Israeli Couscous - The True Story

Any Israeli knows what couscous is. Everyone's had it, and most eat it regularly.

I can only imagine the surprise of your average Israeli, walking into a restaurant in the States, happily ordering a side dish of "Israeli couscous", and getting... well, what you guys call "Israeli couscous. Not only does it have nothing in common with real couscous, it is such a lowly simple dish in Israel. Served at home, mostly to indiscriminate kids, you would never find it in any self-respecting restaurant here in Israel.

Couscous is made of a special kind of wheat and is in the form of very small granules. Some types are more coarse than others, but overall, the granules are about a millimeter each, two at most. Think sugar granules for size.

Real couscous originated in north Africa and is very popular in modern Israel. I still remember my great-grandmother making her own couscous from semolina flour. These days, we just buy ready-made couscous, which takes 5 minutes to cook in boiling water. It is served along with soup or a gravy-rich dish, as the couscous itself is neutral, soaking up the flavors from the main dish.

So, what's the story with "Israeli couscous"? It was in fact invented in Israel and is known here as "ptitim", literally meaning "flakes". It's a kind of pasta, baked or toasted in the factory. Cooking times are short and you get a simple dish with a nice, sort of toasted, flavor.

How Israelis Cook "Israeli Couscous"

The recipe is as simple as the dish is. Take a small pot and heat up a little bit of oil - no fancy olive oils, just regular cooking oil - a teaspoonful of oil per cup of uncooked "couscous" should be plenty. Throw in your "couscous" and mix. Add some salt to taste, and cover with boiling water. Now just wait, until the water soaks in and the thing is cooked. Some people mix the flakes during cooking, others, like me, just leave it unstirred and enjoy the slightly stickier result.

No need for sauce - just cooked with some salt is fine. If you're feeling creative, dice up an onion and fry it up in the pan before adding the flakes.

How "Israeli Couscous" Came to Be

Actually, this is the more interesting story here. This simple yet peculiar dish was invented by orders of the government during the 1950's. Back then, Israel was a brand new country, besieged by enemies, struggling for its very existence, it also had to feed hundreds of thousands of Jewish refugees who were displaced from Muslim countries and immigrated to Israel. Apparently, rice was the staple of their diet, but alas there was a shortage of that particular basic food.

The then Prime Minister, Israel's legendary leader, David Ben Gurion approached the country's young food industry with a challenge: make us rice out of flour.

And the industry rose to the challenge - forming pasta dough into little pieces, shaped like rice, and pre-roasted so they can be cooked like rice too. They named the new product 'ptitim" or flakes, fondly known as "Ben Gurion rice".

The success of this makeshift rice gave birth to other shapes of flakes. The ones made of little pasta balls got called "couscous", others are just called "stars" or "wheels", depending on their shape.

"Israeli Couscous" - The Next Phase

I've tried looking up the exact event, and this is what I found, courtesy of the Hebrew version of Wikipedia. Some years ago, New York chef Don Pintabona, visited an Israeli chef named Mika Sharon at her home. Chef Sharon served her guests with her quality cooking, but also put a bowl of "ptitim" on the table for her young daughter. The rest, as they say, is history.

And so this Israeli invention has moved on in the food chain, from its humble beginnings as a replacement for rice and a despised kiddie food, into a gourmet health food in fancy American restaurants!