Bulgar wheat

[DawnBev]

whats a quick and easy way to cook bulgar wheat? I have some in a jar but no packet, no instructions.

Do I have to soak it in water first, then squeeze and boil?
I was thinking of doing it with chopped mint and parsley and a few spices.

Have family coming over on Saturday and I'm making halloumi cheese kebabs, minced lamb with apricots, mango chutney bread, baklava, mixed nuts and seeds, but want to use up this bulgar wheat I've had in the cupboard for ages!

any ideas ?

THANKS

[Goddess]

Is that the stuff I stuff chickens with? Called Fereekh in arabic? I've always called it green wheat, so not sure if it's the same thing!

[DawnBev]

it might be?!? not sure - what do you normally do with fereek?!

thanks
Dawn

[Goddess]

They normally stuff it in pigeons here - but I can't stand to eat a pigeon so I stuff it in my chicken.
I wash it first, then saute lots and lots of garlic, onion and black pepper. Chuck in the fereekh and saute that for a few minutes and then add a great big wodge of either water or stock and leave to bubble for a while until it's almost done (slight bite to it still) then I stuff it in my chicken and roast it. Sometimes I add a load of coriander or parsley just before the stuffing stage if I want extra flavour. We also normally just don't bother with the stuffing the chicken stage and just eat straight out of the pan. Suppose you could stuff tomatoes with it too?

[DawnBev]

thanks for this, I'll give it a try.
#

[HEPZIBAH]

[face=Comic Sans MS]Bulgur wheat is a golden beige colour with an irregular cracked shape. Often confused with "cracked" wheat, bulgur differs in that it is pre-cooked during processing, making it quicker to cook at home. It can be used in much the same way as couscous or rice as is a staple ingredient in Turkish cooking.

It is produced by parboiling wheat grains after which most of the bran is removed. It goes through a hot water wash which swells the grains which are then steamed for about 1½ hours. It is then dried and the wheat is then cracked on steel rollers. Finally, the grains are graded into fine, medium and coarse.

Boil 2 parts water and pour over 1 part Bulgar cracked wheat. Add salt to taste. Leave until the water is absorbed and the bulgar is soft & fluffy (not more than 30 mins). Pour off excess water.

It can also be steamed.[/face]

[Goddess]

I think what we have is cracked wheat also known as green wheat - still not sure what Bulgher wheat is - have never heard of that one over here.

[HEPZIBAH]

[face=Comic Sans MS]There are loads of good recipes for bulgar wheat/cracked wheat/cous cous on the internet.[/face]

[Geraldine]

I’ve cooked a lot Turkish food and I love bulgur. Well you can put whatever you want in bulgur wheat when cooking but I like this simple recipe. It’s good especially if you already have some spicy chicken/meat to go with bulgur.

Melt (4 tbl spoons) butter in a saucepan. Add 3 middle size (chopped) onions and dried bulgur (2 dl). BTW 1 cup is 2,84 dl so it would make less than a cup. Let it simmer for 10 minutes mixing it the whole time.

Add chopped tomatoes, parsley, water (3 dl so that’s about 1 cup) or meat/chicken/vegetable stock and salt if necessary (especially if you use only water). Let it simmer still another 10-15 minutes.

[Amin]

Also you can fry some chopped onion, add the bulgar and water and then put a couple of generous spoonfuls of tomatoe puree, add salt bring to boil and then turn heat down low and cook for 20 mins. Serve it with chopped salad. Lovely and simple meal.

[Mad Dilys]

I'm feeling homesick today as I'm in the UK - the mention of fareek was just too much, I love it. So I thought I'd see if they sell it in our local village Waitrose here. You think?

[BBLUX]

I'm sure I have seen Bulgar wheat there in the past....but my memory is not what it used to be

[Mad Dilys]

Over 100 kinds of cheese (no actually that was Sainsbury a few years ago - I don't eat cheese ) but no Fareek which is totally wonderful and different.

[BBLUX]

Now, I would have been so distracted by the choice of cheese that I would have forgotten the bulgar wheat