Lebanese Tabbouleh Salad
HOW DO YOU SERVE TABBOULEH SALAD
You can enjoy this on its own with a side of protein as a meal, or eat it as an appetizer. We usually serve this with lettuce in Lebanon. And we like to add a large scoop of the salad into a lettuce leaf and eat it with our hands. So sometimes, when I’m serving this for a crowd, I’ll leave out the lettuce leaves ready for serving.
And other times I just stuff the tabbouleh salad right in the lettuce because I love the presentation of a hand held salad. It’s fresh, flavorful and very healthy. And even though this looks like a very summery salad, it’s very popular around the holidays in the winter because it’s such a crowd pleasing appetizer.
TIPS TO MAKE THE BEST TABBOULEH SALAD RECIPE
1. Fine Chopping: Show off your chopping skills here by finely chopping all the vegetables. It’s tedious, but the presentation is everything, and you’ll get better at it with practice. Avoid using a food processor, especially for the parsley, which can wilt the parsley and ruin the texture of the salad.
2. Fine Bulgur: In fact, it should be extra fine bulgur to be precise. The focus of the salad is on the parsley, not the bulgur, so you want fine bulgur that incorporates easily into the salad without standing out. The bulgur should require no cooking.
3. Fine Tomatoes: You want them to be ripe for flavor’s sake, but firm so they don’t release too much juice. What I like doing is coring the tomatoes to remove the juicy interior and use that for another salad recipe. You can also just use a mesh colander to drain the liquids from chopped tomatoes.
AUTHOR Yumna Jawad | SERVINGS 6 servings
COURSE Appetizer | CALORIES 141
PREP TIME 40 mins
TOTAL TIME 40 mins
INGREDIENTS
⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup extra fine bulgur wheat
2 bunches parsley about 2 cups chopped
1-2 vine-ripe firm tomatoes
2 green onions both green and white part
¼ cup fresh mint leaves optional
Salt and pepper to taste
INSTRUCTIONS
1. In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil and lemon juice until well combined. Then add the bulgur to the dressing and let it soak until it is soft and plumped, about 15 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables by washing, drying thoroughly and finely chopping them. When preparing the tomatoes, it helps to use a colander to drain the excess juice, which you can use in another recipe at a later time.
3. Place the chopped vegetables in a large bowl. Add the optional mint. Season with salt and pepper. Then pour the bulgur and dressing mixture over. Gently toss to combine.
4. Serve at room temperature or cold, with lettuce if desired.
NOTES
Storage: Store any leftovers in an airtight container. They will last about 3-4 days in the fridge.
Make Ahead Tips: I would highly recommend washing and drying the parsley a day or two days in advance of chopping it. This gives the parsley time to dry properly so that when you chop it, it doesn’t turn into a wet mess.
Sourcing: You can find the fine bulgur at Middle Eastern markets, natural-foods stores or even in large supermarkets, often located with other Middle Eastern ingredients. Make sure it does not require cooking for this recipe.
Substitutes: For best results, follow the recipe as is. If you want to make this grain-free, you can substitute the bulgur for quinoa or even riced cauliflower.
Nutritional Data: Please note that the nutrition label provided is an estimate only. It will vary based on the specific ingredients used. The recipe is estimated for 6 servings.
NUTRITION
Calories: 141kcal, Carbohydrates: 8g, Protein: 2g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Sodium: 19mg, Potassium: 207mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 1891IU, Vitamin C: 32mg, Calcium: 38mg, Iron: 2mg
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It will vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
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