This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This Mediterranean Couscous Salad is a nutritious and flavorful salad made with shrimp, veggies, Israeli couscous, feta, olives, fresh herbs, and a homemade red wine vinaigrette. You can serve it as a main dish or side dish and it’s great for warm weather entertaining!
Looking for another Mediterranean salad? Try this Mediterranean chopped salad!
Table of Contents
- Why I love this couscous salad
- What is couscous?
- What’s the difference between regular couscous and Israeli couscous?
- Couscous salad ingredients
- How to make Mediterranean couscous salad
- Substitutions and variations
- Make ahead and storage
- More Mediterranean recipes
- Did you make this Mediterranean couscous salad? I’d love if you’d leave a recipe rating and review below.
- Mediterranean Couscous Salad Recipe
Why I love this couscous salad
Flavorful, healthy, and filling salad – This couscous salad is full of vegetables, fresh herbs, flavorful marinated shrimp, salty feta, briny olives, and a tart and tangy red wine vinaigrette. It doesn’t skimp on the flavor and is a great option if you’re looking for a light, but filling lunch or dinner.
Meal prep – If you’re meal planning for the week, this is a salad that holds up well for up to 4 days in the refrigerator. Divide it into individual portioned containers and have lunches ready to go for the week!
Can be made vegetarian – If you want to make a vegetarian couscous salad, omit the shrimp or swap it out with a can of chickpeas.
What is couscous?
Couscous is a type of pasta made from semolina wheat flour and water. The biggest difference between pasta and couscous is that couscous uses ground durum wheat semolina and pasta uses the ground type.
What’s the difference between regular couscous and Israeli couscous?
- Israeli couscous is larger in size.
- Israeli couscous is boiled whereas regular couscous is generally steamed.
- Regular couscous needs about 5 minutes to steam in the boiling water and Israeli couscous boils in the water the way pasta would for approximately 8-9 minutes and is then drained.
Couscous salad ingredients
- Israeli couscous – Also called pearl couscous. Larger in size than regular couscous.
- Shrimp – Medium or large shrimp (41/50 or 31/35 count) work well for this salad.
- Lemon – Use fresh lemon juice for the best flavor.
- Smoked paprika, oregano, garlic powder – The spice blend for the shrimp.
- Cherry tomatoes – They add nice pops of sweetness to the salad that pair well with the saltiness of the feta and briny flavor from the olives.
- English cucumber – I like to scrape out the seeds so the salad doesn’t get watery.
- Red onion – It has a milder onion flavor in comparison to yellow onion making it a great option for salads.
- Kalamata olives – Kalamata olives are briny and chewy. You can substitute with green Greek variety of olive if you prefer.
- Feta – Block feta that you cube yourself is best for this recipe. The flavor is better and the texture is creamier than pre-crumbled feta.
- Dill and flat leaf parsley – Fresh herbs brighten up the flavor of this salad.
- Red wine vinegar, dijon, honey, olive oil – All of the ingredients are used in the red wine vinaigrette.
How to make Mediterranean couscous salad
Marinate and cook the shrimp – Combine the ingredients for the shrimp marinade in a bowl and then add the shrimp to it. Let the shrimp marinate for 15-30 minutes depending on how much time you have.
Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with a little olive oil. Add the shrimp to the skillet and cook them until they’re opaque in color. This should only take a few minutes. Don’t overcook the shrimp or they will be chewy. Let the shrimp cool while you make the rest of the salad.
Cook the couscous – Cook the couscous according to package instructions. Once it’s cooked drain it and rinse it under cold water. It will likely have quite a bit of starch stuck to it, which you don’t necessarily want in a a cold “pasta” salad.
Make the vinaigrette – Add all of the ingredients for the red wine vinaigrette to a jar or measuring glass. Shake or whisk the vinaigrette until it’s well combined.
Prep the vegetables – While the couscous is cooking chop the cucumber, tomatoes, red onion, fresh herbs, and olives. Cut the feta into cubes or crumble it.
Assemble – Add all of the salad ingredients to a serving bowl and pour on the vinaigrette. Toss everything together until it’s coated. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.
Substitutions and variations
- Make the salad vegetarian be swapping the shrimp with a can of chickpeas.
- Use regular couscous instead of Israeli couscous.
- Substitute shrimp with chicken. You can use the same marinade that is used for the shrimp.
Make ahead and storage
If you’re meal planning and want to get ahead, the couscous can be cooked a day in advance, as can the shrimp. You can also prep the vegetables and make the vinaigrette. Then all you have to do is assemble it before serving.
The salad will keep for 4 days in the refrigerator in an airtight container. This is not a salad that can be frozen.
More Mediterranean recipes
Did you make this Mediterranean couscous salad? I’d love if you’d leave a recipe rating and review below.
Mediterranean Couscous Salad
Ingredients
Shrimp
- 1 pound shrimp peeled and deveined
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Salad
- 1 cup Israeli couscous
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes halved
- 1 cup diced English cucumber
- 1/3 cup diced red onion
- 1/3 cup chopped kalamata olives
- 1/2 cup cubed feta
- 2 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
Red Wine Vinaigrette
- 3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large bowl whisk together the ingredients for the shrimp marinade. Add in the shrimp, stirring to coat it in the marinade. Let it marinate for 15-30 minutes.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with a little olive oil. Add the shrimp to the skillet and spread them out into and even layer. Let them cook for 1-2 minutes untouched and then toss them around and continue cooking until they’re opaque in color. Remove from the heat and set aside while you prep the salad.
- Cook the couscous in salted boiling water according to package instructions. Once cooked drain and rinse under cold water. Add it to a large serving bowl.
- Add all of the ingredients for the red wine vinaigrette to a jar or measuring glass. Shake or whisk the vinaigrette until it’s well combined. Set aside.
- Add the cucumber, tomatoes, onion, fresh herbs, olives, feta, and shrimp to the bowl with the couscous. Pour on the vinaigrette and toss everything together until its’ coated. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper as needed.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
