Mushroom & Couscous with Smoked Paprika

A sweet, smoky and indulgent dish for mushroom lovers. Versatile to more ingredients and a great pairing with seafood, and meat. Pearl couscous is primarily made from semolina, like most pasta , and can be toasted to add an extra layer of flavor.

Ingredients

Mushrooms - 1 cup - chopped. (any varietal works, baby portobellos were used in the picture)

olive oil

Garlic - 1 clove - minced

Onion - 1/4 medium - diced

1 tsp paprika (sweet or hot)

1 tsp smoked paprika (optional, for smokiness)

Salt & Black Pepper

2 Tbsp tomato paste or 1 can of tomato sauce (fresh tomatoes could be added, too)

Water

Pearl Couscous - 1/2 cup

Substitutes/Add-ons - Eggplant, Cheese (manchego, goat, feta) labneh or yogurt

Steps

Couscous

Follow the instructions of your brand. For this recipe, we simply boiled the couscous in salted water until fork tender, strain, toss in olive oil and set aside at room temperature.

Mushrooms

Bring a medium sized skillet to medium-heat, add 1 Tbsp of olive oil, and the garlic and onions and sweat them.

Add paprika, smoked paprika, salt and pepper to the onions, and add more olive oil if the ingredients are sticking.

Once the onions and garlic are softened, add the chopped mushrooms, and continue to stir/shake to ensure even cooking.

When the mushrooms have started to brown, add the tomato paste/sauce. If using tomato paste, add 2 Tbsp of water to the pan. Turn the heat up to medium-high.

**Optional step, de-glaze the pan with a splash of white wine.

When the mushrooms have been cooked through (reduced by 1/3, and soft) add the 1/2 cup of cooked couscous and incorporate all of the ingredients together. Ideally, there is enough tomato and liquid to coat the couscous. If the liquid is being evaporated too quickly, try covering the pan before resorting to adding more water or tomato.

Serve together, and drizzle with olive oil

Sweating onions and garlic with spices and olive oil.

Before adding the couscous: