Warm Couscous Salad with Apricot Vinaigrette
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A savory and sweet couscous salad with scallions, sliced almonds and a fruity apricot vinaigrette.
I love Moroccan food, especially the blending of savory and sweet, which is the idea behind this delicious salad. Made with couscous, scallions, fresh herbs, crunchy almonds, and a tangy-sweet apricot vinaigrette, it’s the perfect side dish for summer. By that I mean it’s wonderfully light, takes mere minutes to make, travels well to a picnic or BBQ, and can be served warm or room temperature. I recommend serving it with my Grilled Moroccan Chicken but it would be good with just about any chicken, pork or lamb dish.
Table of Contents
“Winner! Fast, easy, delicious, and pretty! New favorite! Thank you!!”
What You’ll Need To Make Warm Couscous Salad With Apricot Vinaigrette
- Low Sodium Chicken or Vegetable Broth: Adds depth of flavor to the couscous.
- Butter: Enhances the couscous’s richness and moisture.
- Couscous: Serves as the hearty base of the salad. Most people think of couscous as a grain, but it’s actually a form of pasta made from semolina flour.
- Apricot Preserves: Provides a sweet and tangy element to the vinaigrette.
- Olive Oil: Adds richness and smoothness to the dressing.
- White Wine Vinegar: Adds acidity to balance the sweetness of the apricot preserves.
- Scallions: Adds a mild onion flavor and freshness.
- Fresh Chopped Parsley or Mint: Adds a burst of fresh, herbal notes. This is optional but I love the pop of color and flavor it adds.
- Sliced Almonds: Adds crunch and a nutty flavor to the salad.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
Step-By-Step Instructions
Bring the broth, butter, and ¼ teaspoon salt to a boil in a medium pot.
Add the couscous and stir. Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and remove from the heat. Let sit for 5 minutes, then fluff the couscous immediately with a fork so it doesn’t clump together.
In a small bowl, whisk together the apricot preserves, olive oil, vinegar, ¼ teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of fresh black pepper.
Add about three-quarters of the vinaigrette to the couscous.
Stir to combine. Taste and add the remaining vinaigrette, little by little, if necessary (you may not need it all). Be sure to add all the little chunks of apricot from the vinaigrette, as they tend to settle at the bottom of the bowl (just use a fork to fish them out).
Stir in the scallions, herbs, and sliced almonds. Taste and adjust seasoning (I usually add a good bit of salt).
Serve warm or at room temperature.
This recipe was adapted and modified from Real Simple magazine.
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Warm Couscous Salad with Apricot Vinaigrette
A savory and sweet couscous salad with scallions, sliced almonds and a fruity apricot vinaigrette.
Ingredients
- 1½ cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth, best quality such as Swanson
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- Salt
- 1 10-ounce box couscous (1½ cups)
- 6 tablespoons apricot preserves, best quality such as Bonne Maman
- 4½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 scallions, white and green parts, finely chopped
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley or mint (optional)
- ⅓ cup sliced almonds
Instructions
- Bring the broth, butter, and ¼ teaspoon salt to a boil in a medium pot. Add the couscous and stir. Cover the pot with a tight-fitting lid and remove from the heat. Let sit for 5 minutes, then fluff the couscous immediately with a fork so it doesn't clump together.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the apricot preserves, olive oil, vinegar, ¼ teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of fresh black pepper. Add about three-quarters of the vinaigrette to the couscous and stir to combine. Taste and add the remaining vinaigrette, little by little, if necessary (you may not need it all). Be sure to add all the little chunks of apricot from the vinaigrette, as they tend to settle at the bottom of the bowl (just use a fork to fish them out). Stir in the scallions, herbs, and sliced almonds. Taste and adjust seasoning (I usually add a good bit of salt) and serve warm or at room temperature.
- Make-Ahead Instructions: The salad can be made up to 2 days ahead of time and stored in a covered container in the refrigerator; add the almonds right before serving.
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 375
- Fat: 15g
- Saturated fat: 3g
- Carbohydrates: 52g
- Sugar: 9g
- Fiber: 3g
- Protein: 9g
- Sodium: 227mg
- Cholesterol: 5mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Hi there,
Love your recipes !! Would this side dish go well with the Spicy Chicken Thighs with sweet and tangy honey glaze?
Yes, definitely. 🙂
This was a wonderful side with the Moroccan chicken. I did add chopped water chestnuts for a little crunch.
I served this with your Filipino Chicken Adobo for a dinner party recently and I honestly had one guest yell to me while I was in the kitchen retrieving something: “This couscous is so good!” I honestly never thought someone would notice couscous like that but this recipe really sings. I used Apple Cider Vinegar, I toasted the almonds until nice and golden and nutty, and I used peach preserves b/c that is all I had. Outstanding. My husband is usually a low carb guy but he ate every last bit of these leftovers. Another great recipe, Jenn!!!
Any chance I can substitute Apple Cider Vinegar for the White Wine Vinegar?
Sure, Diane – that’s fine. 🙂
Super great especially with the Moroccan Chicken. A real winner!!
My husband loves this. I use toasted, slivered almonds instead of sliced and use both the Italian parsley and the mint.
Absolutely loved this! It was an excellent accompaniment to a spice-rubbed grilled chicken thigh recipe I made. It’s super quick and easy to make. I used the fresh mint and thought it was perfect. My only recommendation is to double the recipe. Four of us finished it all and I’m sure our guests would have loved more if we’d had it! This will be on repeat for summer barbecues with friends.
This is the first recipe from Jenn I didn’t enjoy. I can’t say what I don’t like about it but it just didn’t make me want to eat more. But will try more of her recipes!
I’m making this with the Moroccan grilled chicken and Moroccan Carrot and Chickpea salad. I already heavily sampled the carrot salad which is delicious! I do not have scallions. Would you sub shallots, onions or red onions instead or just do without?
Hi Janet, Any if those will work – I’d probably go with red onions for a little color but I’d definitely soak them in water for 10 minutes then drain to take the bite out of them. Hope your dinner is delicious!
Thanks as usual Jenn, dinner was definitely delicious! I wanted to follow up and saw that before I got your feedback I had gone ahead and used shallots. I would not actually recommend them as I felt it gave this couscous a crunch that did not seem right (though I like the almonds). The scallions are a better texture. I do like crunch in my couscous when I make it with greek salad ingredients of cucumber, onion, tomato, green pepper, and feta with a dijon red wine vinagrette but it didn’t seem right here. loved the carrot salad with it too!
Good to know- thanks so much for the follow-up Janet!
We made this dish tonight to accompany your grilled moroccan chicken. It was my first attempt making any cous cous dish & it won’t be the last. It was so easy. I made the dish as written. Adding mint instead of parsley. My husband & I loved the flavours & would absolutely make again. It was quick enough for a weeknight meal. Love dishes like this that are so easy but flavour is so nice it seems like it should have been more difficult :).