Summer is officially here!
The evidence? Thick, sweltering heat; girls in floral tops and tiny short skirts; boys in bermudas and flip-flops; and ridiculously-long queues at ice-cream shops.
The sun unforgivingly beats down on me during my twice-a-week walk to my physiotherapist; by the time I’ve reached the clinic at 2.30pm I’ve broken out into a sweat, something that rarely ever happens.
On the way back to my office, I brisk-walk as quickly as the heat and afternoon lethargy allows me to. The pavement is scorching hot, and the only relief is to be indoors with the air-con on full blast, windows shut tight.
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It’s the season which requires at least two to three showers a day; it’s when there’s an increasing need to escape the city and be nearer the countryside or the beach; and most importantly, it’s when our bodies crave fresh, light salads.
Most days, I like to mix fresh lettuce leaves with cubed tomatoes and sliced button mushrooms, lightly condimented with a generous glug of olive oil, a hint of balsamic vinegar and a shake of salt. Other days I mix freshly sliced peaches with arugula leaves, crumbled blue cheese and crushed walnuts, topped with a drizzle of olive oil.
And then some times, when I’m in the mood for an arm workout and chopping practice, I go with the incredibly refreshing middle-eastern Tabbouleh salad.
It’s a salad that’s eaten best chilled, a mix of fine bulgur wheat, diced cucumbers, cubed tomatoes, chopped parsley, sliced spring onions and a handful of fresh mint.
The secret of a good Tabbouleh salad is this – lots of patience (when there is the whole bag of vegetables ready to be diced) and plenty more of determination (to finish up the dicing and slicing and cutting once you’ve started).
After all the chopping and slicing and cutting has been done, you dress the salad with a sprinkle of salt, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and olive oil.
And there you have it – a lip-smackingly good summer salad.
Tabbouleh Salad
- Total Time: 20 mins
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
This tabbouleh is a salad that’s eaten best chilled, a mix of fine bulgur wheat, diced cucumbers, cubed tomatoes, chopped parsley, sliced spring onions and a handful of fresh mint.
Ingredients
- 250g of very fine bulgur wheat
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 150g spring onions, finely chopped
- 1 cup of parsley, finely chopped
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- 2 cucumbers, diced
- 1 teaspoon of chopped fresh mint
- 1 large lemon (for the juice)
- 200ml of olive oil
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Wash and rinse the bulgur several times, changing the water as needed.
- Once washed, allow bulgur to soak in hot water for 15 minutes, then drain the water completely.
- Chop onion, spring onions, parsley, tomatoes, cucumbers, mint
- Mix all the ingredients together, adding salt & pepper to taste
- Chill the salad in the refridgerator for 1 – 2 hours
- Mix olive oil and lemon juice together to make the dressing
- Serve salad chilled with the olive oil & lemon juice dressing
Notes
The great thing about this Tabbouleh salad is that it keeps well in the fridge; in fact, the salad tastes even better after a few days because that’s well all the juices and tastes have been fully absorbed.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Category: Salad
- Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Hello Felicia,
I found about your blog by chance , searching and looking for new recipes , but i m really shocked from your tabbouleh , this dish is a levant dish , so common in Syria and Lebanon , and the main Ingtedient is freshly chopped parsley ( not 1 cup) , the salad should be green with very little amount of burghul( fine cracked wheat, soaked in warm water for no more than 5 to 10 minutes ) or it will be soggy . This salad cannot be eaten as leftover the other day as the parsley willbe dark in color and the onions will be smelly . It should be mixed upon serving immiafieatly .
Regards
Maisaa
Hi Maissa, thank you for stopping by and Happy 2015! I really appreciate you pointing out the differences that make a tabbouleh salad truely authentic – to be honest, the recipe I used was one I learnt from a cooking class here in Argentina, so naturally there will be differences with a salad that is eaten in Levantine countries. Glad to learn how the tabbouleh really should be eaten! Have a wonderful week!
Hi Felicia,
What is the temperature like in BA during summer with scotching heat? I would not hesitate to agree that a chilled salad will always be welcomed during summer.
How are you doing? Why do you need to visit the Physiotherapist twice a week? By faith, I pray for God’s supernatural healing and wholesome restoration for you.
Sending you lots of love and blessings!
Mum
★★★★★
Mummy! Depending on the day, the temp can go up to 34 degrees (but thankfully we haven’t reached the height of summer yet).
I had a bad muscle ache in my shoulder for about two weeks but it’s almost gone now!