Dried fruit couscous

Sweet couscous, topped with dried fruit and seasoned with cinnamon, is a legacy of Morocco’s Jews. While sweet couscous recipes are occasionally found in the Jewish communities of southern Morocco, for those in northern Morocco — a region near the Straits of Gibraltar once under Spanish rule — it is an all but essential component of their daily cuisine.

INGREDIENTS

600g beef suitable for slow cooking, like shoulder or shank 2 tbsp olive oil 1 onion, finely chopped 3 garlic cloves, minced 150g prunes, pitted 150g dried dates 150g dried apricots 2 tsp salt 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper 1 tsp cinnamon 1½ litre beef stock 500g instant couscous, preferably Moroccan 40g coarsely chopped toasted almonds

METHOD

Cut beef into cubes of about 4cm square.

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and sauté the beef cubes on all sides.

Once they are evenly golden, transfer cubes to a bowl.

Add onion and garlic to the saucepan and sauté until lightly golden. Return beef to the pot.

Add dried fruit, salt, pepper, cinnamon, and stock, and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat and simmer for 3 hours on the lowest heat. If the broth is too thick, add half a cup of water.

Half an hour before the cooking time ends, place a perforated steamer over the pan.

Add the couscous to the steamer. Cover and steam the grains for the last 30 minutes.

Put the couscous in a bowl and mix well with a fork to break up any lumps.

Spread the couscous on a serving dish, pour the broth on top, garnish with the toasted almonds, and serve. Recipes from “Divine Food: Israeli and Palestinian Food Culture and Recipes” by David Haliva. Published by: gestalten