StillnessShared culinary heritage fact

Couscous is made by rolling moistened semolina by hand into tiny grains and steaming them. Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia share it, and each region, even each family, keeps its own way of making it.

Couscous

The story behind the card

Rolling the grains is a skill learned by watching and doing, traditionally passed from mother to daughter. The couscous is then steamed, usually two or three times, in the top half of a two-part pot, known in French as a couscoussier, while a stew of vegetables, meat or fish simmers below, so the grains take on its aroma without touching the liquid. Broths, spices and occasions vary from region to region, and in many families couscous is the Friday meal. It is usually made from wheat semolina, but also from barley or millet. UNESCO inscribed the knowledge and practices of couscous on its intangible heritage list in 2020, after a joint nomination by Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia.

Türkçe oku

Kuskus yapmak için nemlendirilmiş irmik elde ufacık taneler hâlinde yuvarlanır ve buharda pişirilir. Cezayir, Moritanya, Fas ve Tunus'un ortak yemeğidir; her bölgenin, hatta her ailenin kendine özgü bir yapılışı vardır.

Taneleri yuvarlamak, izleyerek ve yaparak öğrenilen bir beceridir; geleneksel olarak anneden kıza geçer. Kuskus daha sonra iki katlı bir tencerenin üst bölmesinde, genellikle iki ya da üç kez buharda pişirilir. Alt bölmede sebzeli, etli ya da balıklı bir yahni kaynar; taneler suya değmeden onun kokusunu alır. Suyu, baharatı ve hangi vesilelerle yapıldığı bölgeden bölgeye değişir; birçok ailede cuma yemeğidir. Çoğunlukla buğday irmiğinden, ama arpadan ya da darıdan da yapılır. UNESCO, kuskusla ilgili bilgi ve uygulamaları Cezayir, Moritanya, Fas ve Tunus'un ortak başvurusu üzerine 2020'de Somut Olmayan Kültürel Miras listesine aldı.

Sources and further reading

Background reading: Couscous

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Couscous is made by rolling moistened semolina by hand into tiny grains and steaming them. Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco and Tunisia share it, and each region, even each family, keeps its own way of making it.

The story behind the card

Sources and further reading

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