Name: Moroccan-Style Couscous with Chickpeas
Total time: PLACEHOLDER
Ingredients: ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil , plus extra for serving; 1½ cups couscous; 2 carrots , peeled and chopped fine; 1 onion , chopped fine; Salt and pepper; 3 garlic cloves , minced; 1 teaspoon ground coriander; 1 teaspoon ground ginger; ¼ teaspoon ground anise seed; 1¾ cups chicken or vegetable broth; 1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas , rinsed; 1½ cups frozen pea; ½ cup chopped fresh parsley , cilantro, and/or mint; Lemon wedges

Why This Recipe Works

We tried a few different approaches for our Moroccan-inspired couscous with chickpeas before coming up with a basic game plan: Toast the couscous to maximize its nutty flavor, sauté the vegetables, toast the spices, add chickpeas, simmer, and finally add the couscous, which we needed only to hydrate with boiling water. We tasted our way through a long list of vegetables and decided in the end to limit our selection to just carrots, onions, and peas, each of which brought a distinctive flavor, texture, and color to the dish. When it came to spices, we narrowed down our choices to classic Moroccan spices: coriander, ground ginger, and a dash of ground anise, each of which supported the vegetables' flavor well. Three cloves of garlic, chicken or vegetable broth, and a hefty amount of herbs stirred in at the end rounded out the dish's flavors.

Instructions

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add couscous and cook, stirring frequently, until grains are just beginning to brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer to bowl and wipe skillet clean with paper towels.

Heat remaining 2 tablespoons oil in now-empty skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add carrots, onion, and 1 teaspoon salt and cook until softened and lightly browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Stir in garlic, coriander, ginger, and anise and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in broth and chickpeas and bring to simmer.

Stir in peas and couscous. Cover, remove skillet from heat, and let sit until couscous is tender, about 7 minutes. Add parsley to couscous and gently fluff with fork to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with extra oil. Serve with lemon wedges.