Burghol (Bulgur or cracked wheat) Recipe

Growing up in the U.S., we often ate rice with vermicelli noodles alongside dishes like shakrieh or bamieh. For a change, we sometimes made burghol instead. When my parents were kids, rice was not readily available unless you were very wealthy so they ate burghol regularly. As is common in many cultures, the healthy food was often less expensive. Today, I try to incorporate burghol more often for the extra fiber that keeps me fuller for longer and because the rich nutty taste complements many dishes well. Another benefit to making this dish is that it is more forgiving, when cooking, than making rice. Rice, if you mess up the water to rice ratio or over or under cook, you wont have a good product. With burghol, there is more wiggle room to “mess up” so do not worry about trying to cook this grain. Generally, there are two types of burghol. For this dish, you need to get the coarse burghol.

Ingredients:

• coarse Burghol (2 cups)

• water (4 cups - boiling)

• vermicelli noodles (1/2 cup)

• olive oil (2 tbsp)

• butter (1 tbsp)

• salt and pepper to taste

Recipe:

• Toast the vermicelli noodles in the olive oil until golden under medium heat. Add the washed burghol to the mix and stir for a minute. Add the boiling water to the mix and bring to a boil. Once the mixture is boiling, lower the heat to a simmer, add the butter, and cover and cook for 20 minutes or until the water evaporates. Let it rest covered and enjoy!