Ptitim (Israeli Couscous) – Kids’ Food goes Fancy

Since Ptitim are considered “kids’ food” in Israel, allow me to start with some fun facts…

Ptitim or Israeli couscous (I have a hard time calling Ptitim couscous…) are baked wheat pasta pearls that were invented in Israel in the early 50s’ during the austerity period. It sounds a little crazy for a food story, but Israel’s first prime minister asked one of the largest food companies of that time to come up with a substitute for rice… and Ptitim were invented. This product instantly became a huge hit and as soon as you make it and or taste it, you’ll understand why.

To this day, Ptitim are a popular kids’ dish in many Israeli homes and they are served for dinner or lunch as a side next to anything else on the plate. This dish is delicious, even if it is made in the plainest way. It is quick and easy to make and impossible to mess up.

Change it up…

Ptitim are such a “canvas product” – you can truly put ANYTHING in it and make it your own. And by anything I mean anything: celery, different colored carrots, tomatoes, tomato paste, corn, peas, kohlrabi, any herb or spice… You can make it Mediterranean style, Asian, Mexican/Latin, Indian…you name it.

Today I’m making it “spontaneous style” 🙂 with whatever I found in the refrigerator.

You will need:

2 tbsp. Olive oil

2 cups (250 gr.) Ptitim – Israeli Couscous

2 cups boiling Water

½ medium Onion chopped

2 cloves of Garlic

1/3 cup Pine Nuts

1 small Green Zucchini (½ cup of small cubes)

¼ small Butternut Squash (½ cup of small cubes)

1 tsp. Turmeric

½ tsp. Black pepper

½ tsp. Salt

Parsley

Let’s get to work:

First, toast the pine nuts.

For small amount I like using a small pan on low to medium heat. Arrange all pine nuts in one layer and move the pan every so often to make sure the pine nuts are tossed and get evenly toasted.

Remember, pine nuts are delicate and they get toasted pretty quickly. As soon as you start smelling them, you will see the color changing a little and you should turn the heat off. It happens in a matter of a few minutes…

Not to be dramatic, but one little distraction and the pine nuts are burnt.

Onion, garlic – you know what to do.

Finely chop the onion and mince the garlic; this is what I do with onion and garlic maybe 90% of the times I have them on my cutting board.

Warm the olive oil in a pan on medium heat and add the chopped onions. Sauté the onions for 3 minutes or so… until the onions get a little color on them.

Cube the butternut squash and the green zucchini to small cubes a little less than half an inch in size. Once cubed, you should have about half a cup of each.

Add the toasted pine nuts to the pan, mix together with the onions and oil.

Quickly add the butternut squash and zucchini cubes. Mix again and let it build flavor and cook for 2-3 minutes still on medium heat.

Add minced garlic.

Add black pepper and turmeric and mix everything together.

Now it is time to add the Ptitim. Make sure to mix them in and coat them with this happiness that is happening in the pot.

Carefully add boiling water and salt – Watch it, the pot is hot! Let it cook for just one minute and then cover the pot and cook on the lowest heat for just 10 minutes.