Painting with allspice and caraway

I have for a long time been interested in Middle Eastern and North African cooking. I love how these cuisines are densely packed with flavors. Learning how to combine all the necessary spices is like learning to paint. Like making different shades by mixing different color, you can bring out all the nuances of flavor by combining spices in the right way. In cooking this kind of food, I still feel like a novice though. Like the art students sitting at museums making sketches of the big masterpieces. But the more you practice the better you get. This time I used chickpeas and pearl couscous as my canvas in a stew spiced with allspice and caraway. The couscous is cooked in the stew making is almost risotto-like. Make sure to use pearl couscous (moghrabiah) and not the fine kind. You can also substitute the couscous for grains, although this will increase the cooking time. Serve the stew with flatbreads and garnish with mint leaves, pomegranate seeds and roasted nuts.

(Turns out that I need a bit more practice with drawing Middle Eastern patterns and designs too. Sorry about the not so beautiful picture for this recipe. Trust me in that it's worth trying despite that though!)

You can use canned chickpeas. In that case, use about 2 dl and add them to the couscous and onions together with the other ingredients that make up the broth.

Two big servings (or small ones with leftovers)

1 dl dried chickpeas

8 dl water

1 bay leaf

1 cinnamon stick

½ + ¼ tsp. allspice

2 tsp. salt

½ yellow onion

1 clove of garlic

1 tsp. caraway seeds

1 dl pearl couscous

1 tbsp. all-purpose flour

1 tbsp. lime juice

Salt and pepper

Soak the chickpeas over night.

The next day, drain the chickpeas and add them to a pot together with the water, ½ tsp. allspice, the bay leaf, cinnamon stick and salt. Bring to a boil and allow the chickpeas to simmer until they’re tender, about 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, thinly slice the onion and chop the garlic. Heat a pan to medium head and add a good lug of oil. Add the onion, garlic, remaining allspice and caraway seeds to the pan and sauté for 5 minutes union the onion has started to brown. At this point, add the couscous and flour and fry for another 2 minutes. Pour the broth and chickpeas in the pan and let simmer under a lid for about 15 minutes until the sauce has thickened and the pearl couscous is cooked through.

Serve with pomegranate seeds, mint leaves and roasted nuts.