Moroccan Lamb Couscous

Moroccan Lamb Couscous is a quick and easy dinner recipe. Packed with taste, textures and juicy lamb, the whole family will enjoy sharing this dish. Couscous with lamb requires minimal effort yet delivers a maximum combination of flavours in around 30 minutes!

Recipes like the Chicken and Chorizo Paella, Bacon Risotto and the Mushroom and Spinach Risotto are all about using grains as primary ingredients.

The Lamb Ribs, Crumbed Lamb Cutlets and Slow Cooker Lamb Stew are all about using lamb as a protein with a variety of cuts.

🤍 Recipe Highlights

I have summarised everything that you will come to know and love (LOVE ❤) about the recipe in the points below:

• Meal prep: this is an excellent recipe to meal prep as it freezes and reheats very well. You can whip up a batch of couscous and lamb on the weekend and know that your weeknights or work lunches are covered 😉👍.
• Suitable for many occasions: this is a large crowd pleasing dish. It is versatile and lends itself to being served across a wide variety of scenarios. You can serve it as a 'couscous salad' or use it to stuff pita breads or soft tortillas.
• Everyday ingredients: you will be able to get everything you need to make the couscous from your local grocery store. They are year round available ingredients that are easy to get your hands on.
• Family friendly: as much as we are using a spice mix in the recipe that spice mix is not 'too hot' or 'too spicy'. It is a dish that all ages from the young to not as young anymore can each enjoy.
• Weeknight cooking: this is a great recipe to turn to at the end of a busy day when you want to get dinner on the table yet don't have a lot of time or energy to achieve it. This moroccan couscous will get you sorted in around 30 minutes!

🥗 Ingredients

The photo below is to show you everything you need to make the recipe. Please refer to the printable recipe card for specific ingredient measurements as well as detailed instructions.

As you can see the recipe calls for:

• Olive oil: we use this to cook the lamb mince in as a starting point.
• Salt and pepper: we use salt and a little black pepper to season the lamb.
• Moroccan seasoning: you will be able to get this from the cooking aisle at the supermarket where the other herbs and spices are. It will be labelled as such or 'Moroccan Spice'.
• Onion: we want to peel and dice half of a brown onion. This helps to create the flavor base for the lamb.
• Carrot: we want to cut the top and end of 2 carrots, peel them and then finely dice them.
• Peas: we use frozen peas for the recipe (I find the tinned version too mushy!!). Since they are frozen they do need a little bit longer to cook than some of the other additions to the couscous. So we add them after cooking the lamb to give them time to thaw and soften.
• Lentils: this are handy to have in the pantry as you can throw them into a heap of different recipes. We need to drain and rinse them.
• Corn: tinned works well. (It never has the 'mushiness' of the peas that I mentioned above). Again we need to drain and rinse.
• Black beans: vibrant little beans that burst with a firm skin and soft filling. We want to drain and rinse these also.
• Lamb mince: (also known as ground lamb): this is one of the most economical cuts of lamb you can purchase. It is also freezer friendly.
• Couscous: the type seen in the photo above is wholemeal couscous. You can also use regular couscous which has a more pale yellow colour to it.

Tasty Tip: I like to provide you with a number of substitutions and variations giving you an array of options when making my recipes. If in doubt of any of the above ingredients, or wanting alternatives, read this section (further below) before jumping into the instructions on how to make the recipe which are coming next 😉👌.

🍳 Instructions

Here are the step by step instructions to make the recipe. We start by browning the ground lamb on the stove top.

• Add oil, lamb, onion, seasoning, salt and pepper to pan (Photo 1)
• Cook the lamb then add the peas (Photo 2)
• Add remaining ingredients (Photo 3)
• Cook till the carrots soften (Photo 4)

👩‍🍳 How to Make Moroccan Lamb Couscous

We want to start by cooking the lamb. To do so place a large frying pan or skillet on the stove top, turn the heat to high and add the olive oil. Then add the lamb mince, onion, Moroccan seasoning, salt and pepper.

Cook the lamb using a wooden spoon to break up any clumps of meat as you go. Once it is browned with no pink bits add the frozen peas and allow these to thaw and cook for 2-3 minutes.

Then add the carrots, corn, black beans and lentils to the pan.

Cook these for 3-4 minutes until they are combined and the carrot has softened.

Read and follow the instructions on the packet to cook the couscous.

• Cook the couscous (Photo 5)

Once the couscous is cooked you can grab a large (very!) bowl and gently pour in both the lamb mixture and the couscous and start to stir and combine them together.

When you are done, you are ready to serve the dish and get your garnish on!

🍽 Serving Suggestions

Pita bread, tortillas, some other type of bread than you can stuff things into, you name it and it will likely work for this one!

It is an all in one dish so you won't likely want or need further on the side...however, if you are seeking a bread pairing try the Turkish Garlic Bread, Turkish Garlic Bread or Garlic Pizza Bread.

For a light side salad try the Fresh Herb Salad.

If you are after a sauce, you can dollop plain Greek yogurt on top or go for a sauce like the Lemon Yogurt Sauce or Herbed Yogurt Sauce.

You can also have a look at all of my homemade sauces to find one that suits you.

Fresh lemon cut into wedges and parsley are great ways to garnish the dish as the squeeze of lemon perfectly compliments the combination of spices throughout the dish.

👍 How to Guide

How to Store

Store leftovers in a sealed, airtight container in the fridge. They can be kept for 2-3 days and are best reheated before being consumed.

How to Freeze

Allow the dish to fully cool. Then portion into an airtight container or you can use zip lock plastic bags with the air pushed out of them. Then seal and lay flat in the freezer for up to 3 months.

How to Reheat

The microwave is the quickest and easiest method to reheat leftovers.

Simply pop them in a bowl or container with cling wrap or lid and reheat on high for 2-3 minutes until warmed through.

😉 Substitutions and Variations

Here are my sub ins and outs that you might be thinking about as you read the post and I will tell you if I think they will work or why they won't:

• This is a large size recipe. It will easily feed 6 people. As such you may not want to add in too many other ingredients as the pan is already quite full!
• You can use other proteins if you wish to for example ground beef or chicken mince.
• You can use red kidney beans in place of the black beans.
• You can omit one of the beans, corn, lentils or carrot to reduce the overall size of the dish if feeding less people.
• When cooking the couscous you can use water or vegetable stock (broth).

💡 Tasty Tips

Here are my top tips and tricks that I want to share with you so that you master the recipe from the get go:

• Use a wooden spoon to break up any clumps of meat as you cook it.
• As the couscous comes to the end of the cooking period use a fork to fluff it up.
• You can add a knob or 2 of butter to the couscous as you fluff it with a fork for extra flavour.
• Be a little bit gentle when combining the mince and couscous. There is lots of 'little bits' to the recipe which can go everywhere 😭 if you are too heavy handed.

🤓 Frequently Asked Questions

How to make Moroccan couscous?

Place a large frying pan on the stove, turn the heat to high and add the lamb and Moroccan spice mix. Cook till browned and add the other ingredients along the way. Once cooked combine with fluffy couscous and serve with lemon and parsley.

What do Moroccans eat with couscous?

There is a wide variety of options that can be explored when combining Moroccan food and couscous. Try red kidney beans, corn, peas, chopped apricots, sultanas or zucchini.

How do you keep couscous Fluffy?

Once the couscous is almost cooked take a fork and a know of butter and fluff the couscous up. Doing so makes it fluffy and separates the grains from each other.

😍 More Easy Dinner Recipes

I aim to give you a variety of recipes that have different proteins, cook times and textures. That way you will never have to worry about what is for dinner again. Here is a list of some of those options:

• Chicken Noodle Soup
• Cumin Lamb Noodles
• Beef Back Ribs
• Mexican Beef Soup
• Panko Pork Chops
• Slow Cooker Pulled Lamb
• Curry Beef Mince
• Pulled Beef Brisket

It is time to get our Moroccan on my friend! You can also find all of my dinner recipes in the one spot.

Adrianne

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