This is a great salad for a buffet, with interesting textures and southwest flavors combined in one delicious salad. Leftovers store well refrigerated for several days.
This is a great, healthy and delicious salad. But use care to RINSE your black beans well, or else you may end up with GRAY couscous, which is not all that appetizing-looking... Thanks for a really nice recipe.
Read MoreThis was a good healthy salad, but the recipe as written needs more flavor. I doubled the cumin, lime juice, and added some balsamic vinegar. It was better, but still could've used a little more oomph. I also threw in some goat cheese.
Read MoreThis is a great, healthy and delicious salad. But use care to RINSE your black beans well, or else you may end up with GRAY couscous, which is not all that appetizing-looking... Thanks for a really nice recipe.
Yum, yum. I have made this several times so far and everyone always compliments it. It is easy, healthy and keeps well in the fridge. Best of all: you can make soooo many substitutions. Basically put in any legume you like. I like using one can of Lima beans and another can of black beans the most. And for the coriander/cilantro I have so far substitued dried dill (I daresay better than the original...but i love dill in all things) and fresh parsely (but then it becomes very much like tabouleh).However, the dressing is NOT enough and I always at least double everything in the dressing mixture except for the olive oil.
This is great! I've been looking for the perfect couscous recipe and now I've found it. The dressing alone is a keeper--I plan on using it for everyday salad as well. I didn't add black beans, but instead went with some diced English cucumber, kalamata olives, bits of crumbled feta, marinated red peppers and Italian flat-leaf parsley. I thought three green onions were more than enough. Next time I think I'll add some grilled chicken strips and call it a meal. This is a great recipe!
This is such an amazing recipe. I did double the dressing and I doubled the cumin in the dressing along with adding a dash of balsamic vinegar to cut a small oil taste. I stirred all of the dry ingredients together, made the dressing in a separate bowl and added it at the end to make sure it was okay to use all of it. It was! This is a great recipe, so colorful and wonderfully tasty. My husband has to increase his fiber so I have been looking at different things to add to our diet that are healthy and high in fiber. He liked this so much he took it to work for breakfast instead of his standard bagel. I will keep this in the fridge on a regular basis. I can hardly wait to grill chicken breast marinated in Italian dressing to have on the side. A complete meal and easy, easy. Thanks so much for my new favorite recipe!
Fabulous salad. Can't have enough of it. I used Taboulleh and chopped green pepper and it was fantastic.
Great recipe! I made this for a Labor Day cookout and everybody loved it. I took other's suggestions and used 1-1/2 cans of beans, 4 T. of oil and doubled the lime, vinegar and cumin for the dressing. I think this recipe would be fine using either 1 or 2 cans of beans.
VERY GOOD!!! I added cucumber, tomato, white onion and instead of couscous i used bulgar(IT WAS GREAT) I love this salad and i will make it ALOT!!!
This was a good healthy salad, but the recipe as written needs more flavor. I doubled the cumin, lime juice, and added some balsamic vinegar. It was better, but still could've used a little more oomph. I also threw in some goat cheese.
I made this with vegetable stock instead of chicken stock and it was delicious. Might I suggest trying that substitution if you are bringing it to a potluck or other gathering; vegetarians often assume that a bean/veggie dish will be one of the few things there they can eat, and are discouraged to learn that even beans & couscous has meat (stock) in it. Otherwise, great recipe though.
Very TASTY and very QUICK recipe! Start to finish in about 20 minutes. I used 1 cup chicken stock and 1/4 cup water because I have the 1-cup stock boxes and I hate having an opened box left over. I agree with other reviewers that one 15oz. can of black beans is enough as is just 4 green onions. I used bottled roasted red peppers (to lazy to run out to store for fresh) and it turned out great. Looks good too!
YUM- this was very good. I added a little extra lime as other reviewers suggested. One note about cooking couscous... this was my first time cooking plain couscous (I've only cooked the flavored kind out of a box). With following the instructions exactly, my first batch of couscous came out too mushy. You can't have mushy couscous with this recipe... it has to have good separation. My second batch was perfect. I took 3 minutes off the cooking time and immediately removed it from the heat and the pan and stirred it up in a large bowl until it cooled a bit. If you leave it in the hot pan, even after taking it off the heat, it will continue to cook and get mushy underneath. Also, another reviewer's batch came out muddy. To prevent this, I rinsed the beans and corn thoroughly and placed them in a strainer in a sink for a couple of hours to dry out.
This was the first time I've ever eaten or cooked couscous. It was Delicious with a capital "D." To the recipe, I added chopped Roma tomatoes and feta cheese. Doubled up on that delightful dressing as others had advised. This recipe is a Golden Spoon award winning one which will now be a regular in my meal planning.
I have made this salad for camping, a family reunion and a friend's barbecue, it's awesome! Everyone thinks it's wonderful-and it's sooooo... easy!
After reading others' reviews, the first time I made this I automatically doubled the dressing ingredients (oil/lime juice/vinegar/cumin), but stayed true to the balance of the recipe. IT WAS DROP DEAD DELICIOUS. The next time I did the same, but also added two cans of sliced black olives and increased the amount of green onions. I think this is one of those "forgiving" recipes that can be easily altered to suit personal preferences. VERY GOOD -- thanks for sharing the recipe.
Perfect! Everyone at work asked for the recipe and they always mention it when we discuss FOOD.
Definitely use more than one cup couscous. One is not nearly enough; it turns out like bean and corn salad with a bit of couscous. I used quinoa instead and it was super. My husband and I felt the lime taste was a little much, but overall, it was a good, healthy dinner.
Excellent salad. I am always looking for new dishes to serve. I pre-made this salad to take on a camping trip this past summer. It was a huge hit. I did feel it was better when freshly made, but I think it was because it was still warm. When serving the next day I suggest taking out of cooler plenty early to bring to room temperature. I did only use one can of beans since I felt two cans would have overpowered the the couscous.
Amazing recipe! This was the first time I made couscous and I definitely tweaked it to my liking. Due to the expensive price of peppers, I used white button mushrooms. I also used just regular onions, garbanzo beans instead of black, and lemon juice instead of lime- It was all about what I had on hand + thriftiness (I'm a college student after all) I did not even have the red wine vinegar and it still all came together really well! I'm excited to eat these leftovers & will surely make again!
A great recipe to make for those trying their hand at couscous for the first time. Reviewers who made changes did so without veering too much away from the original recipe. I would call that a sure sign of something delicious. Quick, healthy and versatile, this is now amongst my very favourites. My only regret is that it took me so long to find and try it. Thanks Paula!
After reading others' reviews, the first time I made this I automatically doubled the dressing ingredients (oil/lime juice/vinegar/cumin), but stayed true to the balance of the recipe. IT WAS DROP DEAD DELICIOUS. The next time I did the same, but also added two cans of sliced black olives and increased the amount of green onions. I think this is one of those "forgiving" recipes that can be easily altered to suit personal preferences. VERY GOOD -- thanks for sharing the recipe.
Evidently there is no way you can mess this recipe up. I used garbanzo beans instead of black, canned corn instead of frozen, and added a can of Ro-Tel tomatoes, drained. Substituted balsamic vinegar for red wine and added garlic powder and chili powder to the dressing. The cilantro I had had gone west, so no cilantro. It was still delicious. Will be even better next time when I have black beans and cilantro.
This is so good! I made it with the Garlic Lime Chicken on this site...great meal. The only change I made was using one can of black beans...Even though I like black beans I think using two cans would take away from the rest of the recipe. This is quick and easy!! Great summer dish! Thanks for the recipe:-)
Delicious! I made this recipe to get rid of some of the left over couscous I had in my fridge. I made it almost the exact same as is written, but I added a few other things that I had lying around: 1/4 of a cucumber, diced really small 2 TBSP minced almonds some whole pine nuts 1 orange, peeled and chopped into small cubes The orange in particular added a very nice extra kick of citrus. One thing I will say is that couscous is VERY absorbant. Even when it's fully cooked, it will continue to absorb liquid. So if you're making this ahead of time, I'd recommend keeping the salad components separate from the dressing and mixing them when you serve it. Yoou may also consider adding a little extra vinegar. I found the recipe as is to be a bit too light, so I added an extra 1 tsp of vinegar. The great thing about this recipe is that it is SO versatile! I'd imagine that can use pretty much any citrus juice (lemon, lime, orange, etc) for a new taste, or even add some cayenne pepper, trade the couscous for rice or quinoa, etc.
This was rather bland at first so I made more vinaigrette. It was very good with the extra dressing. I also added chicken and it made a great luncheon salad.
Delicious and easy. I followed the recipe exactly (but I used corn off of the cobb). Very fresh tastiing and the perfect ratio of cous-cous to veggies/beans. Will definately make again.
Excellent salad. I agree that you can leave out some of the onion. I also doubled the "marinade" - love that extra flavor. This is good left over after refrigerating, too.
Great hit for those vegetarians in the crowd! (cooking cous cous with water or fruit juice instead of chicken broth.) I am not a vegetarian but I enjoyed this recipe greatly!
I made this recipe and used black beans with jalapenos, it's what I had on hand and it gave the recipe a little zing. Made it again with just plain black beans and it wasn't as good.
I made this for my mom who was going to a potluck and everyone loved it. I doubled the recipe and she only came home with a bit for a snack!! I have made it twice now and it is wonderful, I love it for a great lunch or a light dinner since I always have some leftovers. Great with some grilled chicken for a great filling dinner! I only made a couple of changes: I didn't add the cilantro since I hate the stuff, so added fresh parsley instead, and I only used one can of beans since I thought that 2 would be way too much. As well I used whole wheat couscous once and regular the other time and you can't tell the difference so I will stick with whole wheat couscous in the future.
I've found my new favorite summer salad. Yum!!! Tasted amazing warm but didn't disappoint after sitting in the fridge for 2 hours. Did as others suggested and doubled the lime juice, vinegar (used white wine vinegar) and cumin. Also added 1/2 tsp ground coriander, 1/4 tsp dried crushed oregano leaves, 1/2 seeded and chopped jalapeno pepper and 1/8 cup minced red onion (didn't have any green onion). Used one can of black beans (rinsed and drained) and the corn kernels from 3 corn cobs (a little over 1 cup).
A very healthy and delicious side dish! I only used 1 can of black beans and an entire can of corn. I didn't have any red wine vinegar, but I did have apple cider vinegar, so I used that instead. Turned out delicious!
awesome and yummy! changed the lime for lemon, the red wine vinegar for balsamic and it was excellent! Thanx for the recipe.
My family and I really enjoyed this salad. I cant wait to bring this to a barbecue. It's so colorful, light, and delicious. I only used 1 can of black beans and doubled the dressing. I also used the larger tri-color Israeli couscous. I like the texture with the corn and beans.
I tried this recipe as my first time with couscous and it was fantastic. My husband and I have never had couscous and we weren't sure what to do with it. I had to interchange some of the ingredients due to not having a full pantry. I used balsamic vinegar instead of red wine vinegar. I also used 2 cans of black eyed peas as we didn't have black beans. We don't care for cilranto so I used regular fresh parsley. I also added ¼ c. fresh basil. I used a sweet onion instead of green onions and it tasted sooo good. Thank you for sharing.
This recipe is delicious, and can be served warm or cold. Definitely better after it sits for a day. I made it once with cous cous and served it warm with dinner - then had it the next day cold with lunch! Made it again with a parmesan risotto instead of cous cous (someone had celiac and needed gluten free). Made it the night before and served cold at a picnic - huge hit with everyone!
This salad was great! I added chopped olives and some chopped red onion. I will make this again. Fabulous!!!!
Great idea! I changed it up to suit what I had as I'm trying to use up everything in the fridge/pantry right now for a big cleaning. For add-ins I used 2 whole tomato, 8 tri color mini bell peppers, & chopped almonds to add crunch. I was going to use dark kidney beans but I was in a rush and forgot them! For the dressing I used mostly lime but a little squeezed lemon too and I skipped the cumin because my kids don't like it. I just sprinkled a few dashes of dried dill, parsley, garlic salt, and a grind of pepper. Awesome recipe to inspire a personalized meal!
This salad is fantastic! I agree that one can of beans and 4 onions may be enough.
Was quite good. The grocery didn't have fresh cilantro so I used dried, I am sure fresh would have made it better. I also only used 1 can of beans and omitted the chicken broth (just used water...I was bringing it to a vegan potluck). I will definitely make this again. Maybe add diced tomatoes next time.
I loved this recipe! It was full of flavor and also a very pretty salad. I only used one can of black beans, two seemed a little much.
This was okay but I prefer other couscous salads. I think it would've been better with more vinaigrette.
I made this as a side for a Moroccan chicken that I made a few nights ago for dinner and it turned out great! It was the perfect, filling, beautiful side dish to accompany the chicken. I pretty followed the recipe exactly other than exchanging minced white onion for the green onion, using dried cilantro, and rinsed, canned corn. It was really good and probably one of the best couscous recipes that I've made. Thanks for a great recipe!
This is a wonderful healthy salad. I had herbed chicken couscous so used that instead of regular couscous and chicken broth.
Yum-O!! Doubled the recipe and took it to a picnic this past weekend...it was literally gone in 5 minutes! Wonderful, easy, summery salad. Will definately be making this again.
Loved it!! This is the perfect salad to have on hand when you want something fast, and healthy. I took the advise of others, and doubled the dressing (not oil) and I'm glad I did. Next time I make it I will use whole wheat couscous because it has twice as much fiber.
I can't believe I never got around to rating this! We LOVE this salad. It's refreshing, easy, keeps well, and healthy. What more can you want? Be sure to drain and RINSE the black beans to keep the couscous from turning grayish. Terrific stuff.
Out of this world delicious. I doubled the amount of couscous (also used pearl couscous, as that's what I had), dressing, and corn.... will be a delicious addition to my 4th of July meal! So much healthier than potato salad! Thank you, Paula!
This is a great salad dish served either hot or cold. Very festive looking. Tastes best when fresh cilantro is used.
Great side! We will definetly be making this again, next time I may add some lime zest for a bit more flavor. Thanks for the recipe:)
This a fantastic starting point recipe - I recently substituted Quinoa for couscous, and it was fantastic!! I always use the much healthier quinoa now. Like others, I AT LEAST double the dressing - and liberally use more vinegar and lime to boot. I like it with a little zip. I add whatever veggies I have on hand - all color peppers and cucumbers are GREAT in this dish. If no scallions on hand, diced red onion is a tasty alternative. Great dish for any cookout or potluck!
This is a five-star quick main/side dish with the following (common amongst reviewers) changes... 1 additional tbsp. lime juice 1 additional tsp. red wine vinegar 1 can black beans (instead of 2) we added 2 chopped chicken breats at the end. great recipe...thanks!
So refreshing! Great as a main course or a side dish. Reminds me of summer now matter when I eat it.
I brought this to a cookout yesterday and everyone loved it. It is so easy to make, yet is so flavorful! My only changes (on suggestion of another reviewer) were to double the lime juice, vinegar & cumin; swap out the green onions for 1/8c red onion; add 1/2t ground coriander & 1/4t dried oregano. I used frozen shoepeg corn. This recipe was a winner as well as the Watermelon Salsa (from this site) that I also brought along.
Excellent...... I love a nice cold and refreshing salad during the hot summer. This hit the spot. I did double the dressing mixture. I will for sure repeat this. Yummy.
we really liked this.. it was very fresh tasting.. doubled the cumin, lemon (instead of lime) juice, and red wine vinegar as other reviewers suggested.. ty for the recipe
Delicious! Served it eith Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken. Even my hubby who doesn't like couscous enjoyed this :)
Add 1 cup of raisins, quadruple the salad dressing, use fresh lemon juice instead of lime juice, add 4-5 paprika seasoned grilled chicken breasts. Five stars with these additions. Makes a lot of salad. Yum!
Great blend of ingredients but you have to triple or quadruple the olive oil/lime/vinegar portion of the dressing. The beans ( I cook my own ) and the couscous soak up the dressing quickly. Salad flavors are best several hours later or overnight. I didn't have green onions & used red instead but I would not recommend that - next time I'll make sure I have green onions
This is one of my go-to recipes for a sure-fire hit. I first made it for a Greek-themed meal with grilled lamb kabobs and tzatziki and Greek Salad....outstanding. I have also served this with grilled salmon and grilled chicken....the list goes on. I have found I like the addition of rice vinegar the best over the other kinds suggested. I also add quite a bit of reduced-fat feta cheese....it finishes it, to me. I have found that it tastes best when made early in the day and allowed to chill several hours before serving.
I made this last night to compliment the Spicy Garlic Lime chicken from this site, as another reviewer suggested. All I can say is !! Every bite was mmm-mmm good. I left out the cilantro and added toasted pine nuts, sliced kalamata olives, and crumbled feta. I didn't like the olive oil-y flavor of the dressing so I kept adding a little more vinegar (balsamic and red wine) until it went away. Then I put in a teaspoon or so of dijon mustard to fill it out. Perfection! I will be making this again (and again). Yum!
Excellent! Only had one can of black beans and forgot to add salt and pepper, and it still turned out delicious.
I made this same recipe with quinoa and it was still amazing. Swapping red beans for black was also good
Good flavor! But I agree with other reviewers that the dressing proportion is way off. I doubled the ingredients and still found the couscous and beans/veggies to be a little dry. May try triple the ingredients next time. But the taste is definitely there, so I will make it again.
I LOVED this recipe. I will say, that (based upon other reviews) I doubled the dressing and I still wanted a bit more. Mmmm, but it was wonderful. We ate it as a side dish for days and my kids (2, 13 and 14) all ate it. This is certainly one of my new favs and I can't wait to take it to a pot-luck or dinner at my parents. Thanks for sharing!!
I've never had cous-cous, but I love black beans & this sounded like a light, terrific salad. I forgot the red bell pepper so I threw in some fresh chopped tomato and cucumber. There's so many things you could do with this recipe! Very nice and very light. I served this with Chicken with Lime Sauce (from this site) tonight to my husband who is a very picky eater and he liked all of it!
This recipe is delicious. I always add the entire can of corn, and the entire "bushel" of cilantro - just so I don't waste. I also play with the spices, adding garlic powder, chili powder, pepper, and lots of lime. This is great alone as a salad or we really enjoy it wrapped in a spinach tortilla and add chicken, and avocado. Great for packed lunches.
I made this for a potluck this weekend and it got rave reviews. I had many requests for the recipe.
I used kidney beans instead, worked fantastic, Was a great success for my birthday party. Even the males who only eat meat and potatoe and gravy liked it!
This was pretty good. It seemed to make a lot. I would definitely recommend using regular chicken broth not low sodium. Also, rinse the black beans.
I took this to a barbeque and everyone loved it. Will definitely be making this one again.
I have been looking for a couscous salad recipe, and my hunt is over! This is very tasty, and so easy to make. Thanks!
Mmmm this was an awesome side at my bbq yesterday! My only stray from the recipe was canned corn instead of frozen kernels...I cooked the corn and beans for 5 minutes on the stove top just to warm them up. My piggie guests commented warily before trying it that it "looked healthy"...it was, but it was also delicious and it was devoured =) Thanks!
I doubled the sauce recipe and used one can of beans. It was delicious and made for great leftovers for lunch. This is a great cool salad for summer.
This was just the right recipe to use up some of my fresh summer vegetables! I added a little bit of green garlic (not as strong as regular garlic) to spice it up a little and substitutied balsamic vinegar for the red wine vinegar. In addition I added chicken to make it a more filling like a main dish. I will definitely be making this again! Yum!
This turned out to be a very fresh, delicious side dish, but I had some struggles with it. I discovered that not all the couscous was cooked thoroughly after the 5 minutes called for. I also found it to have excessive liquid so when i added it to the veggie mix. it was somewhat "soupy". Finally, I only added 1 can black beans to the mix, as 2 was obviously too much. I will make this dish again! But I will be sure to cook couscous more, drain the couscous, keep the beans low and add other items read for in other reviews.
This couscous salad is absolutely delicious. I am a vegetarian so I substituted the chicken broth for vegetable stock and also used whole wheat couscous instead. I also cut out the olive oil all together and just increased the red wine vinegar and lemon juice instead. Love the cumin flavor - fantastic!
I brought this to work for an office pot luck. I doubled the recipe, added cucumber, and I doubled up on the dressing as one suggested. The combination of red wine vingegar, lime juice, cumin and cilatro made a nice southwestern tatse. We have many people watching their weight, so this dish was a hit! Thanks!
I have made this many times and love it! Used dry beans rather than canned to reduce salt, but otherwise the recipe was unchanged.
This has been a favorite of mine for a couple of years. Definitely, double the dressing, and I always add at least one (diced) fresh jalapeno for a little more zip, plus generous amounts of cilantro. Good, too, with a bit of Sriracha!
This was really good, but you really need to double the lime juice for a little more punch. I kept sampling and adding more juice until it was right. Very nice recipe. Pretty salad to look at, and great flavor.
What a wonderful salad. I made it for company last night, and everyone raved. I only used 3 green onions, which I thought was plenty, and I did use both cans of black beans. I thought some diced cucumber would go nicely in it next time. It was refreshingly light, and would make a great addition to any meal on a warm summer night.
This was a little bland. Something that my husband did was add some extra garlic salt and a sprinkle of Parmesan Cheese which ended up adding some more flavor to it. I also am pretty liberal with the "dressing" portion of the dish too. This helps to add flavor if you can taste the lime (or lemon in my case) and vinegar.
This salad goes well with everything and makes a great lunch on its own. I thought the dressing was delicious, I added red peppers to my salad, it's been added to my regular salad rotation at our house, it travels well and I love to bring it on picnics and potlucks, thanks for the recipe Paula.
I thought the salad turned out well, but a little dry. Next time I will double the dressing as the couscous seemed to soak it all up.
Love this recipe and I didn't change a thing! It's really interesting looking and the couscous makes it very substantial. Made it for a family potluck and everyone loved it.
Extremely tasty! Reminded me of Chipotle filling. Adding a little bit more cumin, lime juice, and vinegar definitely brings out the flavors. Also, minimal jalapeno is necessary, unless you want it to be extra spicy. Maybe a half of a pepper. Note to first-time Couscous makers: once all the chicken broth is absorbed by the grains, stir it all up and remove from heat. It can burn if you just let it sit on the stove for too long. Excellent recipe! Will definitely make again.
Very flavorful! An easy recipe to make in advance, stores well for several days. I used balsamic vinegar instead of wine vinegar and just one can of beans and it turned out well. Have made several times now with rave reviews!
I doubled the dressing, but would triple it next time. Unless you are very fond of the taste of cumin I would only use 1/4 teaspoon. My couscous loving husband was very happy with this on father's day.
