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A couple of years ago I have been traveling around and of course, eating in different places to try as much as it was possible and once I have tried one absolutely amazing dish which was really light but filling at the same it, mixed with similar to me tastes but still unique, it was such a great experience for me, so after I came back it was a goal for me to repeat this experience for myself by myself. And I guess I succeed or at least this recipe is pretty close to the one that left me speechless some time ago. This recipe as you can guess is complimenting 2 different dishes - stuffed zucchinis and tabbouleh, even though zucchinis are very known and there is not that much to share about, that's why I would like to share with about origin of this filling salad Tabbouleh.
Here is some interesting information about it:
From the shore of the Mediterranean Sea to Mesopotamia in the east, from the Taurus Mountains in the north to the Arabian Desert in the south—this is the land known as the Levant, the birthplace of the dish we know today as tabbouleh.
Tabbouleh (from the Arabic taabil, meaning “to spice”) was an essential part of the diet of the Levant people 4,000 years ago. It was there that the herbs known as qadb (Medicago sativa) flourished in the mountainous hillsides. In the tabbouleh of today, bulgur wheat or a similar hearty grain takes center stage, but years ago it was lush greens that provided the color, flavor, and bulk of tabbouleh, and the Arab diet.
Today tabbouleh is almost synonymous with Lebanese cuisine. It appears on every table, at every feast, and is popular in vegan and vegetarian diets.
Did you know?
In 2009 the world’s largest bowl of tabbouleh (weighing 4,324 kilograms) was prepared. It’s in the Guinness Book of World Records thanks to a dedicated team of 350 people who worked for 10 hours to create it.
And now it's time to jump straight to the recipe!
Prep: 15 min
Cook time: 25+15+10 min
Level: average
Servings: 2 portions
Calories per serving: 215 kcal
Find the recipe & nutrition facts below :
Ingredients:
3 large zucchinis
1/2 cup couscous or bulgur
200 ml of water
2 small onions
5 medium mushrooms
1 sweet red pepper
1 tbsp vegetable oil
100 gr. tomato paste
2 tsp sugar
3 tbsp fresh parsley
0.5 tsp garlic
0.5 tsp salt
0.5 black pepper
0.5 cumin
1/4 tsp chili flakes
Vegan white cheese (sprinkled) (optional) *I use violife greek white cheese
Method:
Step 1: Preheat oven to 200C.
Step 2: Wash zucchinis, cut them in halves, and place them in the preheated oven and bake until soften(around 25 minutes).
Step 3: Meanwhile preheat a frying pan with oil, chop onions, mushrooms, and red pepper. First place onions in the frying pan for around 5 minutes, then add mushrooms and red pepper and fry for another 5 minutes.
Step 4: Then add to frying pan tomato paste, sugar, garlic, salt, black pepper, cumin, chili flakes, and water, stir everything properly.
Step 5: Then add couscous or bulgur and cook for around 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside and add the fresh parsley.
Step 6: Then zucchinis are cooked, with a spoon take off the insides of the zucchinis and combine them in a frying pan with other ingredients.
Step 7: Place the mix from the frying pan into zucchinis shells.
Step 8: Place them in a preheated to 200C oven for 10 min.
Step 9: Sprinkle zucchinis "tabbouleh" with white cheese for even better taste.