Tabbouleh
Herb salad with lots of parsley, a little bulgur, tomato, and plenty of lemon.
- Preparation
- 30 min
- Cook/bake time
- –
- Total
- 50 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Calories
- 224 kcal
- Servings
- 4
- Prep
- 30 min
- Resting
- 20 min
Only 30 min of that is hands-on – the rest takes care of itself.
Herb salad with lots of parsley, a little bulgur, tomato, and plenty of lemon. In Lebanon, tabbouleh is an herb salad with a little grain, not the other way around, which is why only a small amount of fine bulgur is used here. Fresh, light, and the perfect accompaniment to anything grilled.
Why this works
Fine bulgur is precooked and dried. It does not need cooking water, just liquid to swell. Tomato juice and lemon provide exactly that, which is why it steeps in the salad and absorbs its flavor instead of diluting it. The ratio of ingredients is therefore not a matter of taste: too much bulgur soaks up all the liquid, leaving a dry grain salad with an herb decoration.
Step-by-step instructions
- 1
Let the bulgur swell
Pour two tablespoons of lemon juice over the fine bulgur and let it stand for twenty minutes. It swells solely from the juice and the moisture of the tomatoes that are added later. Hot water would be wrong because it makes it mushy, and fine bulgur does not need cooking anyway.
- 2
Cut the herbs
Wash the parsley and mint, spin them really dry, and pluck the leaves from the coarse stems. Cut them into fine strips with a very sharp knife instead of chopping them. Chopped herbs get crushed, lose their juice, and turn the salad dark, while cut herbs remain bright green.
- 3
Dice the tomatoes
Dice the tomatoes very finely, into pieces about half a centimeter in size, and deliberately leave the seeds in because you need their liquid to swell the bulgur. Choose firm tomatoes, as soft and mealy ones fall apart when mixed and make the salad watery.
- 4
Mix
Place the herbs, tomatoes, scallions, and the swollen bulgur in a large bowl. Mix the remaining lemon juice with olive oil, allspice, salt, and pepper, and pour the dressing over it. Gently fold everything from the bottom up instead of stirring so that the herbs do not collapse.
- 5
Let it steep
Let the tabbouleh stand for ten minutes so that the bulgur absorbs the remaining liquid and the flavors combine. Then taste it again, as it usually needs more lemon and salt than you initially think. Serve it at room temperature, not ice cold from the refrigerator.
Our best tips
- The ratio is right when the salad looks green and not beige. Bulgur is an ingredient here, not the base.
- Cut the herbs instead of chopping them, otherwise the salad will turn dark and lose its flavor.
- Only use fine bulgur of variety no. 1. Coarse bulgur needs to be cooked and does not fit.
Tasty variations
Gluten-free
Replace the bulgur with fine quinoa, cook it beforehand, and let it cool completely.
With pomegranate
Fold in a handful of pomegranate seeds, which adds sweetness and color.
Nutrition facts
| Calories | 224 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 4 g |
| Carbohydrates | 14 g |
| – of which sugar | 4 g |
| Fat | 16 g |
| Fiber | 5 g |
Where the 224 kcal come from
per serving
Calculated from the ingredients – how we do it
We add up reference values for every ingredient and divide by the number of servings. These assumptions are baked in:
- Reference values per 100 g – for the raw ingredient, exactly as listed.
- Tinned goods count at drained weight, bone-in meat at purchase weight: you eat about 70 per cent of a chicken thigh and leave the rest.
- Water evaporates as you cook. The energy stays in the pot, the weight does not – so the figure is per serving, not per 100 g of finished dish.
- Anything listed without a quantity – “salt and pepper” – is not counted.
A guide value, not a lab measurement: no two onions weigh the same, and fat content varies from pack to pack.
Frequently asked questions
How much bulgur really belongs in it?
In the Lebanese original, very little, about a tenth of the herb volume. Many European versions reverse the ratio, which then makes it more of a bulgur salad.
How long does tabbouleh keep?
It is best fresh, at the latest the next day. After that, the herbs collapse and the salad becomes watery and dark.
Can I prepare it in advance?
Pre-cut the ingredients and mix the dressing separately. Only combine them shortly before serving, then everything stays fresh.
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