artichokes, roasted red peppers, capers and pickled hot peppers all pack a punch. So much so that you don’t even have to add much dressing to the couscous. In fact, you don’t even have to worry about draining them well because the oil or brine from the jar just adds to the salad.

There’s no dairy in this recipe so you can serve Mediterranean Pearl Couscous Salad as a main meal if you’re looking for a vegetarian or vegan dish. It’s so versatile, you can serve it warm as soon as you’ve added the cooked pearl couscous. Or, pop it in the fridge and it will only get better. In fact, I recommend making it a day in advance or at the very least, several hours before serving.

If you haven’t tried pearl couscous, or any couscous for that matter, here’s a little info for you. Pearl couscous is also referred to as Israeli Couscous. And it’s not, actually, couscous. It’s tiny balls of pasta made with white flour. Regular couscous is smaller and made of semolina. Which is a courser yellower type of flour that pasta is made from. Confused? Me too. But honestly, you will love this salad made with either type of couscous. Neither take long to cook and since you don’t have to drain the cooking water, you don’t risk accidentally dumping it down the drain.

The first time I had this salad it was made with orzo. Which is a small pasta that looks like rice. But isn’t rice. The confusion continues. I actually intended to make this recipe with orzo pasta, the way I had it originally. My step daughter invited some guests who were vegan to our place and brought this salad. I loved it! So of course I sat down with a spoon, a pen and paper and wrote down all the flavours I detected, then picked through and wrote down every component I could see. I always have every size and shape of pasta and grain on hand but I didn’t have any orzo. But I did have white pearl couscous and it pairs perfectly with the other ingredients.

The dressing is a simple blend of oil, acid, salt, pepper and yes, a little sugar. I’ll admit, my version is a bit less sweet than the original salad but other than that I think it’s spot on. You might think there’s a little too much dressing but it soaks into the couscous as it chills and just keeps getting better and better. It’s a filling salad so a little goes a long way and it will keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Mediterranean Pearl Couscous Salad goes great with Chicken Souvlaki Skewers. Or continue the briny flavours by making some Mediterranean Roasted Cod and Olive and Onion Bread.

If you make this amazing flavourful salad, consider leaving a comment or rating below. Here’s the recipe:

Mediterranean Pearl Couscous Salad

An easy white pearl couscous salad loaded with intense flavours that can be served warm or room temperature but is best served cold.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 8 minutes mins

Total Time 23 minutes mins

Course Lunch, Main Course, Pasta, Salad, Vegetarian

Cuisine Mediterranean

Servings 8

Calories 206 kcal

Ingredients

  

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• 1 ½ cups uncooked white pearl couscous also called Israeli couscous
• 2 ¼ cups water
• 6 oz jarred marinated artichokes, chopped 170 ml
• ¼ cup finely diced red onion
• ¼ cup oil packed sundried tomatoes, chopped
• ¼ cup finely diced sweet pepper orange, yellow or red for best flavour
• ¼ cup roasted red peppers, chopped
• ¼ cup minced parsley
• 2 Tbsp finely diced pickled hot peppers optional but adds just a hint of heat
• 2 Tbsp capers
• 2 tsp dried oregano

Couscous Salad Dressing

• 3 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
• 1 Tbsp lemon juice
• ½ tsp sugar
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper

Instructions

 

• Bring water to a boil in large pot. Add pearl couscous, cover and simmer for 8-10 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Meanwhile prepare remaining salad ingredients and add to large bowl.
• Combine dressing ingredients.
• If serving the salad warm, add cooked couscous to salad ingredients, pour over dressing and serve immediately.
• If serving cold, allow couscous to cool slightly while preparing other ingredients before adding to the bowl. Toss well with dressing, chill all day or over night.

Notes

If using regular couscous or orzo, prepare according to package directions to have approximately 3 cups of cooked.

This recipe will make 8 servings as a side dish or 4 generous vegan meal sized servings.

Nutrition

Calories: 206kcalCarbohydrates: 29.8gProtein: 5.8gFat: 7.9gSaturated Fat: 0.9gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.6gMonounsaturated Fat: 3.7gSodium: 343.4mgPotassium: 137.4mgFiber: 2.3gSugar: 3.2g

Keyword couscous salad, how to make couscous, israeli couscous, marinated couscous salad, mediterranean pearl couscous salad, pearl couscous, vegan couscous salad, vegetarian main dish

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