This Israeli Couscous Salad is tossed with pistachio pesto for an easy, healthy vegetarian dish! This versatile recipe makes a great lunch, light supper, or side dish.
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Israeli couscous salad is taking pasta salad to the next (fancier) level.
When I say fancy, I don't mean difficult! I mean easy, yet elegant. Fancy little pasta pearls, veggies, and the most delicious pesto.
I love this recipe because it can be served any time of day and at any temperature. It's great side dish for a summer picnic and easy to meal prep for grab-and-go lunches throughout the week.
Ingredients
- Vegetable stock
- Pearl couscous
- Baby spinach
- Grape tomatoes
- Lemon zest
- Pistachio pesto
- Pine nuts
- Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)
How to make Israeli pearl couscous salad
- Cook the pearl couscous by simmering in vegetable stock for about 10-15 minutes.
- Toast the pine nuts over medium heat until fragrant.
- Toss cooked couscous and pine nuts with spinach, cherry tomatoes, lemon zest, pesto, salt, and pepper.
Top tips
How to make pistachio pesto
Pistachio pesto is easy to make in a food processor or blender, but you could also chop by hand if you have the patience. You can find the full recipe in this blog post, but here's the general breakdown:
- Pulse pistachios, basil, parsley, garlic, and romano cheese until coarsely chopped
- With the motor running, drizzle in olive oil until it's the desired consistency
- Add salt and blend one last time
What to serve with Israeli couscous salad
This couscous salad is a great meal on its own! You can also serve it as a side dish next to double bean pita sandwich and a dip like creamy hummus or whipped feta.
How to store
Pearl couscous salad can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Tips for customizing peal couscous salad:
- Swap the pistachio pesto for homemade basil pesto, spinach pesto, or arugula pesto
- Add feta cheese or grilled halloumi
- Swap sun-dried tomatoes for the fresh tomatoes
- Add a handful of chopped, marinated artichoke hearts
- Swap the fresh spinach for other tender leafy greens such as baby kale, arugula, or watercress
- Add roasted chickpeas for protein and crunch
- Meat eaters can add chopped grilled chicken
FAQ
Pearl couscous is generally made of wheat flour and semolina. It's pasta, so it contains gluten and has about the same nutritional content as your favorite noodle.
This couscous salad is delicious warm or cold. It's perfect for taking to potlucks, picnics, or backyard barbecues.
Israeli couscous is small, lightly toasted pasta. It's similar to regular couscous, but is much larger. It makes a great base for mixing in various flavors, veggies, and proteins.
Israeli couscous can also be found labeled as pearl couscous. I've purchased it near the rice and in the organic section by other grains like barley, bulgur, and quinoa.
More main dish salads
- Vegan Quinoa Salad with Balsamic Tofu
- Orzo Pasta Salad
- Vegan Potluck Barley Salad
- High Protein Salad with Hummus
- Cajun Salad
- Mediterranean Couscous Salad
- Quinoa Taco Salad
- Roast Pumpkin Salad
- Pizza Salad
- Kale and Sweet Potato Salad
- Warm Kale and Quinoa Salad
If you make this recipe, be sure to rate it, leave a comment, or tag #theliveinkitchen on Instagram!
Recipe
Israeli Couscous Salad
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups vegetable stock
- 2 cups pearl couscous
- 2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped
- 1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
- Zest of 1 whole lemon
- ¼ cup pistachio pesto
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts
- Coarse kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)
Instructions
- In a 2 quart saucepan, bring vegetable stock to a boil. Add the couscous, cover, reduce the heat to a simmer, and cook until tender, 10-15 minutes. Drain off any remaining water and allow to cool to room temperature.
- In a small pan, toast pine nuts over medium heat, shaking the pan frequently, until lightly browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
- In a large bowl, combine cooked couscous, spinach, grape tomatoes, lemon zest, pistachio pesto, pine nuts, and salt and pepper to taste. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate until ready to serve. Garnish with fresh parsley if desired.
Juniper says
I love couscous !! I changed a few things in this just because
we prefer them . Instead of pine nuts we use sunflower seeds
and pumpkin seeds , we don't care for pesto so I used sun-dried
tomato vinigrette . I also add diced celery , cuke slices and feta
cheese crumbled into it. Sometimes green onions, and sometimes
Radish slices.. We have thrown in some fresh raw peas when they
we're right out of the garden to...Such a very versatile salad and
then change it to an Italian type vinigrette also...I think it is our favorite
just because so far it is the one we have done the most with.
So good.....warm or cold...try it...