Easy Meal Prep Idea #1: Israeli Couscous with Sausage and Roast Vegetables

I’m sharing an easy meal prep idea to get your week off to a delicious and healthy start!

I have a few criteria when it comes to meal prep: it must be relatively low effort, have a combination of carb/protein/vegetable, and of course, taste good. We are busy people! I like eating more than cooking, but still want to have healthy and balanced home-cooked meals. If you’re like me, this series is for you.

Shopping List

• Israeli couscous 
• Eggplant 
• Yellow squash
• Italian sausage 
• Seasonings:
  • Salt and pepper 
  • Oregano
  • Thyme
  • Basil
  • Garlic powder 
• Roasted Chicken Base – Better Than Bouillon (optional) 

1) Prepare the roasted vegetables.

Start by preheating the oven to 425 F. While you wait for the oven to come to temperature, start chopping your vegetables. I wanted to prepare enough food to make lunches throughout the week, so I chopped 2 medium eggplants and 3 yellow squash into 1/2 inch thick slices.

I think this recipe is incredibly versatile and you can use whatever vegetables you want! This would be delicious with zucchini, onion, sweet potato, bell pepper, etc. I also like roasting in the oven to cook vegetables because it’s set-and-forget-it.

For easy clean up, line baking sheets with aluminum foil. Spread the sliced eggplant and yellow squash in an even layer, brush with olive oil, and season generously with salt, pepper, garlic powder, dried oregano, dried thyme, and dried basil.

I didn’t measure any of the seasonings, I just made sure every slice was evenly coated. By the way, I think I have finally found a way to enjoy eggplant at home with this roast/seasoning method! Exciting!

Roast until vegetables are tender and lightly golden. This took about 20 minutes for me.

2) Cook the Italian sausage.

I use this full-proof method from Bon Appetit to cook sausages. It solves the problem of having sausage that is charred on the outside but still raw on the inside.

The technique is simmer-then-sear. First, place your sausages into a pot, fill with enough cold water to cover the sausages, and cook until the water reaches a simmer. This should take about 6-8 minutes.

At this point, the sausages are cooked but have no color to them. Searing them in a pan with hot oil will make them crisp and golden.

3) Cook the Israeli couscous.

Rice and pasta are my usual carbohydrates of choice, but I picked up this brand of Israeli couscous from the grocery store to switch things up:

The brand doesn’t matter, so just pick what’s easily available to you and cook per the box instructions. I added 1 cup of couscous to a dry pan and toasted with extra virgin olive oil before adding 1 and 1/4 cups of water. I also added 1 tsp of Better Than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base to season the water and let the couscous simmer for about 10 mins till done. Fluff with a fork when done.

A note on Better Than Bouillon: Since I started using bouillon base, I’ve never looked back to chicken broth from a can or box! It takes up way less space than having boxed broth in my cabinet and I never have to worry about having enough to make a recipe. Just 1 teaspoon of bouillon base is enough to make 8 oz of chicken stock. It also tastes way better in my opinion!

4) Put it all together!

At this point, your vegetables should be done roasting, and your sausage and couscous should be cooked! Here’s what my version looks like:

Altogether, this recipe took me about an hour and most of it was just waiting for the vegetables to roast! I love any recipe that involves minimal knife work, active cooking time, and dishes. I hope you try out this easy meal prep idea for yourself!