Authentic Lebanese Tabbouleh

Tabbouleh is a healthy, rich, lemony, earthy and super-green salad with Lebanese origins. It is a staple of any Lebanese party involving food. To ace making an awesome Tabbouleh, you should use the freshest greens you can find, drain them after mincing so they’re not soggy, and of critical importance is to ensure using freshly squeezed lemon juice and not bottled juice. An awesome Tabbouleh recipe is highlighted by how lemony it is.

Tabbouleh is usually served along with Mezze which is a host of appetizers and hors-d’oeuvres.

Ingredients

• 4 bunches Italian Parsley chopped finely and left to dry
• 1 bunch fresh green mint chopped finely and left to dry
• 1 Persian cucumber chopped finely
• 4 medium-sized tomatoes chopped finely, drained
• 1 white onion chopped finely, drained from juice
• 1/4 cup Bulgur, fine cracked wheat
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1/2 cup lemon juice freshly squeezed
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/3 tsp Lebanese 7 Spice blend

Directions

1. Rinse all vegetables and let dry on a paper towel, especially the parsley and mint.
2. Cut stems off parsley then chop finely. Spread chopped parsley on paper towels and let rest for a few mins in order to get rid of excess moisture.
3. Cut stems off mint, and finely chop the leaves. Spread on a paper towel and let dry.
4. Finely chop tomatoes into small cubes 1/3in then place in strainer to get rid of the excess juice.
5. Finely chop onions, drain then mix with the 7-spices, set aside.
6. Finely chop the cucumber
7. Soak the bulgur in half of the lemon juice with a bit of salt.
8. Only once ready to serve, mix all ingredients together well, drizzle with olive oil and the leftover lemon juice. Add a bit more salt if needed.
9. Serve as a side salad along with some lettuce leaves.

Notes

Once vegetables are chopped, ensure they are drained of their excess juices otherwise we’ll end up with a soggy Tabbouleh. Mix the Tabbouleh only right before serving. If you mix it too much in advance it turns soggy quickly.

Notice that we’ve used only 1/4 cup of Bulgur for 4 servings. This is the right balance in traditional Tabbouleh.

If you don’t have the Lebanese 7-Spices handy, you can make your own by mixing equal proportions of ground Allspice, Black Pepper, Cinnamon, Ground Cloves, Ground Nutmeg, Fenugreek, and Powdered Ginger.