Perfect as a summer side dish, this couscous tabbouleh is made with fresh herbs, veggies and pantry staples. It's easy to make in about 15 minutes, full of flavor and can be paired with meat, fish or plant-based mains.
Just like my potato cucumber salad and fruit and nut salad, this couscous tabbouleh is delicious as summer picnic food or as a BBQ side dish. It's hearty, with lots of veggies, and the fresh parsley and mint give so much flavor.
Traditional tabbouleh is made with bulgar, but using couscous is perhaps a little easier as many of us will already have it in to hand. A gluten free couscous can also be used, if that's more suitable for you.
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Ingredients
All the ingredients and their quantities are set out in the recipe card below.
Some notes on a few of them:
- Couscous - I suggest to make this salad with the regular small grain couscous (Moroccan couscous) rather than with giant couscous.
- Cucumber - I like to use mini cucumbers (also known as Persian cucumber), but English cucumber is also delicious!
- Pomegranate - these are a swap for tomatoes and give a nice pop of tart sweetness.
- Onion - this is optional. Low histamine readers may prefer to use white onion (scores 0 on the SIGHI list), or leave out.
- Herbs - make sure to use fresh parsley and fresh mint leaves as dried wouldn't work too well!
Can You Make Couscous Tabbouleh with Gluten Free Couscous?
Yes, definitely! There are quite a few gluten free couscous options now that you could use to make the salad.
Can I Add Tomatoes to the Tabbouleh?
Just like my quinoa tabbouleh, I've made this as couscous tabbouleh without tomatoes so that it's more suitable for my low histamine readers or those who aren't a fan of tomatoes. If they work for you, then you can of course add to the salad.
How to Make Couscous Tabbouleh
It's very easy to make this couscous parsley salad with easy to find, affordable ingredients. No need for any fancy kitchen equipment, all you need is a pot to cook the couscous and a small bowl for the dressing.
All the instructions are in the recipe card below, but these step by step photos should help guide you.
Step 1: Prepare the couscous
Cook the couscous to package instructions. Personally, I tip it into a pot (or heat safe bowl) and pour on boiling water, then set aside and cover for 5-6 minutes. Fluff it up with a fork to separate the 'grains' and allow to cool (image 1).
Step 2: Make the dressing
Whisk together the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, minced garlic, salt and black pepper (if using) to make the dressing (image 2).
Step 3: Dice the veggies, fruit and herbs
Dice the cucumber, red onion and fresh mint and parsley (image 3).
Step 4: Combine the tabbouleh
Once the couscous has cooled and has been 'fluffed up' with a fork, add it to a bowl along with the diced cucumber, red onion, pomegranate seeds and fresh herbs. Drizzle over the dressing and toss to combine (image 4).
Recipe Tips and Notes
- Make sure to 'fluff up' the couscous. Let the couscous sit, covered, for at least five minutes, then use a fork to make it fluffy and separate the 'grains'. Nobody likes clumpy couscous after all!
- Dice the veggies to a similar size. It's individual as to whether you like larger or smaller pieces of cucumber. Personally I like them fairly small, but up to you!
- Add even more herbs. Tabbouleh is all about the fresh herbs, so add even more parsley and mint if you like the herby flavors.
Frequently Asked Questions
I suggest to make it fresh, as the cucumber and veggies don't freeze well.
Yes, if you want even more flavor, vegetable stock can be used as a swap for water.
More Salads
Choose from lots of flavorful low histamine salads on the site including my cucumber pomegranate salad and cottage cheese chicken salad, as well as these recent recipes:
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📖 Recipe
Easy Couscous Tabbouleh
Ingredients
- ½ cup couscous gluten free, if required
- ½ cup water
- ½ cup fresh parsley up to 1 cup, to preference, finely diced
- ¼ cup fresh mint leaves finely diced
- ½ cup cucumber diced, Persian or English cucumber
- ¼ cup pomegranate seeds
- ¼ cup red onion or white onion*
For the dressing
- 2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ garlic clove minced
- pinch salt
- pinch black pepper optional
Instructions
- Make the couscous to package instructions. I tip the couscous into a pot and pour on the boiling water, cover and let it sit for 5-6 minutes. Fluff up with a fork and set aside to cool.
- Whisk together the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, garlic, salt and black pepper (if using) to make the dressing.
- Combine the cooled couscous, cucumber, pomegranate, onion, parsley and mint in a large bowl. Drizzle over the dressing and toss to combine.
Notes
- We use small grain couscous (Moroccan couscous) in this recipe rather than giant couscous.
- If you like a really herby tabbouleh salad, you can use up to a cup of fresh parsley leaves and a few more mint leaves.
- Lemon juice can be used as a swap for the vinegar, although this likely isn't suitable for low histamine readers.
- Nutritional information is auto-generated and should be understood to be an estimate.
- wheat (couscous), which scores 1. Gluten free alternatives are available if they work better for you.
- red onion isn't mentioned. White onion scores 0.
- garlic and apple cider vinegar, which score 1.
- black pepper, which scores 2.
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