This Couscous Salad is packed with fresh herbs, tomatoes, cucumbers, feta and a quick red wine vinaigrette dressing. Taking about 15 minutes to make, this dish makes a light lunch of dinner and can be perfect to bring to your next bbq or picnic.

If there is one salad I could eat everyday of my life, this is it. This Couscous Salad is one I've been making for myself for about 10 years. It's nearly no-cook (though you do have to boil water to cook the couscous) and while it's best when it's made fresh, I love eating it for a quick remade lunch over a period of a few days.

The couscous in it is both light and filling and the freshness from the raw tomatoes and cucumbers makes every bite feel refreshing. Feta cheese and herbs are tossed in, along with a simply made red wine vinaigrette to punch up the flavor and bring the whole salad together. Simple and delicious.

Ingredients Needed and Substitutions

Here is a brief overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The full recipe with quantities is listed below this text in the recipe card. If substitutions are available for this recipe, they'll be listed here. If you don't see a substitution you are looking for, please leave a comment below.

couscous (for this recipe, use the smallest couscous, also known as Moroccan couscous)
European cucumber (if you can't get a European cucumber, use a regular cucumber but peel it and de-seed it)
tomatoes
kosher salt and pepper
red wine vinegar (this can be swapped with an acid of your choice, not limited to white wine vinegar or lemon juice)
olive oil
fresh herbs (I recommend dill and parsley, but any of your favorite herbs, such as cilantro, will work here)
feta

How to Cook the Couscous

To cook the couscous you should follow the tips on the package. But generally speaking, Moroccan couscous is cooked simply by stirring it into boiling salted water, then removing it from the heat, and letting it sit covered for 5 minutes.

Open up the lid, and it should reveal fully cooked couscous. Fluff it with a fork to ensure nothing clumps together.

For this recipe, it'll need to cool a bit. If you try to make this salad with warm couscous, it will suck up all of the dressing, and not in a good way. So let the couscous cool to room temperature before mixing it in with the salad.

If you want to cool it quickly, one tip is to transfer the fluffed couscous to a shallow container so more steam and heat can escape faster.

Ingredients for couscous salad in a clear bowl before mixing.

Storage and Leftover Tips

This Couscous Salad is delicious on the day it is made, but it can be enjoyed the next day as well. It can be kept in the refrigerator for 2-3 days, but as the days go on, the acid starts to interact with the tomato and causes a slight bitter flavor.

Couscous salad with cucumbers, feta and tomato in a bowl

More Salad Recipes

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Full Recipe

Couscous Salad with Tomatoes, Cucumbers and Feta

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Author: Kelli Avila
Prep Time: 00:10
Cook Time: 00:10
Total Time: 20 minutes
Yield: Serves 4-6 1x

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Description

Instructions

Bring 2 cups of lightly salted water to a boil. Stir in couscous. Remove from heat, cover and let sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and let cool to room temperature.
In a large bowl, whisk together red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and and pepper to taste.
Add in the couscous and the remaining ingredients and toss to combine. Taste, and adjust seasoning.
Serve slightly warm, or at room temperature.

Notes

Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.