Tabbouleh is a favorite in our house. The recipe below is the way we make it in our family, but you will find that different people use different amounts of the ingredients. In some restaurants in the Middle East there is barely any burghul and the bulk of the dish consists of parsley. In some UK supermarkets they include cucumber in the recipe, which I find very strange. I think, strictly speaking, that a bit of mint is supposed to be included, but I once had Tabbouleh in a restaurant where they had added too much mint, and it ruined the flavour, so I leave it out completely.
Ingredients
- 1 cup of dry bulgur (cracked wheat)
- 1 cup of finely chopped parsley
- 1 cup of finely chopped tomato
- ½ cup of finely chopped onion
- Juice of 5 lemons
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- A very small pinch of powdered chilli
- Salt to taste
Method
- Wash the bulgur and drain in a sieve, then place in a large bowl.
- Add all the remaining ingredients and mix well.
- Leave in the fridge for at least one hour so that the bulgur can absorb all the juices, and soften and swell.
- Mix, taste, and adjust salt or lemon to taste. (If it tastes too salty, add a bit of lemon juice. If it tastes too lemony, add a bit of salt. In my experience, one seems to counteract the other).
- Serve with lettuce leaves. The lettuce can be used to scoop up the Tabbouleh. You scoop, wrap and eat!
Enjoy!
