Couscous: Ethnic making and consumption patterns in the Northeast of Algeria

Abstract

Couscous is an ancient dish that is nearly ubiquitous throughout the North African countries. It is well known as a staple dish in Algeria as many differences can be found concerning its ethnic preparation and making. The present work, based on a survey, aimed to identify the traditional making diagram of couscous and to describe how couscous-based dishes are prepared. The consumption patterns were also identified in the Northeastern localities of Algeria. This study was undertaken through direct interviews with 517 persons who prepared Couscous using the traditional practices in the regions of Bejaia, Jijel, Constantine, Guelma, Oum El bouaghi, Khenchela, and Batna. From the survey, it seems that the first step of couscous making is a size classification of durum wheat semolina into coarse semolina (> 500 μm) and fine semolina (< 500 μm). The second step consists in steaming of coarse semolina before its hydration with salted water. The rolling calibration includes three substeps: nucleation, shaping, and finishing. The addition of cornstarch or wheat flour is performed during the finishing substep. After wet couscous steaming, the precooked couscous is dried under the shade followed by their exposure to the sun. The final step of couscous preparation is the packaging of dried couscous by adding some preservative and flavoring products. Couscous is prepared for several local events, family celebrations, or religious feasts with vegetable sauces and different meat sources such as red meat, chicken meat, fish, or ethnic meat-based products such as guedid, douara, bouzelouf, or merguez. Another variant of couscous, mesfouf, is further prepared with finely rolled semolina and some butter. Keywords: Algeria, Couscous, Couscous-based dishes, Semolina, Traditional preparation