Cous Cous & Meatballs with Nat Motte!!

In this video, 3OH!3's Nat Motte pops by the kitchen to help Ryan up his #daddinner game with his mom's cous cous and meatball recipe. Spoiler alert- the kids LOVE it so yes, it's worth all the steps.

RECIPE: Cous Cous and Meatballs

Ingredients for the meatballs:
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ras el hanout
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
1/2 teaspoon herbs de Provence
1/2 teaspoon turmeric
1 tablespoon sale
1 teaspoon black pepper, ground
1 bunch parsley
1 bunch mint
1/2 of a yellow onion, finely diced
2 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 pound ground lamb
1 pound ground beef

Ingredients for the couscous:
3 cups couscous
6 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon chicken (or veggie) stock concentrated paste (“Better than Bouillon”)

Ingredients for the broth:
2 sticks cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 tablespoons ras el hanout
1 teaspoon herbs de Provence
1 tablespoon honey
2 large lemons, juiced
3 tablespoons chicken (or veggie) stock concentrated paste (“Better than Bouillon”)
1 bunch parsley
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 large carrots, diced
3 stocks celery (with fronds), diced
1 large sweet potato
1 zucchini
1 red bell pepper
2-3 cups cabbage
1 tablespoon honey
2 large lemons, juiced
1 cup peas, frozen
8-12 cups hot water

Directions:

Prep the herbs:
Finely chop the parsley and mint. Set aside half of the parsley for the meatballs.

Prep the veggies:
Finely dice the onion. Set aside half for the meatballs
Chop the carrots into small pieces
Chop the red bell pepper into long 1/2’ wide slices
Chop the celery into small pieces (include the fronds!)
Peel and chop the sweet potato into 1/2” thick slices
Chop the zucchini into 1/2” thick slices
Chop the cabbage into 1” thick wedges
Remove the vein from the chard and roughly chop the remaining leaves
Open the artichoke heart bottom can and chop the heart bottoms in half - save some of the pickling liquid

THE COOK:

The couscous:
Boil 2 x the amount of water to dry couscous amount (6 cups water for 3 cups couscous). Add a tablespoon of olive oil and a teaspoon of better than bouillon chicken (or veggie) stock paste to the water. Stir in the couscous once water is boiling and chicken stock is incorporated. Remove from heat and cover for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes open the lid and fluff the couscous (break it up) with a fork. Cover again until serving time.

The meatballs:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Add the ras el hanout, cumin seeds, ground cumin, turmeric and cinnamon to a pan over medium heat. Fry the dry spices for a short time until fragrant, before they burn. Add the oil and the half onion (finely diced). Reduce to medium low heat and fry until the onions clarify and become soft.
In a large bowl, add the fried onion and spices, parsley, mint, salt, pepper, ground lamb, beaten egg, breadcrumbs. Add more spices if you’re feeling frisky.
Mix the ingredients well and form meatballs with them.
If you’re a real go-getter, fry the meatballs in a small amount of butter live oil so that they get a nice quick crust on the outside and transfer to the oven on a lined baking sheet after.
If you’re lazy like me, place the raw meatballs on a lined baking sheet and cook for 20-30 minutes, depending on the size of the meatballs

The broth:
Bring an extra large pot up to medium heat. Add the dry spices and toast them for 60 seconds until they are fragrant (before they burn).
Reduce the heat to medium low and add the olive oil, onions and celery and cook until onions are clear and soft - 5-7 minutes (carrots and celery will soften too). Stir often.
Add the sweet potatoes and the cabbage and continue to stir. Cook for another 4-5 minutes.
Add the crushed tomatoes and the chicken bouillon (or veggie) and stir. Continue to sauté for 2-3 minutes.
Add the zucchini and bell pepper, sauté for 1 minute.
Add in the hot water and stir. You can now cover the pot and bring to a healthy boil for about 12-15 minutes.
Season the broth to taste once done (adding more ras el hanout for spice and kick, cumin, lemon for acidity, honey for sweetness).
Once broth is done, add in the artichoke heart bottoms, the fresh parsley and the frozen peas.

To a bowl add the couscous, a few meatballs on top and ladle the broth and the veggies on top of it all. Add harissa hot sauce to taste.

Like, comment and subscribe!!

Tik Tok @dad.dinner
Business inquiries: [email protected]