Couscous

• By Gloria Mizzi

As a child growing up in Tripoli, I used to watch in awe as my paternal grandmother cooked lamb couscous. There was such a lot going on, so many different spices measured to varying amounts, heaped ingredients and a never-ending variety of pots and pans. The clutter in her kitchen never failed to intrigue me, and my love for cooking must have started then.

When married in Malta, I tried my hand at making lamb couscous and it was successful with my family and friends. It has now become a dish laden with nostalgia and part of my family lore, and I prepare it for New Year’s Day when we are in Malta or visiting my son who now lives in Switzerland.

Couscous ingredients vary from one North African country to another, with different varieties of vegetables used in differing proportions. Chicken, rabbit, fish or partridge are also used as the ‘meat’ element. The usual fish to use is sea bass or grouper. Fish couscous is most popular in Tunisia. There is another type of couscous in which all the meat and vegetable ingredients are replaced by raisins, dates, pistachio nuts, walnuts and almonds, mixed with fresh milk and sprinkled with sugar. Moroccan couscous is usually made with chicken, and the vegetable ingredients are cooked for a long time, until they are reduced to a sort of mash.

Traditionally, authentic couscous is made by starting from the grain, which must be of the right quality and consistency and rolled by hand. The semolina must also be cooked precisely. This is not a viable option for people who do not have the best part of the day to spare, and who have not been trained in this method. There are many brands of ready-prepared couscous that are simple to cook and of excellent quality. They include instant couscous, which is prepared by soaking in boiling water, and partly-cooked couscous that is ready after brief soaking and steaming. Both give very good results if the packet instructions are followed. Here, I use instant couscous.

• Couscous was discovered by non-Arab Europe when the French conquered Algeria during the reign of Charles X.
• The word couscous is derived from keskes, the pot used in North Africa to steam the grain. This is an earthenware double pot, one on top of the other. The topmost pot is pierced with holes at the bottom, like a sieve, and holds the grain, while the bottommost pot holds simmering stock and sits on the flame.
• In Arabic, couscous is not called that, but tdaam. It is the national dish of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. In Algeria it is served after the mishwi (grilled food – like the Maltese word mixwi) and in Morocco after the tajine (food cooked in a clay casserole – from which the Maltese word taġna is derived).
• In North Africa, couscous is eaten with the fingers.
• Mesfouf is couscous made with broad beans and raisins, and is served during Ramadan.

Gloria Mizzi gives cooking classes at Idea Casa in Msida. The next course will start at the end of September. For more information, please call Gloria on 21 334 287/21 338 756/7933 4287.