Earlier this spring I was reading through my copy of the cookbook Jerusalem and came across a recipe for bulgur-stuffed eggplant with raisins, pine nuts and parsley. Sounded delicious, except for one thing: I had never cooked bulgur before. In fact, I barely knew what bulgar was.
I walked the few short blocks to my nearest neighborhood store and picked up a bag, ready to recreate the delicious-sounding recipe. Well, bulgur turns out to be super easy to make (the same as rice) and incredibly satisfying. Nevertheless, I stuffed the bag away in my cabinet after making the recipe and sort of forgot about the grain.
Just last week I was looking through my cabinets for some cooking inspiration, and rediscovered the bulgur. And it was one of those moments where I just decided to throw together a bunch of stuff I had in the fridge and it turned out delicious: leftover roasted chicken, fresh roasted corn, cherry tomatoes, cucumber and fresh herbs. It was delicious, hearty while still being a fresh and light summer dinner.
Want to make this dish vegetarian? Swap out the chicken for some chickpeas instead.
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Ingredients
1/2 cup uncooked bulgur
1 cup water
1 Tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp salt
2 ears fresh corn
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 cucumber, seeds removed and chopped
3/4 cup chopped chicken breast
fresh parsley
salt and pepper
Directions
Cook bulgur according to directions and add 1 Tbsp olive oil plus 1/2 tsp salt to cooking water. After bulgur is finished cooking (around 20 minutes) fluff with a fork and set aside.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove corn kernals from the cob and spread out in a single layer on a lightly greased baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 10-15 minutes, or until just starting to brown.
In a large bowl combine bulgur, roasted corn, cherry tomatoes, cucumber, chicken and 2-3 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve slightly warm or room temperature.
