Try something new...cous cous (Ainsley Harriott Cous Cous)

Member Name: loopyloulon

Product:	Ainsley Harriott Cous Cous
Date:	18/05/09 (82 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Tasty, healthy, readily available

Disadvantages: None

Cous cous isn't everyone's cup of tea, and is most certainly not my husbands. He refuses to even touch the stuff. I on the other hand love it. On it's own it's incredibly bland but if you spice it up it can be really delicious. This product takes all the hassle out of thinking what to put in your cous cous to make it taste decent as it comes ready flavoured.

What is cous cous?
Couscous is a small grain which is made by sprinkling wheat semolina grains with cold salted water and rolling and coating them in fine wheat flour. It's very popular in North African cuisine.

What flavours, how much and where available:
The cous cous packs come in 5 flavours. These are Citrus Kick, Tomato Tango, Spice Sensation, Moroccan Medley and Roasted Vegetable Style. The packs are available in all supermarkets and cost £1.17 per pack. Inside the pack you get two 100g sachets that each make enough for two people. All the packs are vegetarian and less that two percent fat, which makes them great for anyone watching their figure! The cous cous is also said to contain fibre, protein and some B vitamins that are apparantly good for releasing energy from the food we eat.

How I make:
The directions are simple. You just add boiling water to the grains, wait five minutes and then fluff up with a fork. It says as an optional extra you can add butter or olive oil but i never do as it's just extra fat and i have enough of that!

What i think:
I have only tried the roasted vegetable. Inside the pack there is the cous cous grains along with dehydrated looking vegetables. Once you pour on the water it immediately starts to be soaked into the cous cous. The cous cous turns an orangey colour from the roasted vegetables. I really enjoyed the taste. It was not as all bland but also not spicey. It was rich tasting but not fatty and much more interesting than plain cous cous. The vegetables are merely a flavouring, not really a texture. I had mine at lunch time cold and on top of a salad. You could also have it as a side dish to a meal of say chicken and salad. The cous cous can be served hot or cold. As this makes two portions per sachet and my husband hates cous cous i kept half of the cooked cous cous in the fridge overnight and ate it the next day. It stayed really fresh and actually tasted better the next day when the flavours really had chance to develop. I would definately try the other flavours in the range. It is a welcome change to the usual rice, potatoes and pasta.

Summary: Great change from the usual