Israeli couscous with cinnamon & bay
Israeli couscous is a larger-sized couscous that looks a little bit like pearl barley. It is toasted, which some people think gives it a nutty flavor; to me, it tastes faintly sweet more than nutty. It makes a great summer salad, but I like to serve it warm in all seasons. This recipe is particularly good as a bed for an entree or vegetable in a rich sauce: it has enough flavor to stand up to a sauce, but not so much that it will clash.
Israeli couscous with cinnamon & bay
- 1/2 medium yellow onion, chopped
- 1 cup Israeli couscous
- 1 cup chicken broth or stock
- 1 cinnamon* stick
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tsp dried parsley
- extra-virgin olive oil
- salt (if using unsalted broth or stock)
Over medium-high heat, sautee the chopped onion in the olive oil. When it turns translucent, add chicken broth, cinnamon stick, bay leaf, and parsley. When the broth starts to bubble, add the couscous, turn the heat down to low, cover, and simmer for 9 minutes. Remove from heat, but leave cover on for another minute. Fluff with a fork, remove cinnamon and bay leaf, and serve.
* For this recipe, use cassia, not true cinnamon. What’s the difference? Cassia is the regular cinnamon easily found in most US grocery stores; it has hard dark reddish-brown sticks. True cinnamon is much harder to find and its sticks are soft, light-colored, and flaky. A lot of people only know what true cinnamon tastes like from eating cinnamon candy or gum. Why am I bothering to clarify? Because I often use true cinnamon, and if I look at this recipe in a year I want to know which I used!