Кускус: Традиционное блюдо Магриба

Traditional Maghrebi dish

Couscous (كُسْكُس) is a traditional North African dish of small steamed granules of rolled semolina that is often served with a stew spooned on top. Pearl millet, sorghum, bulgur, and other cereals are sometimes cooked in a similar way in other regions, and the resulting dishes are also sometimes called couscous. Couscous is a staple food throughout the Maghrebi cuisines of Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, Morocco, and Libya. It was integrated into French and European cuisine at the beginning of the twentieth century, through the French colonial empire and the Pieds Noirs of Algeria. In 2020, couscous was added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

The word "couscous" (alternately cuscus or kuskus) was first noted in early 17th century French, from Arabic kuskus, from kaskasa 'to pound', and is probably of Berber origin. The term seksu is attested in various Berber dialects such as Kabyle and Rifain, while Saharan Berber dialects such as Touareg and Ghadames have a slightly different form, keskesu. This widespread geographical dispersion of the term strongly suggests its local Berber origin, lending further support to its likely Berber roots as Algerian linguist Salem Chaker suggests.

Couscous is traditionally made from semolina, the hardest part of the grain of durum wheat (the hardest of all forms of wheat), which resists the grinding of the millstone. The semolina is sprinkled with water and rolled with the hands to form small pellets, sprinkled with dry flour to keep them separate, and then sieved. Any pellets that are too small to be finished, granules of couscous fall through the sieve and are again rolled and sprinkled with dry semolina and rolled into pellets. This labor intensive process continues until all the semolina has been formed into tiny couscous granules. In the traditional method of preparing couscous, groups of people come together to make large batches over several days, which are then dried in the sun and used for several months. Handmade couscous may need to be rehydrated as it is prepared; this is achieved by a process of moistening and steaming over stew until the couscous reaches the desired light and fluffy consistency. In some regions, couscous is made from farina or coarsely ground barley or pearl millet. In modern times, couscous production is largely mechanized, and the product is sold worldwide. This couscous can be sauteed before it is cooked in water or another liquid. and voted the third most popular dish in a 2011 survey.

In December 2020, Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia obtained official recognition for the knowledge, know how, and practices pertaining to the production and consumption of couscous on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. The joint submission by the four countries was hailed as an "example of international cooperation."

Couscous proper is about 2 mm in diameter, but there also exists a larger variety (3 mm more) known as berkoukes, as well as an ultra fine version (around 1 mm).

In Mauritania, the couscous uses large wheat grains (mabroum) and is darker than the yellow couscous of Morocco. It is cooked with lamb, beef, or camel meat together with vegetables, primarily onion, tomato, and carrots, then mixed with a sauce and served with ghee, locally known as dhen.

Couscous is made from crushed wheat flour rolled into its constituent granules or pearls, making it distinct from pasta, even pasta such as orzo and risoni of similar size, which is made from ground wheat and either molded or extruded. Couscous and pasta have similar nutritional value, although pasta is usually more refined. In the state of São Paulo the cuscuz is pressed into a mold decorated with orange slices, in a dish called "cuscuz Paulista," a variation of the original version made by locals after migrant waves from the Northeast Region. Dambou is a couscous like dish from Niger. It may be made from semolina for special occasions but is often made with rice, millet, or other grain. Moringa leaves are traditionally included in the dish. In France, this Nigerien dish has been adapted as a specific variant (called couscous aux épinards) of the Maghreb syle couscous commonly found there, often using spinach in place of the moringa. Fregula is a type of pasta from Sardinia. It is similar to North African Berkoukes and Middle Eastern Moghrabieh. Fregula comes in varying sizes but typically consists of semolina dough rolled into balls 2–3 mm in diameter and toasted in an oven. Kouskousaki (Κουσκουσάκι (in Greek) or kuskus (in Turkish) is a pasta from Greece and Turkey, that is boiled and served with cheese and walnuts. In the Levant, the dish known as moghrabieh (a reference to the Maghreb region) uses the same durum based semolina flour but rolled into larger ( in diameter) 'pearls' to create a dish that is popular across Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. The pearls are either cooked as part of a stew or flavored with cinnamon and served alongside a chicken and chickpea broth. Palestinian maftoul uses granules that are larger than the North African variety but smaller than moghrabieh pearls ( in diameter) and made with bulgur, not durum wheat. It is similarly served alongside a chicken and chickpea broth. "Maftoul" is an Arabic word derived from the root "fa ta la," which means to roll or to twist, describing the hand rolling method used to make the granules.