Bulgur Salad with Vegetables and Lemon
Fine bulgur is soaked, not boiled — boiling water at a ratio of one cup to one and a quarter, covered for fifteen minutes. Boiling turns it to paste. Dress the bulgur first so it absorbs the dressing, and add the vegetables last so they do not leach water.
- Prep
- 25 min
- Cook
- —
- Total
- 25 min
- Calories
- 230
Bulgur salad is the easiest filling salad there is, and the most common mistake is boiling the bulgur like rice. Fine bulgur is already parboiled during manufacture — it only needs to soak.
Method
-
1
Soak the bulgur
Put the bulgur in a bowl, pour over the boiling water, cover immediately and leave for 15 minutes. The cover traps the steam, which is what completes the hydration.
⏱ 16 min -
2
Fluff it
Fluff the bulgur with a fork until the grains separate, and let it cool to room temperature. A fork separates; a spoon compresses and turns it pasty.
⏱ 5 min -
3
Dress it
Mix the oil, lemon, salt and sumac and pour over the bulgur, stirring well. The bulgur absorbs the dressing at this stage — added at the end it would just pool at the bottom.
⏱ 3 min -
4
Chop the vegetables
Dice the tomatoes and cucumber small and chop the parsley and spring onion finely, using a sharp knife so the vegetables are not crushed into releasing water.
⏱ 8 min -
5
Combine and serve
Fold the vegetables and herbs into the dressed bulgur just before serving. Mixing early makes the tomatoes release their juice and the salad turn watery.
⏱ 3 min
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Tips that actually matter
- Fine bulgur only soaks — boiling turns it to paste because it is already parboiled in manufacture.
- Dress the bulgur before the vegetables, so it absorbs the dressing instead of leaving it at the bottom.
- Vegetables at the last moment — mixing early releases tomato juice and wets the salad.
- It keeps two days in the fridge, and is better on day two if the vegetables go in at serving time.
People also ask
Is bulgur boiled or soaked?
Fine bulgur is soaked only — boiling water at one cup to one and a quarter, covered for 15 minutes. Coarse bulgur is the kind that gets boiled, and it is used for pilafs rather than salads.
What is the difference from tabbouleh?
Tabbouleh is built on parsley with only a very small amount of bulgur. Bulgur salad is the reverse — the grain is the base and the vegetables are the addition. The proportions are completely different.
Why does my salad go watery?
The vegetables went in too early. Tomatoes and cucumber release water over time — add them right before serving, and store the dressed bulgur on its own.
Cook mode
Bulgur Salad with Vegetables and Lemon
-
1
Soak the bulgur
Put the bulgur in a bowl, pour over the boiling water, cover immediately and leave for 15 minutes. The cover traps the steam, which is what completes the hydration.
-
2
Fluff it
Fluff the bulgur with a fork until the grains separate, and let it cool to room temperature. A fork separates; a spoon compresses and turns it pasty.
-
3
Dress it
Mix the oil, lemon, salt and sumac and pour over the bulgur, stirring well. The bulgur absorbs the dressing at this stage — added at the end it would just pool at the bottom.
-
4
Chop the vegetables
Dice the tomatoes and cucumber small and chop the parsley and spring onion finely, using a sharp knife so the vegetables are not crushed into releasing water.
-
5
Combine and serve
Fold the vegetables and herbs into the dressed bulgur just before serving. Mixing early makes the tomatoes release their juice and the salad turn watery.
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