Recipe: Friday Couscous with Chickpea Stew

FRIDAY COUSCOUS WITH CHICKPEA STEW

"This is a fragrant heap of little grains served with an aromatic stew cooked in a tagine (the traditional round-bellied earthenware cooking pot), the Friday couscous is Morocco's equivalent of the Sunday roast."

9 ounces instant couscous
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil
9 ounces baby onions, peeled
1 medium eggplant, chopped
1 large carrot, scraped, chopped
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
1 teaspoon powdered saffron
1 short piece cinnamon stick
18 ounces tomatoes, skinned, chopped (canned is fine)
1 tablespoon sliced pitted green olives
2 tablespoons raisins
9 ounces cooked chickpeas (canned is fine)
For serving (optional):
1 tablespoon harissa (Moroccan chili paste)

Heat the oil in a well-tempered earthen-ware tagine or heavy, large pan. Add onions, eggplant and carrot and stir over heat until vegetables brown a little on all sides. Sprinkle with the spices, fry for another moment or two, then add tomatoes. Let it bubble up and add olives, raisins and chickpeas. Pour in enough water to submerge everything, let it bubble again, reduce heat, loosely cover and simmer for 20 to 30 minutes, until raisins are plump and the cooking juices are well flavored and reduced by half.

Meanwhile, set the instant couscous to soak in boiling water according to package instructions. (No need to feel bad about it -- instant couscous is as popular in Morocco as it is elsewhere.)

Serve everyone with a helping of couscous and hand the tagine around separately, along with a little bowl of hot sauce made by diluting the harissa paste with a ladleful of the cooking juices.

Serves 2 children and 2 adults
Source: Food Adventures by Frances Boswell