My Bulgur Wheat Salad – deliciously simple and healthy.

I’ve got quite into bulgur wheat recently; something about the summer and wanting something light but not quintessentially a salad.

Something fresh and filling but not heavy, potato salads are great, but sometimes I’m searching for that mouthful of sunshine.

And that’s what I love about a good bulgur wheat salad; if it’s made right it is bloody fantastic. Especially for a guy like me that thinks he doesn’t like salads (but always loves them like it’s the first time I’ve eaten a salad… idiot…).

It’s a salad for people that don’t like salads.

I’ve come to realise that there is a set of rules to making a good bulgur wheat salad and I’ll share them with you.

Top 3 tips for a bulgur wheat salad:

1. Use a lot of herbs – once you think you’ve got enough, add more.
2. Don’t skimp on seasoning – bulgur wheat verges on tasteless; it’s up to you to get that flavour going. Use alot of salt and pepper.
3. Follow my recipe to cook the bulgur wheat – but the rest of my recipe is just a guide; make it your own.

There is fundamentally two stages to this recipe; cooking the bulgur wheat and then transforming it into a salad.

I cook the start of this the same way I make my Pourgouri (which is a traditionally Greek bulgur wheat dish) and then add all the other bits.

Bulgur Wheat Salad Recipe (a Greek Tabbouleh Recipe):

150 gm / 1 scant cup course grain bulgur wheat – rinsed

4 tbl extra virgin olive oil (cooking)

3 tbl extra virgin olive oil (dressing)

1 small white onion diced

1/2 red onion finely sliced

2 cloves chopped garlic

1 ripe tomato chopped

Just over 1 cup (300 ml) stock (chicken is ideal or veg if you want a vegetarian dish)

1 tbsp dried mint

1 tbl dried oregano

1 handful baby spinach leaves

30g chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

30g chopped fresh coriander

30g chopped fresh mint

1 chilli finely sliced

2 tbl fresh lemon juice

Optional ingredients: pomegranate seeds, crumbled feta, chopped anchovies, anything you want!

Bulgur Wheat Salad Method:

1. on a low heat gently fry the onion in olive oil for 5 minutes until cooked then add the garlic and cook for another minute.
2. Add the chopped tomatoes and bulgur wheat, followed by the stock.
3. Cover the pan, bring to boil then reduce to the lowest heat setting and cook for 10 minutes.
4. Once cooked, remove from heat, leave lid on and rest for another 10 minutes.
5. Finely chop all the other ingredients except the red onions (thinly sliced) and spinach leaves (left whole).
6. Using a fork, fluff the bulgur wheat and mix in everything else.
7. Taste for balance of flavours and seasoning

Goes well with bloody everything! But especially with my slow cooked pork belly!