Israeli Couscous

Serves 4

I put this dish on my opening menu at Marigold Kitchen, partly because it meant that I could actually write the word Israeli on the menu. The funny thing is that Israeli couscous is actually pasta, made from wheat flour but toasted rather than air-dried. And there are several versions of a similar product that predate it. The Lebanese have been eating their moghrabiyeh, Palestinians their maftoul, Hungarians their tarhonya, and Ashkenazi Jews their farfel since long before Israeli couscous became a “branded” product.

Israeli couscous was generally considered kids’ food until relatively recently, when chefs like me started serving it with escargots and honey mushrooms. But what I love most about Israeli couscous is the same thing that appealed to me when I was a child: At its heart, it’s just a simple bowl of buttered pasta. I add a few steps in the cooking process to elevate it a bit and make sure I don’t end up with a stuck-together mass in the shape of the pot. First, I toast the couscous on a baking sheet in the oven with a little oil to bring out its nutty flavor and to prevent the grains from sticking together. Then I cook it risotto style so that the starch from the couscous adds creaminess to the dish. I add mushrooms and kale and finish, of course, with a big pat of butter.

• 2 cups Israeli couscous
• 5 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 cups My Chicken Stock (see recipe), or water
• 1 carrot, peeled and grated (about ½ cup)
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• ¾ cup diced onion
• ½ cup dry white wine
• 1 cup tomato puree
• 1 teaspoon black pepper
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 cups coarsely chopped maitake or cremini mushrooms
• ½ bunch kale, shredded (about 2 cups packed)
• 3 tablespoons butter

● Preheat the oven to 350°F. Toss the couscous with 1 tablespoon of the oil and spread out on a baking sheet. Bake until the couscous is dark brown and smells nutty, about 15 minutes. Set aside.

● Bring the chicken stock to a simmer in a saucepan and adjust the heat to maintain a simmer.

● Warm 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add the carrot, garlic, and ½ cup of the diced onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion has softened but not browned, about 8 minutes. Add the toasted couscous and stir to coat well with the oil. Add the wine and tomato puree and cook until the wine has evaporated and the tomato puree reduced, about 5 minutes. Add the pepper and salt.

● Start adding the chicken stock to the skillet in ½-cup increments, adjusting the heat as needed to keep the liquid simmering. Stir often until the liquid has been absorbed before adding the next ½ cup of liquid. It will take about 40 minutes for all the liquid to be absorbed and the couscous to be cooked through.

● In a clean skillet, warm the remaining 2 tablespoons oil over medium heat and add the mushrooms and the remaining ¼ cup onion. Cook until the onion has softened and the mushrooms have released their liquid and begun to brown at the edges, about 10 minutes. Add the kale and cook just until the leaves are tender and wilted, about 5 more minutes. Off the heat, swirl in 1 tablespoon of the butter.

● Fold the mushroom-kale mixture into the couscous. Just before serving, fold in the remaining 2 tablespoons butter.