tabouleh... spicing it with colors

what will you do to have something like that??? and you are far from where it originates?

i say, make it from scratch! my mummy used to say, if you are not bothered by the effort of making your meal, you will have something to eat... i say, in addition to that, if you can tolerate delayed gratification... you'll most likely enjoy a lovely meal... harha.

i've been wondering how Tabouleh is made since the sys admin brought it as a contribution for the lab potluck some months ago... i've had it once or twice before at wine-nights, when it was served with flat pitta breads or crackers, and i see it being sold at the local supermarkets... but i didn't really know what went into it except that i gathered it might be similar to couscous salads that i enjoy a lot and concoct my own versions too.

i didn't know that Tabouleh originated from Lebanon... or so it is said. my only encounter with Lebanese food was many many years ago when i first visited uncle Albert and auntie Helena in Adelaide... it was one dinner meal that they took wee me to and i was truly intrigued... i've not had any since but i hope to do so again some day... for middle eastern food has a very unique assortment of flavours that are perculiarly fascinating to my taste-buds.

i love food with a myriad of flavours, both strongly or subtlely spiced or aromatized... but that doesn't mean i don't appreciate the more bland and plain things of life... i am just partial to interesting combination of flavours, either because i can taste some of the different bits of things that go into the whole or that i enjoy the global essence of it... i have had to learn that not everyone appreciates food the way i do... it just depends on whether you are a 'super-taster' ( an unfortunate misnomer for those who do not appreciate myriad combinations of flavours and prefer their foods plain) or not, or somewhere in between, or both...

tabouleh... that which is spiced... is made with bulgur wheat or cracked wheat and mixed as a salad with chopped fresh juicey tomatoes, cucumbers, lots of finely chopped parsley, fresh mint, spring-onions or shallots, and carressed with olive oil and awakened by some sprightly lemon juice, sea-salt, and freshly grounded pepper. my version was adapted along the lines of those listed (off the top of my head) ingredients and i had the great satisfaction of seeing the outcome of chopping, as well as enjoying a lovely home-made version of taboleh salad with some lovely warm fajita pancakes... (btw, a splash of soya sauce or a dash of chopped dried chillies made it even more interesting!)

... and especially enjoyable after a long day of sedated chair-warming eyes-damaging activity that involves lots of number-crunching!

posted by ~overacuppa~ on Friday, 17 March, 2006 at 23:17 hrs