Israeli Couscous and Mixed Vegetable Salad
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 6 1x
Description
You can sub in peas, celery, olives, green onion, radish or even a different dressing in this colorful salad.
Ingredients
Salad
- 1 cup (240 ml) Israeli couscous
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) chickpeas
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) frozen shelled edamame
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) carrot, peeled and sliced into thin discs
- 1/3 small red bell pepper, sliced & halved
- 1/8 red onion, sliced into thin circles
- 4 oz (115 g) feta, cut into small cubes or crumbled
- 5 tbsp cilantro leaves, 4 tbsp chopped and 1 tbsp for garnish
Dressing
- 6 tbsp (90 ml) olive oil
- 3 tbsp (45 ml) sherry vinegar
- 1/2 tsp honey
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
- Set 8 cups of water to boil in a pot. In a separate saucepan with lid, pour couscous in. When the water is boiling in the pot, ladle out 1 and 1/4 cup of water from the pot and pour over the couscous in the saucepan (continue boiling water in pot).
- Bring couscous to a simmer at low setting on stove and cover for 10-12 minutes until cooked. Drain couscous and transfer to a bowl. Put in the fridge to cool off.
- While couscous is simmering add in the edamame to the rest of the boiling water in the pot and boil for 4 minutes. Drain and place in cold water to stop from cooking further. Drain when cool.
- While the couscous and the edamame are cooking, prep veggies: cut cherry tomatoes, peel and slice carrot, slice and cut red bell pepper and slice onion. Cube or crumble feta. Chop 4 tbsp of cilantro leaves and leave 1 tbsp for garnishing.
- Make dressing by whisking together sherry vinegar, honey, salt and pepper. Transfer this mixture to the salad dressing shaker, add olive oil and shake really well for 15 seconds.
- In a bowl, combine and gently mix Israeli couscous, chickpeas, edamame, veggies (reserve some onion for garnish), feta, chopped cilantro, dressing (may have some left that you can use another day), salt and pepper to taste. Plate with garnish of onions and cilantro leaves.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 15 mins
- Category: Salad
- Cuisine: Mediterranean
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 280
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Israeli couscous and how is it different from regular couscous?
Israeli couscous (also called pearl couscous) consists of round, toasted wheat pasta pearls that are much larger than regular fine-grain couscous. This recipe cooks 1 cup of it by simmering with 1¼ cups of water in a covered saucepan for 10–12 minutes — closer to how you’d cook rice than instant couscous.
Why does the edamame get boiled for only 4 minutes and then placed in cold water?
Boiling the frozen edamame for 4 minutes and immediately draining it into cold water stops the cooking and preserves its bright green color and slightly firm texture — both couscous and edamame go into the fridge to cool before being assembled into the salad.
Why does the dressing use sherry vinegar instead of a more common vinegar?
The dressing combines 3 tbsp sherry vinegar, 6 tbsp olive oil, and ½ tsp honey. The excerpt notes you can sub in different dressings entirely — sherry vinegar’s nutty, slightly sweet character complements the feta and the starchy Israeli couscous better than a sharper white wine or red wine vinegar would. 
