Makes 4-ish servings

Notes:

This extremely simple and classic dish still manages to surprise - who knew couscous could cook in the oven? Though upon further thought, this makes sense: cooking pasta in the oven has been all over social media for a few years, and couscous is a teensy tiny semolina pasta - not a grain, as some people think. We were delighted to learn a new method, and were also delighted by the speed with which the couscous cooks — which happens to be the perfect amount of time to perfectly roast shrimp.

We used bit of lemon, salt and pepper to season our shrimp, but - as always - you could easily spice this up with a larger pinch of red pepper flakes, a nice sprinkle of smoked or sweet paprika, or even a little Calabrian chile paste.

We liked the seasonality and vibrancy of the asparagus with the shrimp and the lemon, but you could easily use another veggie like green beans or snap peas.

Product Recs:

We like every product we’ve tried by Rice Select and their couscous is no exception.
We used the Classic Roasted Chicken stock from Cook Stix, and are extremely excited about this new product line from one of our dear friends.

Swaps:

You could make this with cubed salmon instead of the shrimp, or skip the shrimp entirely and add some jarred tuna in olive oil at the end.
As mentioned above, you could use another veggies like snap peas or haricot vert.

Add-ons:

Mix some fresh grated garlic or garlic granules into the marinade for some extra oomph.
A splash of wine in the stock never goes amiss.
Slivered ramps! They’re in season now and can be found at the farmers market alongside your asparagus.
If you can’t find ramps, garnish with some chopped chives.
Finish with some some crumbled parmesan, feta, or goat cheese.
Add some toasted pine nuts for a bit of crunch.

Equipment:

Mixing bowl
Microplane
Whisk
Lemon juicer
Measuring spoons
Spatula
Baking sheet
Parchment paper (optional)
Measuring cups
Baking sheet
Aluminum foil

Ingredients:

2 lemons, divided
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon sea salt, plus more as needed
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
⅛ teaspoon red-pepper flakes (optional)
~10 ounces/~1 ½ cups couscous
1 pound peeled and deveined extra-large or jumbo shrimp
2 cups water or stock
~12 ounces asparagus

Steps:

Preheat the oven to 400 F degrees with a rack positioned in the middle.

Prepare your shrimp: zest and juice one of your lemons into a bowl large enough to fit your shrimp. Then, whisk in two tablespoons of your olive oil, a sprinkle (~½ teaspoon) each of salt and pepper, and your red pepper flakes, if using. Plop in your shrimp into the marinade and toss to coat, then set aside while you prep your couscous.

Spread the couscous in an even layer across the bottom of a rimmed sheet pan. Pour your water or stock over the couscous, then lay the beans in an even layer on top of the couscous, followed by the shrimp. Drizzle any remaining marinade over the pan, then cover the sheet pan tightly with aluminum foil.

Bake, covered, for 10 minutes, then remove the foil and bake until the shrimp are firm and opaque, and all the liquid has been absorbed - another 5 minutes or so.

When everything is cooked through, drizzle the juice from the remaining lemon along with olive oil or butter over the pan, then gently fluff the couscous with a fork. Season to taste, then divide evenly among four bowls and serve.

Sheet Pan Shrimp and Couscous