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This easy vegan couscous salad has beans, cucumber, carrots, red pepper, and yellow pepper. Serve it as a side dish or an entree.

This recipe makes 12 servings as a side dish or 4 servings as an entree.

Table of Contents

(click the links below to skip to the section you’re looking for)

• Pearl Couscous Ingredients
• Stovetop Couscous
• Instant Pot Couscous
• Couscous Salad Recipe
• Salad Dressing Recipe
• FAQ
• Ingredient Substitutions
• Video
• Nutritional Information
• Contact Me with Questions
• Similar Recipes

The warm weather has arrived, and so have summer salads and bowls. This vegan couscous salad can be ready in under a half hour. It’s perfect for meal prep so make a big batch and enjoy it for multiple lunches or dinners. Spend the time you save on more important activities like swimming, picnics, and moonlight skating. I usually eat salads for lunch, unless it’s cold out. Since I live in California, I’m rarely too cold for salad. This couscous salad is a refreshing and healthy summer lunch idea for hot days. You can use any salad ingredients you like best, and buy canned beans to avoid cooking anything else.

Ingredients to Make Pearl Couscous

(jump to the substitutions section to see ingredient details and suggestions for substitutions)

• 1 cup (150g) pearled couscous
• 1 ¼ - 1 ½ cups (300-360g) water, depending on cooking method
• 1 teaspoon (6g) pink sea salt

How to Cook Pearl Couscous on the Stove

prep time: 1 min | cook time: 12 min

Combine ingredients in a saucepan. Rinse 1 cup (150g) pearled couscous, using a sifter. Transfer the washed couscous to a small saucepan with 1 teaspoon (6g) pink sea salt and 1 ½ cups (360g) water.

Cook the couscous. Put the saucepan over high heat until it starts to boil. It takes about 5 minutes to boil. Turn the stove to low, and put the lid on the saucepan. Continue cooking until all the water is soaked into the couscous. It takes 7-8 minutes to cook after you reduce the heat.

How to Cook Pearl Couscous in an Instant Pot (or Pressure Cooker)

prep time: 1 min | wait time: 20 min | cook time: 0 min

Combine ingredients in the liner of an instant pot. Rinse 1 cup (150g) of pearl couscous using a sifter, and transfer the washed couscous to the liner of an instant pot or to the pressure cooker. Add 1 ¼ cups (300g) water and 1 teaspoon (6g) of salt to the couscous.

Cook the couscous. Lock the lid on your pressure cooker or instant pot. Set the pressure to high and set the timer for 0 minutes. Turn off the Keep Warm button. If you have one of those old school pressure cookers that doesn’t have a timer, you’ll have to stay in the kitchen and watch it. That way, as soon as it comes to pressure, you can turn off the heat manually. My instant pot takes 7 minutes to come to pressure.

Release the pressure. Allow the pressure to release naturally while you prepare the other salad ingredients or do something else. If you’re in a hurry, follow the instructions in the Dollhouse shortcut. My instant pot takes 13 minutes to release naturally.

Cool the couscous. Transfer the cooked couscous to a large salad bowl.

Ingredients for Vegan Couscous Salad

(jump to the substitutions section to see ingredient details and suggestions for substitutions)

• 1 can (235g rinsed) kidney beans
• 2 cups (225g) grated carrots
• 2 cups (225g) diced cucumber
• 1 large red pepper, diced (1 ½ cups/170g)
• 1 large yellow pepper, diced (1 ½ cups/180g)

How to Make a Vegan Couscous Salad that’s Perfect for Summer

prep time: 7 min

Optional: Cut some of the carrots into cute shapes using mini fondant cutters. I chose stars for my salad. This step takes an additional 10-15 minutes.

Add grated carrots. If you haven’t grated the carrots yet, use a food processor to grate them more quickly. Add 2 cups (225g) grated carrots to the bowl.

Chop the veggies. While the couscous is cooking, dice ¾ of an organic english cucumber (~225g), 1 large red pepper (~170g), and 1 large yellow pepper (~180g). Add the diced veggies to a large bowl. Don’t forget to give the ends of the cucumbers to the dogs. This is a very important step.

Rinse the kidney beans. Open 1 can of kidney beans, and rinse them thoroughly before adding them to the bowl with the veggies.

Add cooked couscous. As soon as the couscous is ready, add it to the bowl with the veggies and beans.

Ingredients needed for the Couscous Salad Dressing

• ¼ cup (62g) tahini
• 2 teaspoons (6g) garlic
• 1 ½ tablespoons (22g) lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon (15g) apple cider vinegar
• ¼ cup (60g) water
• 2 tablespoons (30g) soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon dried parsley
• 1 small green onion (~12g)

How to Make the Dressing for the Couscous Salad

prep time: 5 min

Blend salad dressing ingredients. Combine all the salad dressing ingredients into the blender. They are ¼ cup (62g) tahini, 2 teaspoons (6g) garlic, 1 ½ tablespoons (22g) lemon juice, 1 tablespoon (15g) apple cider vinegar, ¼ cup (60g) water, 2 tablespoons (30g) soy sauce, 1 teaspoon dried parsley, and 1 chopped small green onion (~12g). Blend until smooth.

Dress the salad. Pour the dressing into the bowl and mix everything together. Serve immediately or cover it and chill it.

Questions and Answers

Is pearl couscous a grain or a pasta?

Couscous is made from semolina flour or durum flour, so it’s technically pasta. However, it has a higher protein content than most pasta. I think this is due to the processing of the flour.

Can I add tomatoes to this salad? I have so many growing in my garden.

I can’t eat tomatoes because my body doesn’t seem to like them, but you can add grape or cherry tomatoes or any other salad veggies you prefer. Some purple cabbage would give it a pretty color.

Can I serve couscous salad hot instead of cold?

Couscous salad is delicious hot or cold. I typically make this dish in the summer, so I like it cold, but you can certainly eat it as soon as the couscous is ready, instead of chilling it first.

Can couscous salad be made ahead of time?

Make this couscous salad in advance for meal prep or the night before you want to serve it. Just store it in an airtight container until you’re ready to eat it.

How long does couscous salad last in the fridge?

Store this couscous salad in an airtight container in the fridge. It should stay good for up to a week. However, if you have histamine allergies, you shouldn’t eat it after 3 days of making it.

Ingredient Substitutions

• Couscous: I discovered pearl couscous late in life. I always bought the smaller grain whole wheat Moroccan couscous from the bulk bins at Rainbow Grocery when I was young and raising vegan kids. If you’re experiencing a heat wave, use Moroccan couscous in place of the pearl couscous so you don’t have to cook it. Moroccan couscous cooks just by adding boiling water, covering it, and letting it sit for 5-10 minutes. Pearl couscous is sometimes called Israeli couscous or ptitim (Lebanese couscous is larger). RiceSelect and Bob’s Red Mill are brands of pearl couscous that are not made in Israel. If you’re gluten-free, replace the couscous with Jovial brand gluten-free orzo.
• Kidney Beans: I used a 15.5 ounce can (435g) of organic kidney beans. I buy them at Costco for a really good price. Once a can of beans is rinsed, it should weigh about 235g. Using beans that started as dry beans is always healthier than using canned beans. If you have the time, soak kidney beans overnight and then rinse them and cook them in fresh water. If you have even more time, you can even sprout them for a few days to increase mineral absorption. I highly recommend this over canned beans if you have a nickel allergy. The beans in this recipe can be any bean, not just kidney. Chickpeas, black beans, kidney beans, and navy beans are all good options.
• Carrots: To save time, you could buy the carrots already grated. But I usually use a food processor to grate them. 2 cups of grated carrots is about 225 grams.
• Cucumber: I used ¾ of an organic english cucumber in this recipe. If you’re using different kinds of cucumbers, you might need a different amount. You want it to measure 2 cups diced or 225 grams with the ends removed.
• Tahini: If you avoid tahini, you can replace it with peanut butter or almond butter. Or, replace the entire dressing in this recipe with caesar dressing, ranch dressing, or italian dressing.
• Garlic: Replace 2 teaspoons (6g) of garlic with ¾ teaspoon (2g) of garlic powder.
• Lemon Juice: If you don’t have lemon juice, replace it with 1 ½ tablespoons (22g) lime juice or additional vinegar.
• Apple Cider Vinegar: You can replace the 1 tablespoon (15g) apple cider vinegar with an equal amount of any vinegar you have.
• Water: Use filtered water whenever possible. You can also replace the ¼ cup (60g) water with veggie broth. You just need some liquid to get the salad dressing to blend.
• Soy Sauce: If you are on a low-nickel or soy-free diet, replace the 2 tablespoons (30g) soy sauce with coconut aminos.
• Dried Parsley: If you grow fresh herbs, replace 1 teaspoon dried parsley with 1 tablespoon fresh parsley. You can also add some basil, dill, or whatever you have in your garden. I garnished my salad with edible flowers since I grow society garlic.
• Green Onion: I don’t like raw onion, but if you do, this would be a great place to use red onion. Or use chives in place of the green onion. If you make this sub, just replace with an equal amount (~12g) Or replace it with 1 ½ teaspoons of onion powder.
• Other Veggies: I used yellow pepper and red pepper because I like having a rainbow of colors in my salads. I also added society garlic flowers that grow in my backyard for purple. You can add purple daikon or purple kale if you want some purple in your rainbow salad.

Video

Nutrition Facts

This nutritional information is for one serving. I’m assuming that a serving is enough to have this as a meal by itself, so 1 serving is around 2 ½ cups of couscous salad.

• Servings: 4
• Calories: 350
• Fiber: 9g
• Saturated fat: 2g
• Total fat: 11g
• Cholesterol: 0mg
• Sodium: 1026mg
• Sugars: 6g
• Total Carbohydrates: 52g
• Protein: 14g
• Calcium: 84mg
• Potassium: 714mg
• Iron: 4mg
• Vitamin C: 146mg

Comments or Questions?

If you make this recipe, I would love it if you’d snap a pic, post to instagram, and tag me @vegandollhouse. It seriously makes my day/week/month!

Please message me (instagram or email) if you have any questions or feedback about the recipe.

Similar Recipes

If you like this couscous salad recipe, you might also like my millet salad recipe. It’s similar in that it combines grains, veggies, and beans with a dressing, but it’s gluten-free.

Other filling salad recipes you might like are my vegan pasta salad and my vegan potato salad with extra dill. They’re both made with food coloring, but you can omit the colors for an everyday meal at home.

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I mostly cook with organic ingredients, but only specify organic when it’s necessary to ensure the item is vegan.

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