Monday, March 9, 2009

Israeli Couscous with Asparagus and Fresh Mushrooms

Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian is so great for browsing. When I have a particular vegetable to use, I can always find several possible dishes in it that each have different cultural influences. Last week I was a lucky winner of the Foodie Blogroll bi-weekly giveaway, and I was offered a product from FromTheFarm.com. I chose the hen of the woods, or maitake, mushrooms which were over-nighted in a cooler. I did feel some carbon guilt about receiving that package from Florida, but considering that a lot of my vegetables get trucked in from California, I tried not to dwell on it for too long (and a trip to the farmers’ market the next day made me feel better).

I wanted to use the hen of the woods mushrooms in a vegetarian dish, and Jaffrey’s Israeli couscous sounded perfect. I make several variations of pasta with sauteed vegetables, but for this dish, I followed along with the instructions to try a different approach. Something I make pretty regularly for weeknight meals is broccoli with penne. For that, I blanch broccoli and then saute it with sliced garlic, a lot of extra virgin olive oil, and black pepper. When the penne is added to that, it receives some butter, and it’s served with a snowy cap of shredded parmigiano reggiano. Delicious, yes, but there’s lots of oil and butter. For this couscous dish, Jaffrey suggested sauteing garlic and shallot in some olive oil and then adding the mushrooms and then the chopped asparagus. This cooked briefly before a half cup of stock and a quarter cup of vermouth were added. The saute pan was covered, and it was left for a couple of minutes. Then, almost-fully-cooked couscous was added, it was stirred to combine, and then parmigiano reggiano and parsley were incorporated.

The result was a lighter dish in which the stock and vermouth were absorbed by the pasta pearls. The parts of this simple dish worked together exactly correctly. The vegetables were left crisp tender and fresh tasting, and the flavor of the maitakes was superb. The amount of vermouth used was enough to add another layer of flavor but not enough to leave it boozy. The vermouth and stock together was just the right amount of liquid for the couscous to absorb without making the dish like soup. I added a bit more garlic than what was listed, I usually do that, and combined with the shallot, it was fantastic. This would work nicely with orzo and other vegetable combinations too. Now I have one more delicious, and lighter, way of preparing pasta and vegetables.


15 comments:

  1. This looks so appetizing....I've never cooked Israeli couscous before, but this really makes me want to give it a go. Do you have any tips?

    (congrats on the nice prize!)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sue-- Israeli couscous is really simple. Just boil it like other kinds of pasta and start checking it at about five minutes for al dente. I boiled this for five or six minutes, and then it cooked for another couple of minutes with the vegetables and stock. It's big enough to have a nice, chewy texture unlike the grainier, other couscous.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I LOVE Israeli couscous - it's one of my favorites. This looks light and delicious. I have that cookbook as well and have a hard time with the way it is laid out. I don't find it very appealing but I love everything I have made from it. I will definitely have to give this one a go, especially since we get great mushrooms in Seattle.

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a healthy and interesting vegetarian dish! Luv it!

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a delicious combo with Israeli couscous and asparagus and mushrooms - sounds so fresh and light!

    ReplyDelete
  6. i have never had israeli couscous before, but it looks and sounds delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  7. I just love israeli couscous - the combination of couscous with asparagus and mushrooms sounds divine!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Such wonderful flavours! I love using asparagus and mushrooms in risottos. I've never tried Israeli couscous before, will look out for it!

    ReplyDelete
  9. This looks really great- I've never played w/ Israeli couscous before. Asparagus & mushrooms are wonderful together though!

    ReplyDelete
  10. That looks great. I love a simple pasta and veg dish like this. It is also a weekly go to meal for me. Nice job :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Mmm I love maitake mushrooms. Did you know they're a great source of vitamin D in winter?

    ReplyDelete
  12. This looks fabulous. I love israeli cous cous and never buy it! I will definitely pick some up soon. The mushrooms and deep green asparagus look so good in this dish.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Love the use of the fancy mushrooms. YUM

    ReplyDelete
  14. That looks great!, and must taste the same I am sure. I also am glad to have found your blog, Thanks for sharing!

    ReplyDelete
  15. 3 months later, and I finally found it - can't wait to cook it now! Thanks for the inspiration.

    ReplyDelete

Blogging tips