So*, we have a really excellent cafe in our building. Prices are reasonable, and they serve a variety of foods, including all sorts of ethnic food.
Today, the carvery table featured a grain I didn't recognise. The person ordering before me called it couscous, and when I asked the server that's what he said it was, but it certainly doesn't look like any couscous I'm familiar with, which is small, yellow, and fluffy. It consists of small round grains, about 2-3mm in diameter. It's kind of a yellow/orange/beige, but pale, and lays on the plate more like a pasta would instead of, say, rice. The taste is not unpleasant. They've prepared it as a pilaf, with carrots and celery.
Any ideas? I thought maybe quinoa, but couldn't find an image that matches what's in front of me. I don't have a camera on me, alas, otherwise I'd take a picture.
Posted by ElJay (Member # 6358) on :
Quinoa was gonna be my guess from your description. So if it's not that, no clue.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
My guess is that it's orzo. It's actually a kind of pasta that's very similar to rice in shape.
Posted by xnera (Member # 187) on :
No, it's not orzo, because I would have recognised it.
Quinoa does sound promising, but I'm still not entirely convinced that's it. The stuff I had was bigger than in those pictures, plus I don't remember seeing the roots. Hmm.
Posted by raventh1 (Member # 3750) on :
Looks like chopped wheat to me, what do I know? (nothin )
Posted by xnera (Member # 187) on :
quote:Couscous was traditionally made from the hard part of the hard wheat Triticum durum, the part of the grain that resisted the grinding of the relatively primitive millstone. The name is also used for prepared dishes made from other grains, such as barley, millet, sorghum, rice, or maize.
So the server wasn't wrong to call it couscous. It's possible it was millet or sorghum. Still haven't found an image that matches, though.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
It could actually be couscous, as advertised. It does come in different sizes. It can also be toasted.
Posted by xnera (Member # 187) on :
quote:It could actually be couscous, as advertised. It does come in different sizes. It can also be toasted.
Aha! rivka's Google-fu comes through again! Yup, that's it. I've never seen it large before, so it made me go o_O. Funny, I really like small couscous, but didn't really care that much for this kind.
edit again: And Israeli couscous is actually a pasta, which explains why it didn't taste like normal couscous.
Posted by Tante Shvester (Member # 8202) on :
![[Smile]](smile.gif)
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![[Big Grin]](biggrin.gif)
Yup, that's it. I've never seen it large before, so it made me go o_O. Funny, I really like small couscous, but didn't really care that much for this kind.