Reclaiming Tabbouleh
I have never enjoyed Tabbouleh. But over the years, I have come to realize that the Food Network personality, Ina Garten has got my back. She has a catering background and cares about flavor. So, I can actually use some of her recipes for my purposes. I have also learned that for some of them, she obviously out-skills me!
This recipe is good. I did not do a whole cup of mint or parsley and maybe this is some of why I thought it tasted good. Too many herbs chokes it out for me. I also used a rice cooker that has a quinoa option and that is also why it is easy. See below for link if you don't have this...I have to say, this might not translate to rural Africa, BUT it might if you are good with the pressure cooker. I was always afraid of those. I feel you could substitute many of the ingredients for what you have and it would work.
A note on adding chicken... do what you want, BUT here is what I did and we liked it... I marinated chicken breast strips over night. This Greek marinade is from a Weber's grill book for 1/2 cup which worked for a pkg. of breast strips (maybe a U.S. pound?)
Greek Marinade
1/4 c. plus 2 T. extra virgin olive oil
3 T. red wine vinegar
1/2 t. minced garlic (I always triple that..)
1/2 t. kosher salt
1/2 t. dried oregano
1/4 t. crushed red chile flakes (although I used an asian spice Sambal Oelek)
In the morning, I broiled the ck. strips. I was also super happy to try out a pizza cutter to get the thin, small cuts to add to the salad. I have never done that before! I was putting it away and thought, that would be a perfect cooked chicken cutter and it was....
We are all trying to eat better and this tastes great AND is bro friendly, in my case that means my husband and teenage son like it (minus the tomatoes for my son). Lunch all week is the best...
Ingredients
1 cup quinoa
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (2 lemons)
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 cup thinly sliced scallions, white and green parts (5 scallions)
1 cup chopped fresh mint leaves (2 bunches)
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded and medium-diced
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved through the stem
2 cups medium-diced feta (8 ounces)
Directions
Pour 2 cups of water into a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Add the quinoa and 1 teaspoon of salt, lower the heat and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes, until the grains are tender and open (they'll have little curly tails). Drain, place in a bowl and immediately add the lemon juice, olive oil and 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt.*
In a large bowl, combine the scallions, mint, parsley, cucumber, tomatoes, 1 to 2 teaspoons of salt* and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Add the quinoa and mix well. Carefully fold in the feta and taste for seasonings. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate and serve cold.
* Ina uses Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt, which is coarser than other brands; if you are using a finer-grain kosher salt such as Morton, use the smaller amount.
Cook's Note
Make-Ahead Plan: Prepare the salad without the feta, cover and refrigerate for up to 4 days. Fold in the feta and serve.
Recipe from Make It Ahead: A Barefoot Contessa Cookbook. Copyright (c) by Ina Garten. By arrangement with Clarkson Potter/Publishers, a division of Random House, LLC.
I actually got my rice cooker at Costco for $30. I saw all these Asian and East Asian folks with this in their cart as I was about to check out. I circled back around and grabbed it because I knew they knew what was good! My Kampala instincts kicked in b/c we had so little time to shop and you had to have this grab it now mentality! It was a cross cultural living skill moment and coup because I love this rice cooker... it also cooks my Irish Oatmeal perfectly. I know for sure I would not have the courage to cook quinoa. Another example of letting machines work for you in a good way.
