Rosie Makes Tabbouleh.

 I have this lovely pot of mint on my deck and a garden full of volunteer parsley plants. 

And I'm thinking --- I must make tabbouleh! 

It's bright.  

It's fresh.  

It's herbaceous.

It's vibrant.

It's zesty. 

It's earthy.  

It's refreshing. 

It's a perfect melange of flavors.

 

 

 

 

 

When making tabbouleh, there's no set recipe when it comes to amounts.  Just grab your ingredients and start mixing. 

 

 I started out with 1 cup of bulgur wheat and forgot how much cooked bulgur that makes (4+ cups), so you might want to scale back a bit on the grain.

 

 

 

As for the ingredients, I'm offering guidelines.  The amounts are not etched in stone.  Taste test as you go along and adjust for your own preferences.  For example, I only had a half cucumber in the fridge. I thought it needed more so I bought another one the next day and added it to the mix.  And you may prefer more mint, tomatoes, and/or onions.  Again, TASTE TEST!

 

Here's what I'll be using:

1 cup bulgur wheat

1 big bunch parsley

1/2 as much mint

3 large tomatoes

1/2 cucumber   

4 scallions

red onion

 

Place raw bulgur wheat in a large bowl and pour 3 cups boiling water over, cover, and let soak for a couple hours.  Drain off any excess water.

Chop parsley (3-4 cups) and mint (about 2 cups).

Peel and seed tomatoes, then dice.

Mince the scallions (about 1/4 cup) and the red onion (about 1/2 cup). 

Peel the cucumber and dice.

Add parsley, mint, tomatoes, scallions, onion, and cucumber to the bulgur and mix well. 

(The next day, I bought more cucumber and added that to the mix.) 

 

For the dressing:

juice of 2 lemons

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil 

I used Corto Truly extra virgin olive oil.  Can't find it in stores here, so I order it from Amazon. It's one of my favorite extra virgin oils.  Oils vary tremendously in flavors, so I'd recommend going to an olive oil shop where you can taste test before you buy and pick out something you really like.

 

kosher salt and freshly ground pepper 

 

Juice the lemons and gradually whisk in the olive oil. 

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

 

Pour in the dressing and toss to combine well.

 

 

Choppy.  Choppy.

Dicey.  Dicey.

Slicey.

 Choppy.

 

  

 

Artfully arrange the layers.

Stand back and admire. 

It's so pretty!

Start on the dressing.

Pour dressing over the tabbouleh mixture.

Toss and stir to combine.

 

 

 

To serve, you can use chips or a lettuce wrap or pita 

or a big spoon for a big mouth. 

It's deliciously herbal and fresh.

Enjoy.