European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - April 11, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Living today couscous peasant dish goes gourmet by Sharon Hudgins special to stripes Magazine ill never forget the first time i ate it was during a dreamy summer in Paris that French friends invited me to have couscous with them at an algerian restaurant on Rue in the latin this was Long before the Rue Xavie privas and surrounding streets were turned into the tourist areas that they Are i didst know what couscous was id never even heard the word before but i trusted my French friends palates and their Choice of i began to have second thoughts when we entered the equivalent to a Texas Complete with Formica topped Green fluorescent and Dingy linoleum my friends had made reservations for us at first i  imagine Why which proved to be quite necessary As the 16 places in the restaurant soon filled i had no idea what to expect of the but when the couscous was set before i embarked upon an unforgettable culinary couscous originated with the berber tribe in North and is now considered the National dish of and Morocco although forms of couscous can be found from Egypt to the abundance of couscous restaurants in France is a legacy of the former French colonial presence in North almost All the couscous served in France is derived from the algerian version of this although tunisian and moroccan couscous can also be in Paris there must be hundreds of couscous ranging from modest places in the latin Quarter to expensive restaurants with decors like Cecil Demille movie the word couscous Means both the grains of Semolina made from durum wheat which form the starchy part of the dish and the Complete dish when you order or make the dish will be composed of steamed granules of Semolina accompanied by a Rich meat an vegetable Broth Over which the Semolina grains were and possibly a portion of grilled meats with hot sauce Marissa which can be added for extra the first couscous i ate in Paris was served As follows each diner was Given a Large shallow soup bowl and a Large the steamed Semolina the meat from the and the vegetables from the were each served on separate a Large bowl full of Broth was placed in the Center of the another Platter contained hot spicy sausages made from Mutton or and Flavoured with cumin and hot and skewers of grilled meat pieces of beef and on the Side was a Small bowl of a fiery paste made from red Olive coriander and we each put a Large portion of the steamed Semolina granules into the Bottom of our soup then we placed portions of the stewed meats and vegetables on top of the followed by pieces of sausage and grilled next we took a soup ladle full of mixed in a Small amount of and poured the liquid Over everything in the soup then we and what a meal it Wasl the flavors of the meats and vegetables had permeated both the Broth they were cooked in and the Semolina that had steamed Over the grilled meats and sausages provided a contrast of tastes and and the re hot diluted by the added As much or As Little spiciness As one it is easy to make couscous at Home after this is a peasant not haute couscous is traditionally cooked in a a Large two part the lower part is a Large Stock pot which holds the Meagan vegetable the top part is a perforated steaming which sits Over the Stock pot and is used for steaming the couscous couscous Eres can be purchased in Europe for less than but if you dont own you can easily use a Large Oriental or italian or Stock pot with a colander set on top of line the colander with a Kitchen to keep the couscous grains from falling into the if the following directions for making couscous seem formidable at dont be scared off by once youve made youll discover How really easy it is to note for the following i have departed from my Standard style of because there Are so Many and so Many Steps in the recipe and because its important that everything finishes cooking at the same time i organized the recipe according to the times at which you must Deal with each group of before starting to read through the recipe and make a checklist of All the ingredients youll stripes photos Stephanie James most of the ingredients Are herbs and spices that you probably already couscous grains and Marissa paste in cans or tubes can be found in the foreign foods Section of most european grocery in couscous supplies Are a Normal part of grocers Marquez sausages Are More difficult to but spicy polish sausages can be substituted if this recipe makes 8 Large for Large dinner you can increase the serving size to 12 by simply adding half again As much Lamb and couscous Royale couscous Royale takes 2 hours to so you must Start at 5 for dinner at if youd prefer dinner earlier or then adjust the following schedule 5 1 put into a very Large bowl 1 kilogram pounds uncooked couscous grains add 1 cup of water and use your fingers to rub the couscous and water together until All the water has been absorbed and All the grains Are set the bowl 2 put into the Bottom part of couscous Lere or Large Steamer pot stripes Magazine april