Recipe
🍽️ DINNER
Mauritanian Couscous
Steamed semolina piled with lamb and Saharan vegetables in a spiced broth, Mauritania's share of the Maghreb couscous tradition.
Mauritanian · medium · serves 6
prep 25 min · cook 75 min
~725 cal · 42g protein · 77g carbs · 28g fat · 8g fiber · 8g sugars · 10g sat fat (estimated, per serving)
↓ Jump to Recipe
AI-generated illustration
belongs to four countries at once: UNESCO inscribed the knowledge and practices around it in 2020 as a shared tradition of Mauritania, Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. Mauritania's version reflects its place where the Maghreb meets the Sahel, lamb or goat simmered with vegetables in a spiced broth and heaped over steamed .
The vegetables are what the desert edge provides, carrots, turnip, cabbage, pumpkin and chickpeas, cooked down into the broth that later moistens the grain. The is steamed over that broth so it drinks in the flavour, then fluffed and mounded on a communal platter.
It is festive, shared food, the meat and vegetables piled on top and the broth spooned over, eaten from one dish in the spirit of Mauritanian hospitality.
Saved recipes and passport stamps are kept on this device. Sign in to keep them across your devices and leave reviews.
Make it yours
✓ Naturally dairy-, nut-, egg- and pork-free. No swaps needed.
Toggle a diet and the ingredients rewrite themselves with regional substitutes.
🥕 Vegetarian
🌱 Vegan
🌾 Gluten-Free
🥛 Dairy-Free
🥜 Nut-Free
🥚 Egg-Free
🐖 Pork-Free
Dietary labels are a cooking guide, not allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish; we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, read the label on every product you use, and note that a kitchen can cross-contaminate in ways a recipe cannot control.
Ingredients
US
Metric
Serves 6
1.5 lb lamb, cut in pieces
3 cups ()
1 onion, chopped
2 tomatoes, grated
3 carrots, in chunks
1 turnip, in chunks
1/2 head cabbage, in wedges
2 cups pumpkin, in chunks
1 cup cooked chickpeas
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp black pepper
3 tbsp
Instructions
1
Brown the lamb with the onion in the oil in a large pot, then add the grated tomato, cumin and pepper and cook a few minutes.
2
Pour in water to cover, bring to a boil, then simmer until the lamb is nearly tender, about 40 minutes.
3
Add the carrots, turnip, cabbage, pumpkin and chickpeas and simmer until the vegetables are soft.
4
Meanwhile steam the couscous over the broth (or prepare it separately), fluffing it with a fork so the grains stay separate.
✎ Chef’s note
Steam the couscous in two or three goes, fluffing between each, and it comes out light instead of claggy.
5
Mound the couscous on a platter, pile the meat and vegetables on top, and spoon the broth over to moisten.
Nouakchott home cooking.
Ratings & reviews
Cooked it? Rate this dish:
No account needed. Sign in to leave a full review with a comment.
Cooked it?
Kept on this device, no account needed. Sign in to leave a review and keep your passport across your devices.
No reviews yet, be the first to cook it.
🌏 While it simmers, know your destination
📍
Nouakchott. The country sits between the Sahara and the Atlantic and both halves show up on the table. Camel meat and milk, dates and slow-roasted lamb come from the desert side; rice cooked with fish, in the Senegalese ceebu jen manner, comes from the river and the coast.
🗺️
Mauritania. Tea is a sequence, not a cup. Green tea is brewed three times from the same leaves, poured from a height into small glasses to raise a head of foam, and served in three rounds that are said to go from bitter to sweet. Sitting through all three is the social obligation, and refusing partway is noticed.
🌍
Africa. Africa's fifty-four nations hold cuisines as different as Morocco's slow-cooked tagines and South Africa's open-fire braai, yet shared threads run through them: ancient grains like millet, sorghum, and teff; stews thickened with groundnut, okra, or palm; and fiery condiments from Tunisian harissa to Ethiopian berbere. Staple starches, fufu, injera, ugali, couscous, anchor communal meals often eaten by hand from a shared dish, where hospitality is a point of honor.
The story behind this dish is up top, worth a read while the pot works.
More from Mauritania
MéchouiWhole lamb (or a shoulder) slow-roasted with cumin and salt until falling off the bone, desert feast food.
LakhSteamed millet couscous under cool sweetened curdled milk and fresh grated coconut, the Sahelian sweet Mauritania makes to mark the end of Ramadan.
Maru wa LahméMeat and vegetables simmered in a mustard-scented broth, then rice cooked in that broth, the generous communal lunch of the Mauritanian table.
Browse all Mauritania recipes →
Good to know
You’ll need: Pot or saucepan, Steamer.
Storing it: Stews and braises keep 3 to 4 days refrigerated and often taste better the next day. Reheat gently, adding a splash of water if it has thickened.
Make it a Mauritania meal
ZrigDrink
Dates Stuffed with ButterDessert
Leksour (Lamb Stew on Pancakes)Lunch
Similar dishes from around the world
NdoléCameroon
Sancocho DominicanoDominican Republic
Sauce Graine (Palm Fruit Stew)Côte d’Ivoire
LocroArgentina
PitiAzerbaijan
Bosanski LonacBosnia & Herzegovina
Cuisine
Diet
Themes
Frequently asked questions
What is Mauritanian Couscous?
Steamed semolina piled with lamb and Saharan vegetables in a spiced broth, Mauritania's share of the Maghreb couscous tradition.
Where does Mauritanian Couscous come from?
Mauritanian Couscous is a Mauritanian dish from Nouakchott, Mauritania.
Can Mauritanian Couscous be made vegan, gluten-free, or dairy-free?
This Mauritanian Couscous recipe includes substitution suggestions for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, egg-free, and pork-free versions, including several at once such as gluten-free and dairy-free together. Treat them as a starting guide rather than a guarantee, and see the allergen note below.
Is Mauritanian Couscous safe for people with food allergies?
Our dietary labels and substitutions are a cooking guide, not medical or allergen-safety advice. We track dairy, egg, gluten, tree nuts and peanuts (we count coconut as a tree nut, following FDA labeling), fish, and shellfish, but we do not screen for sesame, soy, mustard, celery, or sulphites. If you have a food allergy, always read the label on every product you use, and remember a home or commercial kitchen can cross-contaminate ingredients in ways a recipe cannot control.
How long does Mauritanian Couscous take to make?
About 100 minutes total (25 minutes prep, 75 minutes cooking), serving 6.
Get the Sunday Spin
One dish from somewhere in the world, in your inbox every Sunday. No spam, just dinner inspiration you can cook that day.