Golden Spiced Couscous With Caramelised Onions

Couscous is just the food of the gods, absolute Ambrosia I'm telling ya! Loads of people in this country don't really like couscous, and that's simply because so many people in this country don't know how to prepare it properly. Couscous, cooked in a tasty stock, with plenty of butter or olive oil, fluffed up with a fork, is heavenly. If you just pour a bit of boiling water on it you are going to end up with flavourless dry grains, simple. This side dish is really yummy, and goes very well with many middle eastern, north African and Indian dishes (like tagines and curries and things!). I often bring this to a picnic, barbeque or potluck and it always get's eaten really quickly!

Golden Spiced Couscous with Caramelised onions

50g butter
4 white onions, finely sliced
1 tbsp fresh coriander (plus a little extra for garnish)
2 tbsp cinnamon syrup (or use 1 tbsp sugar, 1 tbsp water, ¼ tsp ground cinnamon)
1 tsp z’atar (a middle eastern spice mix of oregano, sesame and cumin)
¼ tsp turmeric
450ml chicken stock (hot!)
250g couscous
40g seedless raisins
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Fry the onions and coriander in the butter with a little seasoning for ten minutes, stirring often. Add the syrup, z’atar and turmeric and fry for a further 5 minutes.

2. Add the chicken stock, couscous and raisins. Remove from the heat, cover, and set aside for 5 minutes. Remove the lid, stir all the ingredients are well combined. Season to taste and serve, garnished with more fresh coriander.