This recipe is a fruity take on the classic Middle Eastern bulgur salad – tabbouleh – which has such abundant use of herbs that the bulgur wheat is merely a bystander. My version contains a higher proportion of bulgur wheat but it does share a heavy use of herbs. The Middle Easterns really know how to create vibrant salads, using liberal amounts of herbs to add flavour and freshness. Here I use mint, parsley and dill but other soft herbs – basil, chervil, coriander – would be good additions, just don’t be shy with the amount!
Make it a big one
To get the most of your soft herbs, it’s essential to have a sharp knife – preferably at least a 7 inch blade. Chopping with a large sharp knife means you can use the full length of the blade, which makes it easier to slice through the herbs without bruising them. A small knife gives you no leverage whatsoever and you will be able to only chop a small amount of herbs at once, albeit ineffectively too.
How to chop herbs
Gather a manageable amount of soft herbs in a tight bunch with your holding hand. Then slice, pressing the knife in a downwards and forward motion, then repeat. Keep the blade in constant contact with the board. Gradually work your holding hand backwards while you chop, retightening the herbs in bunch as needed. You can re-chop your pile of herbs using the cross chop technique, if you want to make them a bit smaller. Try not to bruise or over-chop, you want to keep the herbs with a bit of bounce. If you’re board is stained green afterwards then you know you’ve overdone it!
Fruitly little number
So back to the recipe, I only occasionally use fruit in salads choosing mainly to stick to apples, pears, figs when in season and sometimes dried fruit. But after eating this peach salad, I’ve been wondering why – because it was absolutely delicious. The lemon juice in the dressing helps to counter the sweetness of the ripe fruit. You could ring the changes though and try pears, apricots or plums, when in season.
Mixing it up
Which brings me onto the versatility of this salad; it provides a perfect template to swap in or add a whole host of other ingredients. Try varying the grain by using quinoa, couscous or amaranth. You could add green olives, preserved lemon, currants and/or pumpkin seeds and use different nuts such as hazelnuts, pine nuts or flaked almonds, and toasting them to enhance their flavour. I’ve deliberately kept this recipe vegan but you could scatter over some crumbled feta or tangy goat’s cheese, too. The thought had definitely crossed my mind! This salad would would happily sit alongside a golden roast chicken, pan-fried halloumi with chilli or baked aubergines drizzled with tahini – the possibilities are plenty.
Easy and quick to prepare
There’s no cooking here, so it’s pretty darn simple and perfect for warm, summer days when cooking should be minimal. The enjoyment of the salad hinges on the flavour of the peaches so try to ensure they’re nice and ripe on the day you make it. As I said earlier, just don’t scrimp on the beautiful fresh herbs. Enjoy!
Ingredients
Salad
40g lightly toasted pistachios
150g bulghur wheat
3 Peaches, destoned and sliced
3 spring onions, thinly sliced
½ cucumber, deseeded and cut into small dice
Seeds from ½ pomegranate
10g each of parsley, mint and dill
Dressing
Juice of 1 lemon
Scant ½ tsp Dijon mustard
½ tsp runny honey
60ml extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Heat a small saucepan and lightly toast the pistachio, shaking the pan so they don’t catch. Set aside.
- Add 300ml of water (be careful as it will splutter). Add the bulgur and a pinch of salt, then simmer for 5 minutes. Turn the heat off, pop a lid on and leave to sit for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare the peaches, spring onions, cucumber, pomegranate and herbs.
- Once the bulghur is cool, add all of the salad ingredients except the peaches and a small handful of the pistachios. Stir through the dressing. Check the seasoning and top with the peaches and garnish with the reserved pistachios.
