This vibrant couscous soup is made with veggies, chickpeas, and pearl couscous in a spiced tomato broth. It's so easy to make and tastes like a big bowl of comfort!
Couscous has a special place in my heart. It was one of the first "vegetarian" foods that was introduced to me after giving up meat as a teenager. There's nothing exclusively vegetarian about couscous, although it has been the main ingredient in many meatless meals enjoyed by me since then.
Although I enjoyed couscous in many dishes, one that I mostly neglected was soup. You know what though? Couscous totally belongs in soup! It is pasta after all, and we all know how much I love a good pasta soup like pasta e fagioli, orzo soup, or chickpea noodle soup.
For this recipe, we're using pearl couscous, which is bigger and plumper than Moroccan couscous. The texture is perfect for soaking up broth!
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Ingredients You'll Need
- Olive oil. You can use another high-heat oil if you'd like, but olive oil will give your soup the best flavor.
- Onion.
- Carrots.
- Celery.
- Garlic.
- Spices. We're using a Mediterranean-inspired blend of ground cumin, cinnamon, ginger, and turmeric.
- Vegetable broth.
- Fire roasted tomatoes. Regular old diced tomatoes will work, but use fire roasted if you can — they'll add a wonderful smoky flavor to your soup!
- Canned chickpeas.
- Pearl couscous. This can be found in the international foods aisle of most supermarkets, and may also be labeled as Israeli couscous.
- Baby spinach.
- Salt and pepper.
How It's Made
Below is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you'd like to skip right to the recipe!
Heat some olive oil in a large pot, then add your diced onion, sliced carrots, and chopped celery. Sweat the veggies for a full ten minutes, making sure they've begun to soften by the end. This is important, as our soup has a brief simmer time!
Add minced garlic to the pot, along with your spices. Mix everything up and cook the mixture for about a minute, stirring the entire time to prevent the spices or garlic from burning, which could make the soup taste bitter.
Stir in the broth, tomatoes, chickpeas, and couscous. Bring the soup to a boil, then let it simmer until the couscous is fully cooked and the veggies are tender.
Now add the baby spinach. Continue simmering the soup until the spinach wilts completely, which should only take about a minute.
Take the soup off of heat and season it with some salt and pepper to taste.
Your couscous soup is ready! Ladle it into bowls and dig in.
Leftovers & Storage
Leftover pearl couscous soup will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for three to four days, or in the freezer for about three months. The couscous will continue to soak up broth as it sits. Add more broth or water when you reheat it, if needed.
More Soup Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Pearl Couscous Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 2 medium carrots, sliced
- 1 medium celery stalk, sliced
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground turmeric
- 5 cups vegetable broth
- 1 (14.5 ounce/411 gram) can fire roasted tomatoes
- 1 (15.5 ounce/439 gram) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- â…” cup dried pearl couscous
- 2 cups fresh baby spinach leaves
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Coat the bottom of a large pot with the oil and place it over medium heat. Once the oil is hot, add the onion, carrots, and celery. Sweat the vegetables for about 10 minutes, until they start to soften.
- Stir in the garlic, cumin, ginger, cinnamon, and turmeric. Stir to coat the veggies in the spices and cook everything for about a minute, stirring constantly, until the mixture becomes very fragrant.
- Stir in the broth, diced tomatoes, chickpeas, and couscous. Raise the heat and bring the liquid to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the couscous and vegetables are tender.
- Stir in the spinach and let it simmer in the soup for about a minute, just until it wilts.
- Remove the pot from heat and season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.
- Ladle into bowls and serve.
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