A delicious vegan couscous salad with a lemony tahini dressing that’s loaded with fresh vegetables, herbs, and chickpeas. It’s filling, satisfying, and perfect for busy weeknights, or weekend picnics.
This colourful dish is a great choice for potlucks, pool parties, or anytime you need a flavourful side dish.
This vegan couscous salad is inspired by my quinoa pasta salad, and features similar flavours, but it’s even quicker to whip up.
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What is couscous?
Couscous, the star ingredient of our vegan couscous salad is a staple food in North Africa. It’s made from tiny grains of semolina flour, which is a type of wheat flour.
Since its made from wheat, it is not gluten-free.
Couscous has a mild nutty flavour and can be combined with a variety of spices and seasonings.
Once cooked, it has a light, fluffy texture, similar to rice or quinoa. However, it’s much quicker to prepare.
It’s commonly used for soups, stews, tagines, side dishes, and/or salads, and it’s a great source of complex carbohydrates, fiber, and some essential vitamins and minerals.
Ingredients + Substitutions
Here’s everything you’ll need to make this yummy vegan couscous salad.
- Couscous: I’m using whole wheat couscous, but you may also use pearl couscous which is a larger size for added texture.
- Veggies: Including cucumber, tomato, black olives, and red onion. But you may sub or omit as needed. You may also include red bell peppers, and/or cherry tomatoes.
- Chickpeas: Add protein and texture to the dish. You may sub with lentils, black beans, or kidney beans if preferred.
- Fresh herbs: I like cilantro, but you may use another herb in its place or a combination of your favourites. Fresh basil, mint, parsley, or dill will all work well.
- Tahini: A sesame seed butter, which keeps this dish nut-free. If you cannot have sesame seeds, you may use almond butter or cashew butter with similar results.
- Lemon: For freshness and zing. Add some lemon zest for added citrusy flavour. If you don’t have a lemon on hand, use apple cider vinegar with similar results.
- Mustard: Adds a slightly tangy flavour, but it’s not overpowering.
- Spices: I’m using a little onion and garlic powder, plus salt and black pepper, to taste. Always adjust seasoning to your palette.
Instructions
(This is a summary with step by step photos, full recipe measurements and instructions are in the recipe card below.)
Cook your couscous according to package directions, transfer it to a large bowl, and set it aside to cool.
Then add the dressing ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine.
Add the remaining salad ingredients and dressing to your bowl and toss.
Serve your vegan couscous salad right away OR refrigerate it for an hour or longer before enjoying it.
Variations
- Make it gluten-free by using quinoa or brown rice in place of the couscous.
- Spicy: Add some kick to your couscous salad with a pinch of red pepper flakes, or hot sauce to the dressing.
- Sweet: For a sweeter taste, add some raisins and/or chopped dates to your salad, plus 2 tablespoons of maple syrup to the dressing.
- Nutty: Add some toasted pine nuts, slivered almonds, pecans, or walnuts for a nutty flavour.
- Cheesy: This salad is dairy-free, but if you’d like you may add some vegan feta cheese for added salty and cheesy flavour.
- Extra flavour: This vegan couscous salad is oil-free and suitable for a WFPB (whole-food-plant-based) diet. However, if you’re not avoiding oil, you may use 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil in place of water, if preferred.
See this quinoa salad for a gluten-free option.
Storage
Leftovers will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
I do not recommend freezing this one.
Notes
- I highly recommend cooking the couscous in broth instead of water to amplify the flavour of this dish.
- Feel free to sub or omit any veggies you’re not fond of. Some other great options include:
- Corn (thawed frozen, or canned)
- Halved cherry or grape tomatoes
- Any colour bell peppers
- Diced celery
- Bite-sized broccoli florets
- Chopped pickles
- Green onion or chives
- Diced zucchini
More delicious vegan salad recipes
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Buon appetito
Rosa
📖 Recipe
Ingredients
For the salad
- 1.5 cups whole wheat couscous
- 2.5 cups vegetable broth or water (for cooking)
- 1 cup roma tomatoes diced (approx. 2 tomatoes)
- 1 cup cucumber diced (approx. ½ English cucumber)
- 1.5 cups chickpeas approx. 15 ounce can, drained + rinsed
- ½ cup black olives sliced
- ¼ cup red onion finely chopped
- ½ cup fresh cilantro or parsley, basil, dill, or mint, chopped
For the dressing
- ¼ cup tahini
- ¼ cup lemon juice approx. 1 large lemon
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- salt + pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
- Bring 2.5 cups of broth to a boil in a medium pot. Then add the couscous, cover with the lid, and turn off the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes, then fluff with a fork. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and set it aside to cool. (OR follow the package directions according to the variety of couscous you're using.)
- Meanwhile, add all the salad dressing ingredients to a small bowl and stir until combined.
- Add all the remaining salad ingredients and the dressing to the bowl of couscous, and mix well to evenly distribute the dressing. Serve immediately or refrigerate for 1 hour or longer to chill.
Notes
- Corn (thawed frozen, or canned)
- Halved cherry or grape tomatoes
- Any colour bell peppers
- Diced celery
- Bite-sized broccoli florets
- Chopped pickles
- Green onion or chives
- Diced zucchini
Nutrition
FAQ
It’s made using semolina flour (wheat) and is similar to pasta, and quinoa with its slightly nutty taste.
Whole wheat couscous provides more protein, vitamins, and minerals compared to white rice. However, compared to brown rice, couscous has more protein, but less selenium, manganese, niacin, copper, and phosphorus.
Since it’s whole wheat, it’s considered healthier compared to white flour/refined white pasta.
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