20 Best Couscous Salad Recipes

Add variety to your salad regime with these couscous salad recipes!

Each one is fresh, nutritious, and overflowing with heavenly couscous. 

In case you aren’t familiar, couscous is an itty-bitty pasta made from durum wheat.

It’s a staple throughout countries in the Middle East, Morocco, and the Mediterranean. 

It’s light, fluffy, and cooks in an instant. Plus, it adds texture and more substance to your salad fixings.

That, and it’s highly versatile for an endless array of salad possibilities. 

For a little inspiration, I gathered together my 20 favorite couscous salad recipes. Grab a big bowl and let’s dive in!

1. Mediterranean Couscous Salad

Trying to eat better? Start by incorporating this into your lunches. 

The Mediterranean diet is one of the healthiest around. And this dish just so happens to cram in a ton of flavor. 

It’s fresh, briny, lemony, tangy, and crisp.

It’s also easy to prepare and keeps well in the fridge so you can meal prep it for the week.

2. Lemon Herb Couscous Salad

When I grow tired of my usual leafy greens, I swap them out for this citrusy creation. 

It’s a lively blend of fresh veggies, walnuts, herbs, and Israeli couscous. 

The recipe does call for raisins, but I tend to leave them out, mostly because I usually don’t have them on hand. 

I do find, though, that it’s satiating enough for lunch. It also works marvelously as a side with lean proteins and seafood. 

3. Cherry Tomato Couscous Salad

I’m in love with this salad! It’s bright, zippy, fresh, and very nourishing. 

The veggie combo, pearl couscous, roasted chickpeas, feta, and basil leaves all come together for a popping summer salad. 

And if you’re a tomato lover like me, you’ll be happy to hear that it has both raw and roasted cherry tomatoes.

You get plenty of juice and depth.

4. Couscous Salad with Sun-Dried Tomato and Feta

Okay, so I’m really in love with all these couscous recipes. But can you blame me? 

This 12-minute salad, in particular, speaks to me when I’m starving. 

I simply can’t get enough of the bold sun-dried tomatoes, the sharp bite of feta, peppery arugula, earthy chickpeas, and fluffy couscous. 

5. Quick Pesto Couscous Salad

This 10-minute recipe has a Mediterranean flair that makes it so easy to eat meat-free. 

You meld couscous with vegan pesto and load it up with lentils, cherry tomatoes, olives, cucumber, vegan feta, and fresh herbs.

It’s a great way to power you through a Meatless Monday or any other day of the week for that matter.

6. Israeli Couscous Salad

Also known as pearl couscous, Israeli couscous is made from semolina flour.

It’s bigger, chewier, and takes a little longer to cook. 

The two are pretty interchangeable, but I just love the whole wheat pearls in this salad. 

They add a nutty flavor to the medley of fresh produce this colorful salad has to offer. 

7. Greek Couscous Salad

Make your Greek salad more filling by ditching the lettuce for pearl couscous. 

Those chewy bits have the backbone this salad needs to hold up all the adornments. 

Packed with olives, pepperoncini, red onion, tomato, cucumbers, feta, pine nuts, and roasted red pepper, it’s as flavorful as it gets. 

8. Moroccan Couscous Salad

Looking for a side to add to your exotic Moroccan spread? This couscous is perfect!

It’s jam-packed with a bunch of Moroccan flavors for a classic dish. 

You take a base of turmeric couscous and mix it with raisins, roasted veggies, and a lemon dressing.

Don’t forget the add-ins like carrots, almonds, and parsley. 

9. Warm Pearl Couscous Salad

This warm salad has all the makings for a healthy and quick weeknight dinner. 

While the couscous is cooking, saute chickpeas and tomatoes until the juices begin to ooze. 

Then, throw that all together with cucumber, olives, fresh herbs, and a four-ingredient dressing.

Dairy-free and meat-free, this nourishing plant-based dish will leave you happy and satisfied. 

10. Balsamic Pearl Couscous Salad

So by now, you may be picking up on a trend. Tomatoes, cucumber, and chickpeas go really well with couscous. 

What’s great about this one is the sweet and tangy balsamic dressing.

It gives those pearls a deeper flavor while sticking with a clean eating theme. 

You’ll also love the addition of olives, feta, chickpeas, and red bell peppers.

It rounds out the salad for a flavorful Mediterranean take. 

11. Oil-Free Middle Eastern Couscous Salad

Trying to cut back on oil? You can’t go wrong with this Middle Eastern dish!

This lean green machine is full of fresh fixings like parsley, lettuce, cucumbers, and green onions. 

Toss everything with the red wine vinegar, tahini, and miso dressing to inoculate it with flavor.

You won’t even be able to tell there’s not a drop of oil.

12. Couscous Mint Salad

This couscous takes pantry staples and turns them into a Moroccan-style meal.

Dried apricots, raisins, carrots, and onions fix up the couscous base. Plus, chopped mint adds a burst of freshness.  

That’s all mixed together with a citrusy yogurt dressing to make the flavors pop. 

13. Couscous Salad with Lime Basil Vinaigrette

Is dreary weather bumming you out? This bright salad will put a smile on your face!

The lime basil vinaigrette will dazzle your tastebuds. As for the salad itself, it has a ton of substance. 

Ingredients like black beans, sweet potatoes, feta, and pistachios make it filling and nutritious.

14. Tomato Basil Couscous Salad

If you want a couscous salad that’s quick and requires minimal ingredients, this is it. 

Cooking couscous is about as effortless as it gets. Simply boil water and let the couscous rest for 5 minutes. 

Once it’s nice and fluffy, add pine nuts, sun-dried tomatoes, basil, and garlic.

If you have a box of stock to spare, use that instead of water. It makes the couscous a bit more savory.

15. Vegan Couscous Salad with Blistered Tomatoes

I defy anyone to take a bite of this and tell me vegan food can’t be tasty. This salad has got it going on! 

The blistered tomatoes ooze their juices all over the chewy pearl couscous.

The basil, avocado, and balsamic are just an additional perk.

Sometimes, I like to add garlic to the tomatoes when I’m blistering them. It kicks the dish up a notch.

16. Easy Couscous Salad with Grilled Vegetables, Lemon, and Goat Cheese

Have you ever heard the saying, “Couscous, the food so nice they named it twice?” I think they were specifically talking about this. 

The fluffy couscous melds together with creamy goat cheese, fresh tomatoes, lemon zest and juice, and a wonderful array of grilled veggies. 

Oh, and if it’s not grilling weather, roast the veggies instead.

17. Lemony Cucumber Couscous Salad

This light couscous salad pairs impeccably with chicken skewers, garlicky shrimp, and more.

It takes simple ingredients and turns them into a refreshing meal.

It has crisp cucumbers, zippy lemon, fresh parsley, and feta to be exact.

Soft pearl couscous adds a heavenly texture. Although, I find it works with regular couscous too.

Regardless of which one you use, it’s an affordable healthy side that won’t break the bank. 

18. Roasted Garlic Italian Couscous Salad

Anyone who can appreciate a healthy Italian recipe will fall in love with this couscous dish. 

If you love roasted garlic as much as me, you won’t be able to resist it!

You add a whole six cloves to the Italian-style dressing and smother pearl couscous with it. 

It also has roasted cherry tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil, plus roasted bell peppers.

I swear, eating vegetarian food never tasted so good.

19. Summer Couscous Salad

Hit the repeat button because you’ll love this salad all summer long. 

It features an assortment of summer staples like corn, cherry tomatoes, and peaches.

Speckled in between all that freshness is Israeli couscous. 

Serve it up at your next cookout, and I guarantee there won’t be a bite left in sight. 

20. Couscous Chicken Salad

While there are a lot of vegan and vegetarian-friendly ways to make couscous, you can add meat, too. 

Take this couscous chicken salad for instance. 

Leafy greens, cherry tomatoes, mushrooms, and bell peppers pack it full of veggies.

The cooked chicken adds more sustenance. 

I highly recommend using leftover chicken if you have some.

And don’t sell yourself short on the feta cheese!