I wanted to make a substantial version of tabbouleh for vegetarians. You can do pretty much what you want with this. I give a list of possible ingredients and you can add or subtract at will and to taste. Most tabbouleh recipes are very heavy on the chopped parsley, almost as if that ingredients is standing in for lettuce, but you don’t have to add that much. You could even, if you wanted to, add some shredded cooked chicken, if you have any sitting around that you want to use up, but this is such a good dish for vegetarians (and even vegans) that it’s probably good to leave it meat-free.
Debi's Hearty Tabbouleh
This makes a bright, fresh-tasting salad that will stand in well for pasta or potato salad.
Ingredients
- 1 cup bulgur Prepared according to package directions.*
- 1/4 tsp. salt
Add-ins, very much to taste and in any combination you like:
- chopped parsley
- chopped mint Which I have never used because I think it seems weird, but fresh mint is very much a part of Middle Eastern cuicine.
- chopped cucumbers
- chopped scallions Including most of the green tops, up to the point at which they get touch and/or wilted.
- sun-dried tomatoes, chopped or julienned
- chopped or diced marinated artochokes
- any other vegetables you have and would like to use: blanched green beans, chopped broccoli, shredded carrot, jullienned or chopped red or green peppers These aren't traditional, but who cares?
- drained and rinsed chickpeas Not a usual ingredients in tabbouleh, but makes the salad nice a hearty for vegetarians.
Dressing:
- 1 cup olive oil You can replace some of this with oil drained from sun-dried tomatoes (if you're using them and if they're oil-packed) and/or marinated artichoke hearts (if using).
- 1/3 cup lemon juice
- 1/3 cup red wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp. lemon zest or 1/8 tsp. lemon oil Depending on whether or not you're using fresh lemon juice.
- 1-2 cloves garlic, or 1/4-1/2 tsp. granulated garlic
- 1 tablespoon lemon-pepper seasoning
Instructions
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Prep bulgur and vegetables. Whisk dressing ingredients and pour over, mixing thoroughly. You will have dressing left over, but be fairly generous with it. The salad can be made well ahead of time, and it has more flavor when it's not too cold, so take it out half an hour or so before serving. There's nothing perishable in it, so it can sit out on a buffet just fine for a couple of hours.
Recipe Notes
*Instructions for bulgur preparation seem to vary quite a bit. I used Bob's Red Mill whole-grain red bulgur for this recipe, which has a nice nutty flavor and a nice chew. Confusingly, it has three different prep techniques listed on the package, but the way you're supposed to do it for tabbouleh is to soak one cup bulgur in one cup boiling water for an hour or so, then drain well (although there shouldn't be much if any water to drain). Add the salt to the water before mixing it in with the bulgur. Other techniques increase the water or have you actually boil the bulgur. I think the variations have to do with how chewy you want the end result to be. If your package specifically gives a preparation for tabbouleh, use that; otherwise, the one-to-one ratio of bulgur to water will probably work fine.
