Lemon Cucumber Couscous Salad

Lemon cucumber couscous salad is a light, refreshing take on pasta salad.  It’s bright, flavorful, and a surprisingly filling healthy side dish. Serve it for a nice change of pace this barbecue season!

Pasta salad of all varieties are a summer staples.

For good reason too.

It’s perfect for parties, potlucks, even for packing in the family picnic basket.

Plus, salads like this cucumber couscous salad not only travel well but it offer you some flexibility.

It’s great served chilled, but it’s also delicious warm.

This lemon cucumber couscous salad is an out of the box summer side salad idea full of Mediterranean flavors.

Ingredients

To make this cucumber couscous you’ll need:

• Couscous– Look for Israeli pearl couscous. More on this in an minute.
• Cucumbers– Cut into 1/4″ pieces.
• Parsley– Washed, chopped fresh parsley with the stems removed.
• Lemon– Both the juice and zest
• Olive oil– Extra virgin
• Mayonnaise– Real mayonnaise and not mayonnaise style dressing or Miracle Whip
• Spices– Garlic powder, salt, and pepper
• Feta cheese– Crumbled

How to Make

Like most pasta salads, this cucumber couscous salad is pretty easy to throw together.

To do it, bring a pot of salted water to a rolling boil.

Once the water boils, stir in the couscous and cook for 5-7 minutes until it’s tender but not mushy.

When the couscous reaches the proper texture, pour the couscous into a strainer and run under cold water to stop the cooking process.

Stir it until it cools and set the couscous aside to drain.

Meanwhile, slice the cucumber into 1/4″ coins.

Quarter each cucumber coin and add them to a large mixing bowl along with the chopped parsley, lemon zest, and couscous.

Gently toss everything to combine.

Set the couscous mixture aside and make the lemon dressing.

To do it, whisk together the juice from the lemon, olive oil, mayo, garlic powder, salt, and pepper in a small bowl until smooth.

Pour the dressing over the salad, and toss until everything’s well coated.

Stir in the feta cheese.

Give everything a taste and add additional seasoning if desired.

Serve and enjoy!

Storing Leftovers

Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Keep in mind the couscous will absorb the dressing and you may need to add more when reserving.

What is the difference between Israeli couscous and regular couscous?

All varieties of couscous are a kind of pasta made from coarsely ground semolina (durum wheat) that’s moistened and then tossed with fine wheat flour until tiny round balls form.

The biggest difference amongst varieties is in their sizes.

Traditional couscous, also called Moroccan couscous, is very small.

It’s roughly 3x the size of a grain of cornmeal.

This type of couscous resembles quinoa, but smaller and with a lot less protein.

It’s similar in texture to the Italian pastina.

Israeli couscous, also known as pearl couscous, is much bigger by comparison.

It’s literally little pearl shaped and sized balls of pasta.

The size of Israeli couscous means that itss texture is closer to that of traditional pasta and its chewiness is similar to barley. 

The biggest difference, other than the obvious size, though is in how the couscous is cured/stored after being made.

Moroccan couscous, the smaller variety, is often simply dried, while the larger pearls are traditionally toasted after the granules form.

Can you make couscous ahead of time?

Yes, you can make the couscous up to 2 days ahead of time and stored in the fridge in an airtight container until ready to use.

However, keep in mind that couscous has a tendency to stick together if you make it ahead.

How can I prevent my couscous from sticking together?

To avoid couscous that sticks, cool the couscous completely by running it under cool water in a colander when it’s done cooking.

Transfer the cooled and drained couscous to an airtight container and drizzle it with a small bit of olive oil.

Stir the couscous to coat it all lightly in the oil.

The olive oil won’t be enough to affect the recipe, but just enough to keep the pearls from sticking together when chilled.

Before you use it, stir the pasta with a spoon to ‘fluff’ it.

Can couscous be served cold?

The short answer is 100 percent yes.

Couscous is delicious when served cold, depending on the recipe.

It’s also just as good when served warm.

When this cucumber couscous salad is left to chill, the flavors in the dressing have time to marry and the flavor will lighten up and balance out as it’s absorbed by the pasta pearls.

This means the dressing will be less intensely tangy and more mellow.

Tips and Tricks

• Want to include more veggies in this summer side dish? My kids love it when I stir in a can of drained, sweet peas. I, on the other hand, enjoy it with fresh baby spinach in the mix. Give it a try, and find a combination that works for your family.
• Do you prefer a creamier dressing? Whisk in a couple tablespoons of plain or garlic flavored hummus to the dressing and keep whisking until smooth. Proceed with the recipe as written.
• Don’t have couscous in your pantry, but still want to make this recipe without running out to the store? Orzo or ancini de pepe pasta both make good substitutes.
• Grape tomatoes and black olives are great additions for a more authentic Mediterranean feel.
• While we typically serve this as a side dish, it makes a very filling but light vegetarian lunch. You could add some drained, canned chickpeas for some vegetarian protein.
• If you’re craving meat, adding chopped rotisserie chicken fleshes it out into a more traditional meal. It’s also a great way to use up leftovers!

Other Mediterranean Salads

Cucumber couscous is a refreshing Mediterranean side salad we love.

Make it and enjoy!

Looking for other Mediterranean salads?

Try these:

• Mediterranean Tortellini Salad
• Italian Potato Salad
• Tomato Cucumber Feta Salad
• Easy Gyro Salad
• Tzatziki Style Potato Salad

If you’ve tried this LEMON CUCUMBER COUSCOUS SALAD, or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK, and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and whatever else we’ve got going on!

recipe adapted from Budget Bytes