Ina Garten’s Tabbouleh for Frugal Fridays

During a recent purge of The Time Machine, aka, my freezer, I discovered a couple bags of bulgur that I bought a while ago, hoping to try my hand at tabbouleh.  After watching an episode of Barefoot Contessa, I knew I had to make Ina Garten’s recipe.  I had everything I needed in the pantry and refrigerator (the theme of Frugal Fridays), so I got to work.  The result was delicious, just a tad too salty for me, so the recipe I’m including below has less salt than her original recipe.

This is a quick, easy, high-fiber grain dish that  I plan on making again and again.  I’ve been trying to add some diversity to the grains that we eat, and this one is a winner.

If you want to join me for Frugal Fridays, you can find out how to do it here.

Tabbouleh
Adapted from a recipe by Ina Garten

• 1 cup bulgur wheat
• 1 1/2 cups boiling water
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons) – you can also add some lemon zest if you like
• 1/4 cup good olive oil
• Kosher salt
• 1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts (1 bunch)
• 1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves (1 bunch)
• 1 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley (1 bunch)
• 1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced
• 2 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  Place the bulgur in a large bowl, pour in the boiling water, and add the lemon juice, olive oil, and 1 teaspoon salt. Stir, then allow to stand at room temperature for about an hour.

  Add the scallions, mint, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, and the pepper; mix well. Season to taste (add more lemon or salt, for example) and serve, or cover and refrigerate.  Ina Garten says that the flavor will improve if the tabbouleh sits for a few hours, and it does.