Spicy couscous with meatballs and pumpkin

Preparation – 30 minutes

Peel the pumpkin and remove the seeds, the easiest way to do this is using a spoon. Divide the pumpkin into pieces and set aside. Rinse the cabbage if needed and chop into strips.

Peel and finely chop the shallots and garlic cloves. Remove the seeds from the chili pepper for a milder version and finely chop the chili pepper.

Create a mixture of the finely chopped shallots, garlic, chili pepper, juice and zest of the lime, ground cumin and paprika powder. Combine ground beef with an egg, pepper and salt.

Add a handful of bread crumbs, until you can create meatballs. Use your hands to create small meatballs and set them aside.  

Finishing the spicy couscous with meatballs and pumpkin – 30 minutes

Heat olive oil in a large skillet and cook the meatballs for a few minutes. Add the pumpkin cubes and cook for a few minutes more. Meanwhile bring the beef stock to a boil.

Combine couscous, a bit of olive oil, pepper and salt in a bowl and add the boiled beef stock. Cover with cling film and let it rest for a few minutes, stir a few times. Add the savoy cabbage and cook a bit more.

As soon as the pumpkin is a bit softer, you can also add the shallot-garlic mixture. The exact cooking time depends of the type of pumpkin and the size of the pieces. If the pumpkin won't soften, you can add a small layer of water.

The water will evaporate and the pumpkin will be softer. Meanwhile the couscous had absorbed the beef stock, stir once more so there won't be any lumps and add it to the large skillet.

Season with pepper, salt and maybe some more cumin and paprika powder. Garnish with chopped parsley, enjoy!