couscous

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Uncooked couscous

Couscous , cous cous or couscous ( Arabic كسكسي, DMG Kuskusī , Central Atlas Tamazight ⵙⴽⵙⵓ Seksu ) is a dish of North African cuisine . The base consists of moistened semolina made from durum wheat (durum wheat semolina), barley or millet (سميذ / samīḏ  / 'fine flour', French semoule , English semolina ). The semolina is not boiled for cooking, but rather steamed over boiling water or a boiling dish . The semolina similar in appearance, taste and application is in the kitchen of the Near East -based bulgur . In contrast to couscous, bulgur is not semolina, but wheat groats .

In 2020, couscous was added to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity .

preparation

Couscousière

The semolina (or semoule ) is the main ingredient or side dish of numerous types of couscous with different vegetables such as tomatoes , carrots , pumpkins , zucchini , cabbage , chickpeas and in many cases poultry , beef or lamb , but also fish . Vegetables and meat are usually cut particularly roughly. Instead of a sauce , the dish is served with a bouillonserved. Typical spices that are added to the overall dish are Ras el-Hanout and, for the spiciness, harissa , which is also served for individual seasoning.

Couscous with camel meat and vegetables, southern Morocco

The preparation is traditionally done in a couscousière . The vegetables and other ingredients are cooked in the pot, in the attachment the previously moistened semolina is cooked by the rising steam, which in this way remains soft and grainy without sticking, as would happen if it were prepared in water. During steaming and swelling, it is removed from the fire several times and loosened, then put back on and finally with a little olive oil or buttermixed up. The couscousière can be replaced by a sieve or something similar and a suitable pot. Traditionally, the semolina is served on a large plate, meat and vegetables are roughly added and the bouillon is placed in an extra bowl. In North Africa, couscous is usually eaten collectively and, like most other dishes in traditional cuisine, without the use of cutlery. Spoons are used for the broth. White bread is used to grip the pieces of meat and vegetables, which is handled skillfully so that the eaters do not get their fingers dirty.

Production and terminology

Making couscous by hand

During production, the semolina is first spread out, possibly with the addition of a little flour, and sprinkled with salt water so that the lumps are not too moist and drop-sized. Then the lumps are lightly rubbed between the palms of the hands, forming into spheres about 1-3 mm in size. Too small are repeatedly sifted out, moistened again and rubbed until the semolina is used up. In the meantime, dry semolina is added if the grains stick together. Finally it is dried and can then be stored for a long time. Sometimes couscous is colored orange with pumpkins - as in Tunisia - or with saffron yellow - as in Algeria .

Nowadays, semolina is mostly industrially produced as a pre-cooked and dried instant product that only needs to swell in hot water. To identify the intended use, couscous is often marked on the packaging , which results in a certain lack of definition, as couscous actually describes the dish and does not mean semolina. In North Africa in particular, semolina is still often made by housewives themselves.

distribution

In addition to North Africa, couscous is now spread by immigrants in parts of Europe, especially France . You can find couscous in many supermarkets in western countries. In Sicily , especially in the west around the city of Trapani , couscous has been a traditional dish since the Arab rule in the Middle Ages and is still offered in almost every restaurant today. In Israel , couscous became part of the national cuisine through Jewish immigrants from Arab countries since 1948 - also because couscous was suitable as an inexpensive rice substitute for Persian Jews, who were thus able to maintain their traditional rice-based cuisine.

literature

Web links

Wiktionary: Couscous  - explanations of meanings, word origins, synonyms, translations
Commons : Couscous  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e Charles Perry: Couscous . In: Alan Eaton Davidson , Tom Jaine (Eds.): The Oxford Companion to Food . 3. Edition. Oxford University Press , New York 2014, ISBN 978-0-19-104072-6 .
  2. ↑ 15 Traditions Declared Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity , UNESCO, December 16, 2020.