This is a much loved recipe adapted from one of Oliver’s recipes. Great for when you have a lot of people to feed and when you are pressed for time as you can prepare the vegetables and bulgur wheat the day before and just toss witch the fresh herbs on the day. The original recipe came from his book “Jamie’s Italy“.
Bulgur Wheat Salad Recipe
November 9, 2016
: 8
: 45 min
: 30 min
: 1 hr 15 min
: Medium
Ingredients
- 400 grams bulgur wheat
- 3 yellow zucchinis (courgettes), diced small (use green or patty pan squash if you can't find yellow)
- 2 green zucchinis (courgettes), diced small
- 2 bulbs fennel, diced small, leafy tops reserved to garnish
- 1 red onion, diced small
- 2 red capsicum (bell pepper), deseeded and diced small
- 2 eggplants, salted and diced small
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled
- ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tablespoons splash herb or white wine vinegar
- 1 good bunch fresh herbs, such as flat-leaf parsley, basil, mint and oregano (I used 1 cup each of parsley, mint, and basil)
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- Sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
Directions
- Step 1 Preheat the oven to 200ºC.
- Step 2 Soak bulgur wheat in cold water for 20 minutes, then drain.
- Step 3 While the bulgur wheat is soaking, salt your eggplants before cooking as this removes the excess water and reduces the eggplants ability to absorb oil. To do then place the diced eggplants, one layer at a time, in a colander and sprinkle with some coarse salt. Allow to sit for at least 30 minutes then a pat dry with a towel to remove the excess water and salt.
- Step 4 Add all the diced vegetables and garlic in a large baking tray, toss together with some olive oil and season well.
- Step 5 Spread the vegetables out in one layer if you can, as they’ll roast better this way – use 2 trays if you have to. Roast in the oven for 30 to 40 minutes, removing the trays from the oven and carefully shaking them every now and then, until the vegetables are cooked through and crisp around the edges.
- Step 6 While the vegetables are roasting dress the bulgur wheat with the oil and lemon, season with salt and pepper and mix well, leave to the side until your vegetables are cooked.
- Step 7 As soon as they come out of the oven sprinkle the vinegar over the vegetables and set aside to cool. You can remove the garlic cloves at this stage or squeeze them into the salad.
- Step 8 In a large mixing bowl add the bulgur wheat, the chopped vegetables and chopped, fresh herbs and mix until well combined. Taste and adjust seasoning according to your taste.
- Step 9 Scatter the reserved fennel tops or some basil on the top to garnish and serve.
