one of my favourite salads

Tabouleh! (pronouced Tabouli!)  This is one of my all-time favourite salads.  I learned how to make it from my mom, much like many of the other dishes and salads I make often.

The keys to a delicious tabouleh, in my opinion is: 1) chopping everything as small as possible, and 2) being generous with your dressing.

I also like using whole bulgur wheat, 'cause I think it's tastier than the non-whole version.

If you've ever wondered what bulgur wheat is, wonder no more!  Bulgur is a coarsely ground wheat that has been parboiled and dried.  It's sometimes confused with cracked wheat, but it's not the same thing.  Bulgur has a slightly nutty flavour, and no tabouleh is whole without it.

Here is my attempt as the tiniest cubes of cucumber:

Here's the parsley chopped up real fine, and the shallots ready to go:

and the flowers I got for Valentine's Day.

Here's the recipe!

Tabouleh

by my mom

Ingredients:

1/3 cup whole bulgur wheat

1 bunch of parsley, thoroughly washes and chopped very fine

1 tomato, finely cubed

1 english cucumber, finely cubed

2 shallots, or 3 green onions, or 1/4 onion, chopped fine

1 tbsp vinegar

2 tbsp lemon juice

3 tbsp olive oil

salt & pepper

dash of dried chili pepper for a bit of heat

Directions:

Wash the bulgur wheat and drain, leaving a bit of water.  Let the wheat soak for at least 30 mins, until they are softened.

Combine the bulgur with the vegetables and toss.  Pour vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, and seasonings on the salad and toss well.

Enjoy!

-zaza