Couscous salad with chickpeas and olives
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This colorful and vegan Israeli couscous salad with chickpeas is packed with deliciousness, it’s ready in 15 minutes and makes an irresistible and nutritious meal prep lunch!
I love Israeli couscous, and if you haven’t tried it before, you ought to do it soon! It’s delicious, with a slightly chewy and slippery texture, similar to barley. Made from wheat flour and semolina, and often mistaken as a grain, Israeli couscous is a type of miniature pasta and it needs to be cooked on the stove.
Believe me, this vibrant couscous salad with chickpeas is a fuss-free recipe and it’s loaded with flavors: roasted peppers and sundried tomatoes, savoury olives and fresh parsley lemon vinaigrette. It features basic and inexpensive ingredients, mainly cupboard staples that always come in handy, it’s super easy to whip up and you can’t stop eating it.
This is meal prep at its finest, you will love it!
What ingredients you need
- Israeli couscous
- Vegetable broth or water
- Chickpeas
- Olives
- Roasted red peppers
- Sundried tomatoes
- Fresh parsley
- Dried oregano
- Garlic
- Lemon
- Extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper
How to make it
Cook the Israeli couscous according to package directions. My favourite way is toasting the couscous for a couple of minutes, then cooking it like risotto for about 8-10 minutes, or until al dente. Rinse it with cold water and drain well.
Open your can of chickpeas and jars of peppers, sundried tomatoes and olives (yes, all you have to do is opening a few jars, easy peasy!)
Make the lemon, garlic, oregano and parsley dressing.
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, drizzle with the dressing, then toss until combined.
Place the couscous salad with chickpeas and olives into the meal prep containers.
Get plenty of vitamin and nutrients adding raw vegetables, fruits, nuts and a lemon wedge on the side. Done.
WHAT TO LOVE
- It’s healthy and vegan
- Packed with protein
- It’s so yummy and satisfying
- Quick and easy to make
- It saves time and money
Add a lemon wedge into each meal prep container: you will enjoy some freshly squeezed lemon juice on top of the salad at the time of consumption.
Be generous with parsley, it’s more than a garnish, it’s an excellent source of vitamin K and vitamin C as well as a good source of vitamin A, folate and iron.
Olives matter, if you want nice and big flavors. And if for some reason they happen to be tasteless, you can marinate them overnight in olive oil mixed with smashed garlic and a good pinch of dried herbs like oregano, thyme and rosemary.
These quantities yield to 4-6 portions.
Make a big batch of this healthy and yummy couscous salad, it will keep for about 5 days in the fridge.
If you like couscous as much as I do, you have to check out these recipes, perfect for meal prep: mushroom couscous and summer couscous.
So yummy, easy, healthy and budget-friendly!
Couscous salad with chickpeas and olives
Ingredients
- 2 cups Israeli couscous
- 2 cans chickpeas, rinse and drained (or 3 cups of cooked chickpeas)
- 3/4 cup black or green olives, pitted
- 3/4 cup roasted peppers, chopped
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
- 3 cups vegetable broth or water
- 3 Tbsp fresh parsley leaves, chopped
- 2 lemons
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 4 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil or more to taste
- 1/4 tsp dried oregano
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the couscous: heat 1 Tablespoon of oil in a medium pot, pour in the couscous and stir to coat with oil. Toast it for a couple of minutes on low-medium heat, pour in the vegetable broth and salt (approx 1/2 tsp of salt if you use just water or a low sodium broth) and bring to a boil. Decrease the heat to a simmer and cook for about 8-10 minutes or until al dente, stirring occasionally. Drain off excess liquid and rinse with cold water.Alternatively, cook the couscous according to the package directions.
- In a large serving bowl, combine the couscous with chickpeas, red peppers, sundried tomatoes and olives.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, 1 lemon juice (keep the other lemon for the meal prep containers), finely chopped parsley, minced garlic and salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour the dressing over the couscous and chickpeas and stir well. Taste, adjust the seasoning to your taste and enjoy it.This couscous salad keeps for up to 5 days in the refrigerator, stored properly in airtight containers.
