Tabbouleh is a Middle Eastern parsley and burghul salad which the Lebanese claim as their national salad, according to Afife Harris. It is fresh and light and goes well with any meal - fish, steak, chicken or kebabs. Or you can eat it by itself.
Mrs Harris, who will be known to the many people who buy her Middle Eastern food at the Otago Farmers Market in Dunedin or attend her cooking classes at Logan Park High School, was born and brought up in Lebanon.
She came to Dunedin in 1990 with her New Zealand husband, Prof William Harris, of the political studies department at the University of Otago.
Growing up in Beirut, she and her family would visit their ancestral village in south Lebanon for weekends and summer holidays with their relatives.
They would bring back fresh vegetables to the city where they didn't have room to grow their own, and they would make their own burghul (cracked wheat) during summer.
Ingredients:
¼ cup fine burghul wheat
3 bunches of fresh parsley
1kg ripe tomatoes
1 bunch fresh mint or 3 Tbsp dried mint
3 spring onions or small brown onions
4 Tbsp olive oil
4 Tbsp lemon juice
Pinch of salt
Pinch of black pepper
1 cos (romaine) lettuce (optional)
Soak the burghul in cold water to cover for about 15 minutes or warm water for about 8-10. It will fluff up.
Finely chop the parsley, mint and spring onions. Dice the tomatoes. Combine all ingredients including the burghul. Add salt, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper, and mix well.
This salad can be eaten with a fork, but the traditional way is to scoop up a bit of the mixture in a lettuce leaf and pop it into the mouth.
This will serve about 10 people.
• Tips
Burghul is also known as bulgar. It is made from wheat grains that have been boiled, then dried and ground, and has a slightly nutty flavour. It is widely used in Greek, Turkish and Middle Eastern cooking. It is not the same as couscous.
Use juicy tomatoes if you can - the juice adds flavour to the burghul.
Chop parsley with a knife - a food processor would make it too mushy.
Always use fresh parsley, although dried mint will do.
Vary the amount of olive oil, lemon juice and other ingredients, depending on your taste.
