Weeknights call for quick cooking dishes, and for this, Pearl Couscous is an excellent choice. It cooks in minutes and with it you can create from simple to the fanciest of meals. Try this recipe tomorrow night and have extra time to spare for the other items on your to-do list. Let’s get started!

INGREDIENTS

1 cup Pearl Couscous
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 carrots, thinly sliced
1 15-ounce can no-salt-added chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup chopped dried apricots or prunes
1 large onion, chopped
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Grated zest of 1/2 lemon, plus juice of 1 lemon
½ cup fresh cilantro

DIRECTIONS

Boil the carrots in a saucepan until tender, and set a side with the water. In a large skillet, add the oil and chicken seasoned with salt and pepper. Cook until browned, and set aside. In the same skillet, add the onion with a pinch of salt until onions are lightly browned, and stir in cumin and cinnamon, remove from pan and set aside.

In the same skillet, add the couscous, chickpeas, apricots and lemon zest, and hot cooking water used for the carrots, and mix together. Add the chicken with its drippings. Cover and let stand until the liquid is absorbed and the couscous is tender, about 5 minutes; fluff with a fork. Stir in the lemon juice and cilantro. Season with salt.