Food & Wine USA - (03)March 2019

16 MARCH 2019

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IN AN ERA WHEN we are embracing

all things handmade, from fresh

pasta to one-of-a-kind ceramics,

it’s still fairly uncommon to see

a restaurant hand-rolling its own

couscous. That’s because the pro-

cess of making it from scratch is

labor-intensive, repetitive, and

time-consuming. Cooks must roll

the semolina flour over and over so

that the tiny particles stick to one

another, clumping up into tender

granules without forming a dough.

Chef Meir Adoni from Nur in New

York City, one of a few restaurants

making couscous this way, refers

to the motion as a kind of rub-

bing, “as if you are warming your

hands.” But the lighter texture and

fresh taste of hand-rolled grains

make it worth the effort.

Ron and Leetal Arazi, owners of

the artisanal food company New

York Shuk—which specializes in

products inspired by Sephardic

and Middle Eastern Jewish cui-

sines—are on a mission to show

people the way artisanal couscous

should taste by teaching them how

to make it at home. In addition to

selling spices and condiments,

they offer couscous classes and a

DIY couscous kit. The kit includes

everything you need to make your

own couscous at home, including

a Laguiole couscoussièr steamer.

(Order it online at nyshuk.com.)

The Arazis’ goal is to make from-

scratch couscous more approach-

able by demonstrating how

manageable—and rewarding—it is

to make it by hand. As Ron says,

“It’s the difference between buying

bread that comes inside a bag at

the supermarket and a freshly

baked loaf.” NINA FRIEND

TRENDSPOTTING

Keep on Rolling The art of making

couscous from scratch is worth the

time and the muscle.

KISH-KASH

NEW YORK CITY

Chef Einat Admony’s

restaurant—named

after the Hebrew word

for a couscous sieve—

focuses on Jewish

North African cuisine

with an emphasis on

hand-rolled couscous,

offered in dishes like

chicken tagine and fish

in a spicy tomato sauce.

kishkashnyc.com

4 to Try Where to

sample hand-

rolled couscous

SABA

NEW ORLEANS

At his Israeli restaurant,

chef Alon Shaya serves

hand-rolled couscous

as a side dish, flavored

with dried cherries and

Persian lime butter. “We

steam our couscous,

rather than boiling it, to

help keep it soft and

light,” Shaya notes.

eatwithsaba.com

NUR

NEW YORK CITY

Chef Meir Adoni, who

learned how to hand-roll

couscous from his

Moroccan grandmother,

serves it two ways: with

lamb chops, pumpkin

tershi, roasted carrots,

and yogurt, and an

off-menu vegetarian

version with Broccolini,

cabbage, and roasted

potatoes. nurnyc.com

MOURAD

SAN FRANCISCO

Mourad Lahlou has been

serving hand-rolled

couscous—served with

fava bean puree, Swiss

chard, sunflower seed,

and mint—at his

restaurant Mourad since

2015. mouradsf.com