Risotto-Like Couscous

I first discovered pearl couscous when I was looking for Moroccan Couscous. Trust me, they are very different 😛 However, I discovered I love them both and they each have a place in my heart and kitchen! I love risotto, but not the time it takes. When I made my version with pearl couscous, I couldn't believe how close it was to the real deal! I might go out on a limb here and say, it was even better!

I am a pasta lover - there aren't too many pastas I'll turn down. Make sure to use pearl couscous in this dish, it takes a little more time than Moroccan couscous, so that it soaks up all the good flavors we will be cooking them in! Like many of my dishes, feel free to play around with herbs that YOU like! I mostly make this as written, but we've swapped out sage and thyme for basil and mint and YUM! Any really good herb will be a great add or substitution in this dish.

Most of the time, this is a side dish for us. Occasionally, I will just whip up a batch for lunch too, thanks to how fast it comes together! Another thing is, I like to make extra and have it for lunches throughout the week. The leftovers are AMAZING on a salad. Whelp, I guess that does it. I gotta run, I'm going to need some Risotto-Like Couscous this week...try it out and let me know what you think too!

Risotto-Like Couscous

This version of risotto is made with pearled couscous and is sooooo delicious. It's a bit faster than traditional risotto, it comes together in just under 30 mins. This makes a wonderful side dish or top it with some grilled chicken and have a delicious fast meal!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup pearl couscous
• 4 oz mushrooms, finely diced
• ¼ small onion, finely diced
• ¼ teaspoon fresh sage see notes
• ¼ teaspoon fresh thyme see notes
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1-2 garlic cloves, minced depending on the size of garlic, it's about 1 teaspoon diced garlic.
• ¼ cup white wine see notes
• 2 cups chicken broth veggie broth is great too!
• 2 tablespoon fresh parmesan shredded cheese

Instructions

 

• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Add the couscous, mushrooms, and onions. Stir and cook for 2-3 min to toast the couscous.
  1 tablespoon butter, 1 cup pearl couscous, 4 oz mushrooms, finely diced, ¼ small onion, finely diced
• Stir in all the seasonings, continue to stir and cook for another minute or two.
  ¼ teaspoon fresh sage, ¼ teaspoon fresh thyme, ¼ teaspoon salt, 1-2 garlic cloves, minced
• Add in the white wine and stir until completely absorbed, about a minute or so.
  ¼ cup white wine
• Turn heat to low-medium, add the broth, ¼ cup at time, stirring until absorbed. Keep doing it until pasta is tender, this takes about 10-15 minutes.
  2 cups chicken broth
• Stir in parmesan, top with fresh parsley, if desired.
  2 tablespoon fresh parmesan shredded cheese

Notes

NUGGETS OF KNOWLEDGE

Herbs - You can use dried seasonings or fresh herbs here. One type of herb I have recently discovered and I really like having on hand are freeze dried herbs - game changer for sure! You can get them here and here

White wine - any white wine will work great, including cooking wine. If you don't have or don't want to use wine, you can just omit it and continue on with the recipe

Keyword broth, couscous, grilled chicken, herbs, mushrooms, parm cheese, parmesan, parsley, pasta, pearl couscous, risotto, sage, side dish, thyme, white wine