Parsley's Time to Shine: Tabbouleh

With the first chill in the air recently I decided to tap my fledgling parsley plant and put it to one last good use for the year.  Tabbouleh trumps all other things I can think of in terms of the most parsley used in any single dish, so what better way to celebrate the last big bunch?  By the way I mean flat leaf parsley--stay away from the curly stuff.

I'm not an expert but most variations I've seen of this dish treat it as fresh parsley featuring bulgur, while I prefer mine to be a bulgur salad featuring parsley.  As much as I appreciate the breath assuring fragrance of it, parsley is strong and tends to be a little rough in texture.  Chopping it and letting it sit with oilve oil and acid like lemon juice moderates it, but I don't like to dress mine with too much of either.  So I make it more of a meal Jerry with a heavy hand on the bulgur, and a balance of parsley and tomato for flavor.

Bulgur is great because it's par-boiled cracked wheat, which means it can be ready in as little as 15 minutes and has the elite status of whole grain.  I actually prefer it to couscous in a lot of applications due to its superior nuttiness.  And medium coarse bulgur, which I always use, is nice and chewy.  It can be steeped in warm or hot water for 15 minutes then drained, or made like pilaf into a hot dish.  It's not an exotic or expensive grain though and is available in most supermarkets or specialty stores nowadays. 

The end of Summer/beginning of Fall seems like a perfect time to make it too because it's when local tomatoes, a key ingredient, are really peaking. Don't let the time of year stop you though; parsley and tomatoes (I switch to mostly grape ones in the Winter) are available any time. 

Serves 6

Ingredients:
3 cups bulgur wheat
4 ripe medium tomatoes
1/4 to 1/2 of a small onion, finely diced
2 full bunches worth of flat leaf parsley
juice of 2 medium lemons
Extra Virgin Olive Oil to taste
Salt & Pepper to taste

Put the bulgur in a bowl and cover by a couple inches with room temperature water.  Let it sit for 15-20 minutes at least, then drain well, squeezing or pressing as much excess water out as possible. 

Take the tomatoes and slice them, then with a small knife or spoon scoop out the the seeds and inner liquid (save it if you can think of another way to use it).  Take the remaining flesh and dice.

Separate the parsley leaves from the stems, discarding the stems (or save them to make stock).  Roughly chop the parsley a few times over but do not make it fine.

Assemble the dish by gently mixing the bulgur, tomatoes, onion and parsley together, then add the lemon juice and a couple tablespoons of olive oil.  Avoid too much oil though because it will make the salad heavy and dense, whereas you want something fluffy.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.  Or let it sit overnight and then remove from the fridge about an hour before serving.