Pearl Couscous With Shrimp and Clams

Pearl couscous, also known as Israeli or giant couscous, is cooked here in a stock made from the heads and shells of the shrimp, making it wonderfully rich yet equally soothing. Put the pan in the center of your dining table, alongside something green (steamed French beans or sautéed chard or spinach), and you’ve got a real celebration.

Ingredients

• 1 pound/about 400 grams raw head-on, shell-on shrimp or tiger prawns (preferably 12 extra-jumbo shrimp or king-size prawns, but any size will work)
• 7 tablespoons/105 milliliters olive oil
• 5 roughly chopped garlic cloves, plus 1 crushed garlic clove
• Salt and black pepper
• 1 small fennel bulb, finely chopped (about 1 heaping cup)
• ¾ pound/300 grams cherry tomatoes
• 2 lemons, 1 finely shaved to get 5 strips of peel and squeezed to get 1 tablespoon juice, and the other cut into wedges for serving
• 5 tarragon sprigs (about 1/2 ounce/10 grams)
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• ⅔ cup/150 milliliters Pernod (or a similar anise liqueur)
• 1 ¼ cups/300 milliliters chicken or vegetable stock
• 2 teaspoons fennel seeds
• ¼ teaspoon red-chile flakes
• 1 ¼ cups/200 grams pearl (or giant) couscous
• ½ pound/250 grams small clams (about 12), such as Dorset, littleneck or Manila, rinsed well

• Nutritional Information

  • • Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

      697 calories; 27 grams fat; 4 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 18 grams monounsaturated fat; 3 grams polyunsaturated fat; 57 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 35 grams protein; 162 milligrams cholesterol; 1191 milligrams sodium

  Note: The information shown is DiningAndCooking.com’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

1. Twist the heads off the shrimp and place the heads in a medium bowl. Leaving the tails attached, peel off the shells, add them to the same bowl and set aside. Devein the shrimp, then add them to a medium bowl with 1 tablespoon oil, 1 crushed garlic clove, 1/4 teaspoon salt and plenty of pepper. Mix together and set shrimp aside to marinate for 30 minutes or so.
2. Meanwhile, heat a large sauté pan, for which you have a lid, over high heat. Add 1 tablespoon oil, the chopped fennel and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Fry for about 5 minutes, stirring every now and then, until browned. Transfer the fennel to a plate, wipe the pan clean and return to a high heat. Add the tomatoes and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, tossing the pan every now and then until charred in places. Set the tomatoes aside. Leave the pan to cool for a couple of minutes, then wipe it clean and return to a medium heat.
3. Add 3 tablespoons/45 milliliters oil to the pan along with the lemon peel, tarragon and the 5 chopped garlic cloves. Slowly fry for 5 minutes until the garlic is golden and the tarragon becomes bright green and crisp. Remove half of the tarragon and set aside, to serve.
4. Increase the heat to medium-high, add the shrimp shells and heads and fry for 7 minutes, stirring every so often until crisp and pink, adjusting the heat as necessary so the garlic doesn’t begin to burn. Add the tomato paste and 1/2 teaspoon salt, and fry for another 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
5. Carefully pour in the Pernod and let it bubble away for a minute (it may flame), then add the stock and 2 1/2 cups/600 milliliters of water and simmer gently for 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Use a potato masher to crush the shrimp heads a few times as they cook to release as much flavor as possible.
6. Meanwhile, in a separate small pan over medium heat, add the fennel seeds and 2 tablespoons oil and cook until the seeds begin to pop. Set aside until ready to serve.
7. Strain the stock, discarding the shells, heads and aromatics, then return to the same pan. (You should have about 3 1/4 cup/775 milliliters stock.) Add the lemon juice, chile flakes, cooked fennel, 3/4 of the charred tomatoes and plenty of pepper and cook at a bare simmer for 5 minutes, or until the tomatoes begin to split.
8. Stir in the couscous, bring to a simmer then reduce the heat to medium. Cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes, until the couscous is cooked through but still retains a bite.
9. Add the clams, cover the pan and cook until they all open, 4 to 5 minutes. Top with the remaining charred tomatoes and set aside while you fry the shrimp.
10. While the clams cook, place a large, nonstick frying pan over a high heat. Once it’s very hot, add half the shrimp, so as not to overcrowd the pan. Fry for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side, or until crisp and golden-brown on the outside and cooked inside, then repeat with the remaining shrimp.
11. Arrange the shrimp, along with the garlic and any oil, over the couscous in the pan, then drizzle the fennel seed oil over everything. Top with the fried tarragon and serve with the lemon wedges alongside.