Couscous With Mussels and Shrimp
- Total Time
- 45 minutes
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
Yield:6 servings
- 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- 2ounces chorizo, diced
- 1medium onion, finely chopped
- 3cloves garlic, minced
- ½teaspoon Espelette pepper
- 1teaspoon Spanish smoked paprika
- 1teaspoon salt, more to taste
- 1½cups coarsely chopped cherry tomatoes (about 18)
- 1½cups coarse-textured couscous
- 1pound large shrimp, shelled and deveined
- ⅔cup dry vermouth
- 1cup fish stock
- 2pounds mussels, scrubbed
- 1tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves
- 1lemon, in 6 wedges
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)
476 calories; 11 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 46 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 3 grams sugars; 42 grams protein; 994 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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- Step 1
Heat oil on medium in a 4-quart sauté pan. Add chorizo and let it sizzle a minute or two. Stir in onion, garlic and Espelette and cook until onion is soft. Stir in paprika, salt and tomatoes. Simmer gently about 5 minutes, until tomatoes soften and release their juices. Stir in couscous and cook a few minutes until all ingredients are well-combined.
- Step 2
Add shrimp, folding them in with the rest of the ingredients. Stir in vermouth and stock. Let the liquid come to a simmer. Taste liquid for seasoning and adjust salt and Espelette. Add mussels and reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and cook until mussels open, from 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest, covered, 5 minutes. The couscous should be tender and should have absorbed most of the liquid.
- Step 3
Serve directly from the sauté pan or pile the contents on a big, warm platter. Garnish with cilantro and lemon wedges.
Private Notes
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Cooking Notes
gvs
This delicious dish was a huge dinner party hit. So much easier than paella and just as tasty, I believe. I used hot Italian sausage (because I had it) instead of chorizo and Israeli couscous, which I think is what Florence meant by
"course-textured"? It's also beautiful!
Mike
my first try last week was great. so good that i make another batch today. this is a terrific recipe
this time i stuck to the recipe except:
used cooked New Zealand clams.
used a cup of their juice.
the stock was Knorr fish stock with the heads and shells from the prawns - plus of course the clam juice.
for the pepper i used 2 chopped typical emirate green chillies
and added 3 Emirati crab legs.
and used French medium couscous.
fantastic.
next time i will add Harissa.
Patrick
My wife and I really enjoy this dish with a slight change in the preparation. I add the shrimp after I put the mussels since I do not like shrimp to be overcooked.
Kate
The mussels add liquid as they cook. Couscous was fine without any additional liquid.
Hungry Richard
It’s important to use good-size mussels here: I had to use a mix with mostly small ones recently and the dish wasn’t nearly as successful.
Kate
Cut in half for 2 people but still had leftovers. Added 6 littleneck clams. Did mussels, then clams, then shrimp but shrimp was still slightly overcooked. Added saffron and rosemary for more flavour, but next time do a sofrito as well. Used fresh chorizo and subbed paprika/cayenne/Aleppo mix for piment d'Espelette. Overall was very good, although I'm not sure if it was much quicker than making paella in the end. If out of bomba rice then this is a good alternative to paella.
debbie
This was amazing. Great flavor and texture. I also added the mussels before the shrimp. They all opened and captured the couscous and spices inside. I used tricolor pearl couscous and smoked hot paprika and adobo in place of the pepper because I couldn’t find it. Otherwise exactly per recipe and will make this again and again!
Matthew
I second the comments here about putting the shrimp in at the same time as the mussels and cous cous. Putting the shrimp in before means the shrimp will cook too long and be rubbery… unless you like chewy shrimp.
Judith Doyle
This is just great! Made it for myself on a wintery night - so easy and delicious. If you have fish sauce around, a splash makes up for fish stock. And if you like, throw in a spoonful of capers
Rafael Labrador
Fantastic dish. Made shrimp stock from shells. Add shrimp halfway through mussels cooking time, and more stock with regular couscous.
CG
Great recipe. I used pearl couscous and Aleppo pepper since that's what I had on hand and upped the sausage instead of adding shrimp. I also added fennel and some mini sweet peppers. Ended up really tasty. Only issue was that the couscous needed more time to soften than the mussels needed to open, so I ended up taking the mussels out after they opened and letting the couscous simmer for an extra 10 minutes so as to not overcook the mussels. Delicious!
Amo Coquere
Just made this today for dinner! Fantastic flavor! Only change was per other cooks; added the shrimp after the mussels had been in for 6 minutes. Definitely serve the lemon! Will be making again for sure.
Kate
Tasted great but the mussels were not cooked within 8 mins. I think next time I’ll cook them in a separate pot and then transfer, maybe with some of their cooking water.
EWitz
Followed the recipe using Dutch oven but couscous wasn't completely done at 8 minutes, nor were all the mussels cooked... I'll try again using a heavy duty pot
Kate
This dish was lovely. We will definitely make it again. Note, the mussels may take longer than 6-8 min to open as they lower the temp in the skillet when dumped into the sauce. Stir quickly, cover skillet with lid, and keep temp at medium.
quaasam
Very nice. Watch it that couscous does not get too soggy!
Christina
Riffed on this using leftover jasmine rice instead of couscous. In addition to the garlic and onion, I added chopped celery leaves and criminology mushrooms. Probably used 1 cup wine. Amazing meal! I would serve this to company.
Preethi
Lovely tasty dish, I used pearl couscous and used 1 and half cup of fish stock..used mild chille powder. I finished it off with some saffron which was socked in some warm water. Lemom definitely elevated the dish.
Kate
Cut in half for 2 people but still had leftovers. Added 6 littleneck clams. Did mussels, then clams, then shrimp but shrimp was still slightly overcooked. Added saffron and rosemary for more flavour, but next time do a sofrito as well. Used fresh chorizo and subbed paprika/cayenne/Aleppo mix for piment d'Espelette. Overall was very good, although I'm not sure if it was much quicker than making paella in the end. If out of bomba rice then this is a good alternative to paella.
Hungry Richard
It’s important to use good-size mussels here: I had to use a mix with mostly small ones recently and the dish wasn’t nearly as successful.
ana n
Not enough broth for the cup and a half of couscous. Recommend an extra cup of broth and 1/2 cup vermouth
Kate
The mussels add liquid as they cook. Couscous was fine without any additional liquid.
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