Slow Cooker Harissa Bean and Couscous Stew

This was delicious. The prep is minimal. I do think the cilantro, yogurt and almond are a must.will make it again and I'll probably use ingredients that are more common in loubia like cumin and ginger. But I like that this is a base recipe that you can improvise easily. I made it using an instant pot and cooked the beans separately according to the instant pot instructions, tossed out that water, then combined all the ingredients and threw it in the instant pot at 8 minutes.

Lots of comments about canned beans & instant pots, but not many about the actual recipe. Knowing my harissa kicks (it's French, bought from a Med market) I only put in a couple of tbs-worth. Plenty spicy, and I worship at the altar of hot food! The stew turned out oddly sweet; maybe omit that tablespoon of sugar, or only put in half the amount to start. I added some vinegar which balanced things. Lemon juice may be a wiser choice. Yes to Garbanzo beans--Butter/Lima beans even better I bet

This is absolutely incredible. Cook as written. Unless you are sensitive to heat, then dial back the harissa. Will become a staple. Plus it vegetarian and cooks in a slow cooker? All day.

Delicious - agree with other commenters that some tweaks can be made. I used canned beans and just added them toward the end. If you’re sensitive to spice, reduce the harissa - I didn’t do this but added some butter, lemon and more tomato paste in the end to cut the spice. It also came out slightly watery so I’d reduce the water or increase other ingredients next time. All in all, easy tweaks for a good meal!

Can harissa dry spice be used instead of paste? If so, what would the measurement be to approximate 1/3 cup of harissa paste?

Are Garbanzo beans an option?

I used canned beans from the cupboard, regular couscous & tomato sauce from my pantry, as I didn't want to go to the store or wait for the slow cooker. It was quick and easy. Soups can always be tweeked for what you have on hand.

This is going to be my go-to for lunch/dinner for the next week. I had to use canned beans since there was a run on white kidney beans here in interior BC. I am going to try it with dried beans this week. This was delicious, flavorful, and savory; it just had the right amount of spice.

I converted the recipe into an instant pot version quite easily: followed the recipe as written, except I didn’t soak my beans. To compensate for this I added an extra cup of water, which was maybe a little too much. I’d do 1/2 cup next time. Also, my harissa was quite salty, so I cut the salt in half. I then used the pressure cook function on my instant pot for 35 minutes and a quick release of the steam. I used the sauté function on low to for an extra 20 minutes. Everything came out great.

If you used canned beans, this is the easiest stew ever, even without a slow cooker. I used dried favas the first time and they took absolutely forever to cook, even with soaking, so I think you should boil any dried beans first, as another reviewer suggested. The final flavor ended up quite "thick" with tomato and pepper, so I'd maybe recommend even throwing in a bit of stock with the can of tomatoes. The yogurt, in my opinion, is required to break up this vegetal acidity.

I subbed canned beans and used chicken stock instead of water. Served with a nice focaccia bread, and it was delicious!

Much too much harissa. Came out much too hot and spicy. I would cut harissa at least by half. also, added collard greens and celery and doubled the carrots and doubled the beans.

Husband loved this. did a combo of northern beans and cannellini soaked in hot water for 1 hour.

Do you have to use dried beans? What about just using canned beans?