Couscous with Chickpeas and Carrots

This is good, but I think it would be pretty plain if I hadn't added a few things. I had 1/2 an 1 oz envelope of dry onion soup mix to use up, so I added that along with dried parsley and some chili powder. I chopped the carrots instead of grating them, vegetable broth, and I used whole wheat cous cous bought in bulk at the natural food store (way cheaper). I did a mix of green onions and regular onion, since I had just a little of both around. I loved how easy it was to make this dish-- probably 15 minutes start to finish.

I haven't made this recipe, I was just poking around for recipes including chickpeas. However, I read some of the comments. If the dish as written is bland, you can definitely add some spices to it that will make it more "Moroccan," (which is some of the best food on earth!!) Also, I checked out the Mixed Grill recipe, and it contains pork, which is definitely NOT Moroccan. Maybe some lamb shanks or shoulder cut into pieces. Chicken is also very good with carrots. For the spices, first, I wouldn't make parsley optional, I would make it required, and also some cilantro. Also, try adding some ginger, paprika, and cumin - all to your taste. You can also go a different route completely with it, and add some cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, a little saffron, and a little powdered sugar, and if you're adventurous, some dried apricots (remove garlic if you go this route). For cooking it, cook the couscous separately, but in the chicken broth. Let the onions cook until soft, then and add the carrots and spices, some water (and meat if you want it), and let this cook for a while on a low heat, covered, until the onions become saucy, they should be almost disintegrated when it's done and the carrots should be soft. Turn the meat once in a while, and stir the sauce. If it gets dry, you can add a little water to it while it cooks, and also at the end, if too saucy, remove the lid and let some of the water evaporate. Serve over couscous, or eat with pita bread. Again, I haven't mad

changed the beef stock to vegetable stock to make it vegetarian. pretty good

This recipe was really easy to make. I found the broth to be fairly salty so maybe use 25% water to 75% broth. I added corn kernals for a touch of sweetness.

I am not sure if I made this wrong, but boy was it dry!

2nd time fixing it, and my whole family loves it. This will be part of my family recipe collection from now on. Thanks!

Delicious and truly easy. I used the first serving for a side dish with grilled tuna, and I then ate the rest of it as a main dish for a couple of days of lunches.

This is a nice tasty low-GI recipe! I added some onion soup mix as suggested by another and found the flavor very nice---not too dry, either. My husband ate it with some leftover bbq pork as well and enjoyed it.

I thought this was really good! I finely chopped 2 sticks of carrots and 2 sticks of celery in my food processer, and like a reviewer before me, added 1/2 packet of onion soup mix along with some chili powder & dried parsley (and the garlic). Will definitely make this again.

I am giving this four stars only because I added some spices not mentioned in the original recipe. This was my first time making couscous and I followed the directions exactly. Except that I grew a little concerned over the absence of any spices, so I added some I had at hand along with the chickpeas: 1/2 tbs ground cumin and 1/4 heaped tbs of each ground turmeric and ground coriander, along with a healthy dash of cayenne pepper. This came out fabulous and made for a healthy vegetarian lunch all by itself (I used vegetable broth instead of chicken).

Good! Tasty and easy!

I served this with cedar plank grilled salmon and sauteed zuchinni with basil and parmesan. When the other dishes have strong flavors it's nice to have a side dish that doesn't over power, but is still tasty. 10 oz of couscous is a lot, so next time I would use a whole onion and a little more garlic. I used about 1/2 tsp salt. I think the fresh parsley is important for flavor and color, so don't skimp on it.

This is a very tasty dish! I really liked the delicate flavor from the chicken broth. The only change I made was to add fresh chives instead of parsley, because that was what I had around! Thanks for sharing; I will make this one again!

Awesome! I used 1 cup dried coucous because I didn't have a package. Also added about 1 to 2 tsp of onion soup mix at the end while it was sitting. I loved it! Really fast and easy!

I liked this recipe, but I thought it was a little too sweet. Next time, I'll add celery and zucchini to the carrots to downplay their sweet flavor.

This was not a huge hit in our house. It was dry and lacked flavor.

This recipe was delicious - and a snap to prepare! I didn't have any broth on hand, so I used boullion, and I used whole wheat couscous as well. I thought the flavors were great, and even my picky husband told me I could make it again! Score!

Easy, quick and simple, yet flavourful and filling. I used veggie broth and omitted the parsley, and doubled the garlic and onions out of personal preference. Will make again!

Pretty good. I used Picante chicken broth, which made it spicy! Yummy!

This was a really yummy side salad when served with grilled steak. I did not make any changes to the recipe, and found it very easy to make.

Very easy to do and taste great too! I spritz mine with EVOO after cooking to make it more interesting. Half of chicken boullion was enough to season. Thanks!

If you want to kick this recipe up two notches, toss in sliced raisins and dried apricots with the carrots/couscous/chick peas. I'll probably add dates next time. Thanks for sharing your recipe.

THIS IS SO AMAZING. I add canned carrots and raisins, and I use low fat/sodium broth. It's so easy and pretty much anything you toss in will taste good. It's the most flexible and delicious recipe ever.

After making it, I wasn't all that pleased, but I still like the general idea of the recipe. It was very quick and easy to make and it's easy to add other vegetables that you might have on hand. I actually made a couple of changes (used vegetable broth and added half a chopped green pepper and a diced medium tomato). The tomato added a significant amount of moisture, but it was still really dry in the end. Making this again, I would probably use less couscous and more vegetables. I agree with another reviewer that the parsley should probably not be optional and adding some other herbs and/or spices could give it a boost. I had a lot left over (because it wasn't so well-received) and I ate some the next day, reheated with some leftover tomato soup drizzled over the top. This added moisture and some flavor and was actually pretty good!

Truly the first inedible thing I've made from allrecipes.com

Good but needs more flavor. Makes alot.

Yes, add the Lipton Onion Soup mix... it will need it unless you're looking for something on the mild/bland side.

Sodium levels vary depending on the the broth used. Reading the other reviews I bumped up the garlic by adding some leftover toum (lebanese garlic sauce). Delish and filling with the chickpeas!

leslielou820

kind of bland, and mine turned out very dry.perhaps next time add more chicken stock?very pretty dish though.i love chickpeass so that was a nice addition

This couscous side dish was quick to make and went well with the grilled lamb chops I served it with, for diner tonight. I just found this little bit dry. If make it again I might try adding more chicken broth.

I loved this recipe....I added a tomato and extra garlic, didn't use any oil to skimp on the fat. It turned out delicious, although my husband didn't really love the chickpeas. :)

Great recipe!!

Family enjoyed. Would make again!

This recipe is rather plain as is. I used more onion, garlic & parsley and it was still not that flavourful. I also added some cinnamon and cumin towards the end - that assisted somewhat. It was however a good supporting dish to the chicken which had a lot of fresh basil and sun dried tomatoes in the marinade. It helped balance out the overall flavour. I would make it again but with more modifications suggested by other reviewers.

Not bad. The chickpeas were still pretty firm, and it didn't seem like the carrots warmed up very much. Instead of microwaving the broth, i boiled it in a small sauce pan, so I know that it was plenty hot. Other than that, it didn't seem to have much flavor. I may make this again and try to come up with a way to tweak it, but I'm on the neutral fence about it right now.

Not well recieved by my family. The chickpeas really turned us off, they had no flavour and were dry. We won't be making this again.

This recipe was okay. I added fresh zucchini and the onion soup mix, as per other reviews. The couscous turned out a little "blah", I thought.