Tabbouleh? Tabouli?

Again, it is spelled phonetically so I really don’t care what you call it.

I call it good!

In Syria we ate this like it was going out of style, and would buy it reedy made in gallon tubs, along with hummus and flat bread. My favorite lunch then was to spread some hummus on flat bread and then top with tabouleh and hummus.

There are so many fun stories I could tell you about hummus and tabouli (OK, I prefer this spelling).

One of the best might involve the Sheraton Hotel in Damascus.

Here in America when you order a “Mezze” from a restaurant it usually (Unless it states otherwise is just for one person, with a selection of dishes, usually falafel, tabouli, stuffed grape leaves, hummus, and something dead on a stick (Unless you specify vegetarian, which in Syria means that you still eat fish. Very hard to convince people otherwise.).

At the Sheraton, like many of the Restaurants in the Levant, when you order a Mezze it is usually for four or more people, and as luck would have it that first day that we arrived and thought we would try a full mezze the head waiter was out sick, and thought the waiter that took our order for three mezzes looked at us kind of odd, he apparently did not speak enough English to explain that one was sufficient.

The horror sort of dawned on us, as they came out to table and started filling it with dishes, and then they brought over a folding table and started filling wit with dishes, and then pulled the empty table opposite over to us and started piling it with dishes.. Enough food for at least twelve, and nearby we could hear the laughter of other hotel guests who must have realized what happened.

You know that feeling of embarrassment that makes you want to become really really small so that no one can see you? With the sinking feeling in your stomach and the red flush in the face? That was it; I was feeling that; along with a severe amount of gas from traveling from Aberdeen on three aircraft over 20 hours, and nibbling on three different countries ideas of what food on a plane should taste like (It all tastes like aluminum foil and MSG, why do they even try?).

That was when I horked it, at least I leaned over and aimed for the floor, but I knew I was not going to make it to the bathroom when Mr. Chopped Carrot and Pea Soup came to town. This of course started a chain reaction of pukage from the other patrons. Why does one person reverse chewing causes other people, who are perfectly all right, want to shout at their shoes and feed the fish? Maybe it’s some sort of reaction that goes deep into the heart of humankind. This could go all the way back to Ouuurgh and Huurag your neighborhood Neanderthals sitting around the fire 100,000 years ago when someone started to shoot masticated mastodon across the cave floor, you might think that the meat was bad or someone picked the red berries from the prickly tree. Then the basic survival instinct takes over to get the badness out, so a veritable vomit fest ensues with everyone trying to rid the body of poisons before they could take effect. Or maybe it is because secretly people want to bark at the ants, and need an excuse to do so?

Well anyway, I hope that you do not have to deal with such a reaction, and here is a recipe for Tabouli that I happen to like.

Ingredients for 4-6:

2 Bunches of Parsley chopped fine (I use the food processor pulse a few times and it is good to go)

½ Cup of bulgar wheat soaked for 1 hour

3 Tomatoes diced

3 Green onions

2 Tablespoons of Lemon juice (More or less to taste)

3-4 Tablespoons of olive oil

A little salt and black pepper

1 Tablespoon of chopped fresh mint (Optional)

Baby romaine lettuce and tomato wedges to serve

Method:

Mix all together in a big bucket (A non reactive bucket) and taste for seasoning, add just a little lemon juice at a time, because once it becomes too sour you really can’t fix it, you can always add more just before serving if necessary. Cover the bucket with a lid and store in a cool place for an hour for the flavors to mingle and socialize. Serve with whole baby romaine lettuce leaves (or the small interior leave from a regular romaine lettuce) to scoop up and tomato wedges just for ships and pickles. (If you want to make it look like the picture, place it in a small steel or plastic bowl or ramekin, pack salad in well then un-mold on a plate, by placing the plate upside down over the top of the ramekin and fliping over so plate is right side up, give the ramekin a sharp tap and lift of carefully, you should have a salad that holds its shape without the evils of geletin.)