Bulghur
Bulghur is parboiled cracked wheat, so it’s a whole grain. Once prepared, it’s tender and fluffy. Bulghur is often confused with couscous, but they’re not the same (couscous is actually tiny pasta). Good tabbouleh is made with super fine grain (#1) bulghur and it’s soaked, not cooked.
Fresh Parsley
The secret is in the parsley quality. I’ve used both flat-leaf and curly (American and Italian), but curly is the way to go. Don’t use a food processor…..pick by hand. It’s painful, but one of those dishes that shows your family how much you love them.
Fresh Mint and Green Onion
Mint is standard and adds most flavor. That said, it can be expensive, so you can use dried mint if you want to cheat.
Green onion is my mild onion of choice. It’s mandatory.
Olive Oil and Lemon Juice
Use a good quality olive oil if available. Add your lemon juice a bit at a time to ensure you don’t over flavor. Don’t add garlic.
Tabbouleh
Materials
- ½ cup fine cracked wheat #1 burghul
- 5-6 cups parsley (about 5 large bunches) washed and picked w/o stems
- 1 cup fresh mint finely chopped
- 8 green onions chopped
- 4 large tomatoes finely chopped
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice adjust to taste
- ½ cup olive oil
Instructions
- Rinse cracked wheat and soak in cold water for 20 minutes. Drain and squeeze out excess moisture and place in a large bowl.
- Add lemon juice, oil and seasonings to cracked wheat and set aside.
- Combine parsley, mint, onions and tomatoes and add to cracked wheat mixture.
- Toss well before serving.
- For best taste results, let sit for 6-8 hours before serving.
Notes
- Use a salad spinner to wash and dry parsley and mint before chopping.
- To enhance the flavour of the salad, do steps 1 and 2 well advance of serving.
- Refrigerate any leftovers.
