Harissa Couscous Bake

Harissa Couscous Bake

This one is a proper weeknight winner that we keep coming back to again and again. There's something about the combination of smoky harissa, sweet roasted vegetables and fluffy couscous baked together that just works on every level. The edges get a little crispy, the inside stays tender and fragrant, and the whole thing smells incredible when it comes out of the oven. It's bold, it's warming, and it's the kind of meal that makes people ask for the recipe before they've even finished their plate. Trust us on this one, it deserves a spot in your regular rotation.

Cook: 50 min
Serves 4

Before You Start

  • Preheat oven to 180°C
  • Increase oven temperature to 200°C fan setting (step 2)
  • Large baking tray
  • High-sided baking dish
  • Foil for covering
  • Mixing bowl (for tahini dressing)
  • Whisk

Ingredients

  • 2 red onions
  • 2 large carrots
  • 5 large cloves of garlic
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 400g tin of chickpeas
  • 1 vegetable stock cube
  • 300g giant couscous
  • 2 tbsp harissa paste
  • 60ml runny tahini
  • 40ml cold water, to loosen the sauce if needed
  • 1 lemon
  • Large pinch of flakey salt
  • fresh coriander

Method

1

Prepare and roast the vegetables

  • Peel the onions and chop each one into 6 wedges
  • Peel and roughly chop the carrots
  • Transfer the onions and carrots to a baking tray with the whole garlic cloves (no need to peel them at this stage). Toss the vegetables with the olive oil, cumin and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Roast in the hot oven for 25-30 minutes until the carrots are tender. Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly
2

Prepare the bake

  • Increase the oven temperature to 200*C fan setting
  • Drain and rinse the chickpeas
  • Dissolve the vegetable stock cube in 600ml boiling water. Set to one side
  • When the garlic is cool enough to handle, pop the cloves from the skin and transfer to a high sided baking dish, along with the onions and carrots. Add the drained chickpeas, couscous, boiling stock and harissa paste. Gently stir to combine. Tightly cover the dish with foil and return to the oven for 20-25 minutes. By this point, the couscous should be soft and absorbed all of the water
3

Meanwhile, make the lemon tahini dressing

  • Add the tahini to a bowl, squeeze in the juice of the lemon, then add the water in batches, whisking well with as much water as necessary to get a smooth single cream consistency. Season with a big pinch of sea salt
4

Time to serve

  • Chop the coriander (stems included!)
  • Remove the bake from the oven and fluff the couscous up with a fork. Top with the coriander
  • Serve in the middle of the table with a big drizzle of the lemon tahini

Tips & Variations

  • Don't rush the roast: We know it's tempting to pull the veg early but give them the full 25-30 minutes. You want the carrots properly tender and the onion edges starting to caramelise. That's where a lot of the flavour comes from.
  • Adjust the heat: Harissa pastes vary a lot in how spicy they are depending on the brand. Start with a little less than the recipe says, taste, and add more if you want it hotter. You can always go up, you can't go down.
  • Make it your own: We love adding a tin of chickpeas into the bake for extra protein and texture. Just fold them in when you're assembling everything before it goes back in the oven. Works brilliantly.

Why This Works

The trick here is roasting the vegetables first before the bake goes together. It concentrates all that natural sweetness in the carrots and onions and gives the whole dish a much deeper flavour than if you just chucked everything in raw. The harissa then weaves through every bit of couscous as it absorbs the cooking liquid, so you get that smoky, spiced kick in every single mouthful.