After a long day at work, the last thing I want to do when I get back home is spend a long time preparing dinner.
In fact, the less time I have to spend in the kitchen on weeknights, the better. That’s why I’m always looking for recipes that are simple to cook, but also filling enough to satisfy my hunger.
Today, I’m going to teach you how to make a recipe that’s perfect for those busy weeknights.
We’ll be making an extremely flavorful couscous dish mixed with sauteed vegetables and shrimp. It’s easy, delicious, and quick – in just 30 minutes, dinner will be on the table!
Fresh shrimp is perfect for this dish, since it cooks in just a few minutes.
But if you are really pressed for time on a busy weeknight (like I often am!), you can definitely use the precooked or frozen versions that already have the shells and veins removed. If they are frozen, be sure to thaw them prior to cooking.
Need help prepping your cute crustaceans? Learn how to peel and devein raw shrimp like a pro! And PLEASE save the shells to make your own seafood stock. You’ll never go back to the store-bought kind!
This recipe makes two servings, but you can easily duplicate it to make a larger batch that will last you through the entire week.
Hungry yet? Let’s check out the recipe right now!
The Recipe
| Servings | Prep Time |
| 2 servings | 15 minutes |
| Cook Time |
| 10 minutes |
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Easy to make, filling, and also incredibly tasty, this recipe for homemade couscous with sauteed vegetables and shrimp is going to be a staple in your home.
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- 3 cups water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup dried couscous
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small eggplant diced
- 1 small zucchini diced
- 1/2 pound shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1/2 pint cherry tomatoes quartered
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves minced
- 1/4 cup fresh parsley minced
- 1 lemon juiced (about 2 tablespoons of lemon juice)
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- Combine the water and salt together and bring to a boil. Pour the water over the couscous in a large bowl, mix well, and let it sit for the next 15 minutes until hydrated and fluffy. Once ready, use a fork to fluff it up and set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the eggplant and zucchini until cooked, about 5 minutes. Add the shrimp and sauté for a few more minutes until fully cooked.
- Divide the cooked couscous between two bowls. Top with the sautéed shrimp and vegetables, the cherry tomatoes, basil, and parsley.
- Drizzle the lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil on top.
Recipe by Jennifer Swartvagher.
Nutritional Information
Cooking by the Numbers…
Step 1 – Get the Mise en Place Ready
Measure out the couscous needed. Set out the eggplant, zucchini, shrimp, cherry tomatoes, basil, parsley, lemon, and olive oil.
Step 2 – Dice, Slice, and Mince
Dice the eggplant and the zucchini, quarter the cherry tomatoes, and mince the basil and parsley.
Step 3 – Hydrate the Couscous
Combine the water and salt in a pot and bring to a boil.
Pour the boiling water over the dried couscous, mix well, and let it sit for the next 15 minutes. Once ready, use a fork to fluff it up and set it aside.
For an easy (and healthy!) way to prepare couscous, you can try our recipe for electric pressure whole wheat couscous.
Step 4 – Saute
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet and saute the eggplant and zucchini until tender, about 5 minutes.
New to cooking? We have plenty of cooking tips for beginners in the kitchen, from organizing to choosing cooking supplies!
As the veggies cook, you may be tempted to add more oil, but resist doing so. Eggplant has a tendency to soak up fat. If you add more than what is necessary, the eggplant will become very greasy.
Once the vegetables are tender, add the shrimp and cook for a few more minutes.
Use any grade of pure cooking olive oil for sauteing purposes. Save the extra virgin olive oil for the final garnish to get the full effect of its fresh, peppery taste.
Step 5 – Mix and Dress
Divide the couscous evenly into two bowls, and top with the shrimp, vegetables, cherry tomatoes, basil, and parsley.
Drizzle the lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil on top, mix well, and serve!
Filling, Flavorful, and Delicious
If you need a tasty and filling meal on your table in less than half an hour, this recipe is here to your rescue! It’s easy to bring together and so amazingly flavorful.
I know you’ll be begging for seconds, because I sure did!
Looking for more quick and healthy meals? Read up on our 7 fast and fresh summer recipes for easy dishes to enjoy throughout the whole week. If you love the combo of shrimp and pasta, make our healthy Greek Shrimp Pasta Salad or our Spicy Shrimp Fra Diavolo.
But if you want to stick with eggplant, try some of these recipes:
- Spicy Curry
- Rollatini with Lemony Herbed Ricotta
- Marinara-Stuffed
- Classic Ratatouille
- Rigatoni with Vegetable Bolognese
Have you cooked with couscous before? What are some of your favorite ways to eat it? Tell us in the comments below!
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Photos by Felicia Lim, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published July 27th, 2015 by Jennifer Swartvagher. Revised and updated May 18th, 2017 by Felicia Lim.
*Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.
About Felicia Lim
Felicia Lim is a Singaporean who moved to Argentina for love. Based in Buenos Aires, also known as “the Paris of South America,” she fills her days with freelance writing, recipe development, and food photography – three passions that give her endless joy. When she isn’t typing away at her computer, cooking in the kitchen, or shooting in her balcony-studio, you can probably find her curled up on the couch, lost in the pages of a good book.
Couscous, really easy to make, What a great idea for kids too. Very easy for little kids to eat. This dish is a really nice combination. I love eggplant. The cherry tomatoes always add really great flavor. The couscous will make it really filling.
This post made me have a flash back. I remember i had eaten this type of rice/pasta many years ago in elementary school and haven’t eaten it since. It is nice to see how this dish can be prepared in different ways to make it tasty.
I love couscous, as it’s so versatile, and you can add almost any vegetable to it. I’m vegetarian, so I’ll probably give this recipe a go without the shrimp. I haven’t had couscous in ages, so maybe it’s time I try it again.
I haven’t had couscous in quite a while. I tend to get into the habit of making the same dishes over and over, so I like coming here to Foodal to get some new menu ideas. This one has ingredients I love, and is a nice twist on my usual stir fries and fried rice dishes. I particularly like that it has eggplant, a favorite in this household.
This looks like it would work really well with scallops too!
Scallops would be a delicious addition to this recipe.
This looks great. I’d probably halve the quantities and use it to stuff bell peppers with – possibly substituting the shrimp with chicken, or even mushrooms if I wanted to create a vegetarian option.
I love making stuffed peppers and couscous make the dish so much lighter. I will have to try that out.
Being half-Jordanian, I have always enjoyed couscous myself, especially with cooked eggplants, chicken, and carrots. However, I have never tried it with shrimp, mainly because it is not customary to do so in a Middle Eastern dish such as this. I would consider trying this with different seafood as well; I know that previous comments have mentioned scallops. Thank you for the recipe!
My mom makes a similar dish but without the vegetables. Our whole family loves it, but I bet the vegetables add so much more flavor. The zucchini especially sounds delicious. I can’t wait to tell her about this recipe!
I actually had couscous for the first time a couple of weeks ago and hated it, but let me be clear: I ate it at a Souplantation, which is a chain restaurant with a limited salad bar. This recipe looks a million times better than what I ate, so I’m assuming it tastes far better, too. I know it’s a healthy food, so I might incorporate it into my diet sometime in the near future.
This recipe looks amazing, got to try it. My family loves shrimp so I think this would be a hit. I do believe I would add more variety of vegetables to it, maybe some summer squash, mushrooms and bell pepper. You could probably add any variety of vegetables and it would be great.
This recipe looks amazing, got to try it. My family loves shrimp so I think this would be a hit. I do believe I would add more variety of vegetables to it, maybe some summer squash, mushrooms and bell pepper. You could probably add any variety of vegetables and it would be great.
This recipe looks so delicious. I made a casserole similar to this a few months back but instead of the eggplant, I used broccoli and it was great. I think I might try this out this weekend, but I’ve never had eggplant before. Is it difficult to work with? I don’t know if I want to even try it or just swap it out with broccoli… Hmm decisions, decisions.
The photo and the recipe, look and sound amazing!! I’m seriously going to have to give this recipe a whirl.
This recipe looks so good. I do not believe I have ever had couscous before. My big concern is getting my daughter to eat this. She loves Shrimp, so that may be the only way I can achieve her eating this. My fiance, not sure he will be up for trying it. I on the other hand, can totally use this recipe and make this for our next big family get together. We are huge into having pot-lucks..so this may be just what we need. Our next big get together is the super bowl. Thank you for this recipe. It looks delicious and I cannot wait to make it!
I had been looking for a tasty and less boring alternative to rice so I decided to try this recipe out. The one alteration that I did is that I love garlic, so I decided that for a more aromatic and flavorful dish I would take 2 to 3 cloves of garlic, press them with a garlic press and cook that until golden before adding the zucchini and eggplant .. if the garlic browns a bit too much use a bit of water when adding the vegetables ( careful with the hot oil as it will spatter on contact if it is too hot!). Use just a little water if needed, as too much water will make the vegetables loose their crispness. I chose to use little dill since I feel it can be overpowering, but in the right proportion it give it an aromatic essence that is great. The blend of lemon and shrimp really complement each other, and along with the eggplant, this dish feels like a well balanced portion of grains and proteins. I found that this was a great alternative for dinner as it was light, yet satisfying. It is not hard to make either when I have guests over since it is colorful enough to impress. I would definitely cook it again for both my family and my guests.
I love this! Gonna make it tomorrow. Well, except for one thing…
Could you please give me an idea of what can I substitute the shrimps with?
I would really appreciate the advice.
I love coucous and the recipes I have already tried so far are nothing like this. I want to try your recipe with the eggplant and see if me and my family like it.
This recipe looks so yummy! Me and my family love any meal that has couscous in it. Most of the time we add meat to it. I have never tried it with eggplant but am sure it tastes good. I will make this soon once I have all the ingredients.
This looks really delicious. I’m a big fan of pasta and I personally think this could be perfect for a sunday’s lunch with the family. I will copy this down and take it into account for further meetings. Thank you for sharing.