Marak Shel Couscous (Traditional Couscous Soup)

Marak shel couscous is the kind of dish that fills the whole house with the smell of a holiday. This traditional couscous soup is loaded with vegetables and simmered until everything is tender, making it perfect for your Sukkot table or any chilly evening.

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Ingredients

• Flanken, chuck, or cheek meat (or chicken, or make it pareve)
• 3 red potatoes, cut in big cubes
• 5 carrots, sliced
• 2 zucchini, cut in big cubes
• 1/2 cabbage, sliced
• 1 calabaza or butternut squash, cut in big pieces
• 2 onions, sliced
• 1 can chickpeas
• Chicken consommé powder
• Paprika
• Salt
• Black pepper
• Oil
• Couscous (not Israeli couscous)

Instructions

1. Sauté the sliced onions in oil in a deep pot until light golden.
2. Add the chickpeas and sauté for 1 minute.
3. Add the consommé, paprika, and black pepper, and mix well.
4. Add the meat or chicken (skip if making it pareve).
5. Add water and cook for 5 minutes.
6. Layer the vegetables in this order: cabbage on the bottom, carrots around the side moving clockwise, potatoes on top, then the calabaza.
7. Add more consommé, paprika, and water.
8. Cover and cook on medium for 2 1/2 to 3 hours.
9. Serve over a bed of couscous.
10. Tip: cut all the vegetables in big pieces so they do not get mushy. The layering order matters.

Serve it ladled generously over a mound of couscous and watch it disappear.