TABBOULEH RECIPE

Captured By The Recipe Hunters in Lebanon

Tabbouleh is a light Middle Eastern salad made from parsley, tomatoes, onion, bulgur and seasoned with lemon, salt, and olive oil. There will be variations on the theme depending on which country, region and family you visit. We recorded this recipe from Imane & Alaa, two Syrian refugees in Beirut, Lebanon, who are sharing their traditional recipes at the restaurant, Tawlet. After finishing the recipe check out Imane & Alaa's stories here!

Serves: 10-12

Prep time: 35 min.

Kitchen Tips & Tricks:

Do not attempt to make tabbouleh with a food processor, the parsley leaves will bruise and the salad will be soggy.
For the best consistency, prepare and serve the salad within two hours.
Red Cabbage & Carrot are optional.
"You need a sharp knife and you must cut tabbouleh very very tiny, it is the way our mothers and grandmothers taught us…it is the secret trick!” -Imane & Alaa

INGREDIENTS

2 bunches of parsley
1 heart of a head of romaine lettuce (just the juicy leaves in the center)
small red cabbage (optional)
3 hard, red tomatoes
1 bunch of green onions
Handful of fresh mint leaves
.5 cup fine bulgur (wheat berries or spelt are also fine)
.5 cup of vinegar (white distilled)
1 shaved carrot (optional)
extra virgin olive oil
juice from 2 lemons
pinch of dried mint
salt to taste

RECIPE:

1. Soak the bulgur in lemon juice for 30 minutes as you prepare the rest of the tabbouleh. If you decide to use the wheat berries or spelt, add them to 3 cups of boiling water with 1 Tbsp of olive oil & .5 Tbsp of salt. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer for 60 – 80 minutes or until grains are soft & chewy.

2. Wash the parsley in a bowl of cold water and vinegar. Hold a bunch of the parsley together and chop it down very finely until you reach the stems. At this point, discard the stems of parsley and begin chopping the next bunch. If the parsley is held together by a rubber band, keep it on the parsley and chop until right before you hit the rubberband (easy clean-up).

Made with Love Tip: The key here is to use a very sharp knife and to chop the parsley very fine, without bruising the leaves.

3. Wash and finely dice the red cabbage, the romaine lettuce, the green onions, the mint, and the tomatoes, then add them to the parsley. If you decide to add carrot, grate the carrot over the salad bowl.

4. Add the bulgur or wheat berries & a pinch of dried mint to the rest of the ingredients.

Made with Love Tip: The bulgur/wheat berries should be soft when you add them to the tabbouleh. If they are still hard, let them soak in hot water until they are soft.

5. Add the lemon juice, drizzle with olive oil, salt to taste, mix using your hands, serve and enjoy!!!

Made with Love Tip: When you are seasoning the tabbouleh with lemon, olive oil and salt, add the ingredients a bit at a time to tailor it to your taste!