Tabbouleh with Rocket

I like the taste of rocket (aka arugula) and add it to anything that requires little or no cooking. This preparation is based on a recipe from Madhur Jaffrey’s ‘World Vegetarian’ cookbook called ‘Tabbouleh, a salad made with Bulgur and Arugula’.

To begin with: Soak 1 cup of bulgur wheat in 2 cups of water and 1 teaspoon of salt for 4 hours. Or wash, drain and leave aside. (Note: bulgur wheat can be found in the health food section of Australian supermarkets).

The rest of what you need for the salad:

* 2 medium tomatoes, chopped. (I put about 3 Roma or egg tomatoes). It’s recommended that the tomatoes be de-seeded and drained - but I don’t bother with any of that

* 2 cups finely chopped and well-packed fresh parsley (used curly parsley)

* 1 cup finely chopped arugula or rocket as they call it here in Australia

* 8 spring/green onions, sliced

Dressing:

* ¼ cup olive oil

* ¼ cup fresh lemon juice

* Freshly ground black pepper

* 1/8 teaspoon chilli (or 1 teaspoon)

* ½ teaspoon salt

What to do: In Ms Jaffrey’s book, she recommends lining a colander with a clean dish cloth, emptying the bulgur wheat into the colander, then gathering the ends of the cloth to twist as much water out as possible. Since I find it troublesome scraping grains off the cloth afterward – I don’t soak for 4 hours. Just wash the grains in several changes of water, drain most of the water out, then set aside until the rest of the salad is put together. For the the salad, mix the rest of the ingredients. Then mix dressing, add to salad. Toss well. Serve. Try tabbouleh with store-bought falafel, Arabic flat-bread and home-made hummus.