Comments on: Dinner With My Family #27: Crock Pot Couscous

By: Kathryn

Kathryn — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 15:32:05 +0000

Having to eat gluten free, i couldn’t do the couscous. I would have to substitute quinoa or something else. But the recipe looks good and i’d like to try it, when i’m off my current diet. I have lost 20 pounds so far, so i’m excited. The hCG diet is a miracle.

By: Evita

Evita — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 16:12:50 +0000

This is a recipe for one person ? such tiny amounts of food! one cup of cooked beans cannot feed a whole family…..

By: Kyle

Kyle — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 06:55:34 +0000

Not a very appetizing picture.

By: Tammy

Tammy — Sun, 07 Aug 2011 17:30:14 +0000

I’m going to be making this tomorrow night, but despite the warning not to, I will be adding in more veggies plus some chicken sausage. I will throw in the couscous (raw) a half hour before serving time to avoid dirtying another dish.

By: Elle

Elle — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 19:51:21 +0000

What’s with all the snarky comments? I like the variation on a theme. Veggies and beans are dietary staples at my house, too.

By: BirdDog

BirdDog — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 16:54:37 +0000

I’d like to know how Trent’s weight loss efforts are going. If he only eats the amounts he shows in most of these dinner with my family posts, he should be down to about 110 pounds by now.

By: Kim

Kim — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 15:24:27 +0000

Beans again? Every recipe is starting to look the same to me.

By: Carole

Carole — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 13:09:04 +0000

I agree with deRuiter, I like a pressure cooker, and over the years have used it more than a slow cooker. However, they both have their place.

By: deRuiter

deRuiter — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 10:47:58 +0000

A pressure cooker would do the vegetables in a couple of minutes, most of the time with the heat of stove turned to “off” position, very economical. Pressure cookers are amazing when it comes to shortening cooking time, even for dried beans and you can do the presoak of the beans in pressure cooker too, with pressure cooker sitting on the counter. This recipe doesn’t need the crockpot. A fine, large pressure cooker can be bought with a little hunting, at a yard sale or flea market. They are coming out in droves from the World War II and 1950s families who are breaking up their homes due to death or moving to assisted living. You can pick up a pressure cooker, (get a large one and the smaller size too!) for $5. or under. Make sure you get the pressure jiggler and the metal plate inside which keeps the food / canning jars from touching the bottom of the pot. Some even come with the little paper cook book which was packed with the pressure cooker decades ago. You will love the speed with which you can cook food, you will save time and fuel with a pressure cooker. I use our pressure cooker for canning pint and half pint jars of low acid food, just process at specified time at specified heat and turn off heat, let steam go down by itself and you’re done.

By: kk

kk — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 10:20:28 +0000

Looks delicious. I make something similar in my Dutch oven. I would cook the couscous separate as well. Couscous only takes a few seconds to prepare when you add hot water to it. I’ve even made it with heated water from a water cooker. If you put it together in the crockpot you run the risk of the concoction getting too dry. Chickpeas/garbanzo beans are a source of protein by the way. And it looks like some soy based yogurt or sour cream was added, which also adds to the nutrients of the dish. Thanks for sharing.

By: Ann

Ann — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 05:22:45 +0000

I use my crock pot so much in the summertime. I cannot bear to turn on the stove for more than a few minutes, for fear of melting away. I’ll definitely try this.

I also want to express my appreciation for all the vegetarian recipes you include, and for busting the myth that eating healthy has to be expensive. Thank you!

By: kristine

kristine — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 01:41:35 +0000

This sounds FANTASTIC! I am going to use this recipe.

By: KathyF

KathyF — Sat, 06 Aug 2011 01:35:27 +0000

Brittany: The recipe already has some beans in it-15 oz of garbanzo beans (chickpeas)so there is the protein.

I have cooked couscous and the directions I use are to bring the water to a boil, stir in the couscous, cover and remove it from heat and let it sit for 5 minutes. I was surprised to see instructions say to boil it for 5 minutes. It seems like you would lose too much of the moisture needed, that way.

By: Gretchen

Gretchen — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 22:40:52 +0000

Well. Hold up very well.

By: Brittany

Brittany — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 22:38:21 +0000

Canned tomatoes are fine in a crockpot, but I’d never waste a delicious fresh tomato but cooking the hell out of it in a crockpot. I might chop it up and stir it in hot last minute though.

By: Gretchen

Gretchen — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 21:46:51 +0000

I think the point is to let all the flavors meld together, which is why I personally don’t like the crockpot.

I wouldn’t think the tomato would hold up very weel.

By: Katie

Katie — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 21:30:09 +0000

For meat eaters, chicken thighs would be perfect in this (and I agree that, without that, this’d be easier to do on the stovetop). Brown them before putting them in the crockpot, and slightly increase the amount of seasoning to compensate.

By: Brittany

Brittany — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 21:21:06 +0000

I don’t understand why you don’t just put the couscous in the crockpot too. If the goal is to reduce time spent cooking over the stove and/or heat generated, cooking the couscous separately nullifies both of those. As valletcat1 pointed out, it would take just as much time to prep the veggies on the stovetop as it would to cook the couscous, so there’s no advantage of doing one stovetop and one crockpot. I’d also probably throw in some protein, like some lightly cooked soybeans or white beans, for nutrition and satiety.

I’ve also gotten very creative with my crockpot as well. In Texas in the summertime, anything that keeps me from having to turn on the stove (much less the oven) is a major plus. I’ve been using it a lot for beans and whole grains for meal salads.

By: tana

tana — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 20:29:19 +0000

recipe looks tasty but couldn’t u take the time to make it look more appetizing? the photos make it look kinda nasty

By: tana

tana — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 20:28:27 +0000

recipe looks tasty but couldn’t u take the time to make it look more appetizing? the photos make it look kinda grody.