Recipe: How to Make Turkish Style Couscous With Crushed Red Pepper and Cucumber

This recipe combines the coolness of a cucumber with the heat of of crushed red pepper. I love the way the two flavors combine. It makes a great side to fish or chicken or can be eaten alone as a healthy entrée.

Preparation time: <10 minutes

Cost per serving: Pennies.

Ingredients:

1 yellow onion diced

1 cucumber peeled and diced

1 Tbs of crushed red pepper

1/2 tsp oregano

2 cups couscous

4 cups water

1 Tb of Better than Bouillon (see below)

Turn you pot onto a low heat, add 2 Tbs of olive oil. Throw in the diced onion and let them cook until they are translucent. add 4 cups of water and turn heat up to high. Bring the water to a low boil and add your Tb of Better than Bouillon. This will turn your water to chicken broth. Add the remaining ingredients. Cover and reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for 5 minutes. Remove lid, fluff with a fork and serve.

I like this as a side to falafel or scallops.

There are lots of other ways to spice couscous, of course. If heat is not your thing, replace the crushed red pepper with mild paprika or basil.

I top this couscous recipe with sea scallops. Scallops are low in cholesterol unlike shrimp and are similarly priced.

Cook scallops in butter or olive oil over medium heat. Brown each side of the scallop and place on a bed of couscous. They need no seasoning but they do well in salt and pepper.

This couscous recipe goes nicely beside a chicken breast cooked in olive oil and spiced with Mediterranean oregano, sea salt, and black pepper.

Heat 1 Tb of olive oil in a pan. Sprinkle 1 chicken breast with salt, pepper, and oregano. Cook chicken on medium heat until done. Serve on top of or along side couscous.