Tabouli with Steel-Cut Oats - Easy and Gluten-free
Roast steel-cut oats. Boil water with salt, black pepper and crushed red pepper, then add to roasted oats. Stir, cover and set aside for 5-6 min. Microwave on hi for 1 min, then on low power for 3-4 min. Stir, cover and set aside to cool. Chop garlic and tomatoes, add to cooled oats and set aside to blend flavors. Trim, rinse and chop parsley. Add the oat-tomato mixture, oil, lime/lemon juice, salt, pepper and toss gently. Serve with warm pita, hummus Baba Ghanouj, etc. Enjoy!
Equipment
- 1 Microwave-safe cereal bowl - glass/ceramic; I do not recommend using plastic bowls - even if labeled "microwave-safe" If not available, oats can be cooked on the stove-top in a small saucepan. It may take a bit longer.
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Steel-cut oats Check for gluten-free label, if you are severely gluten-intolerant; if you wish to use Bulgur or cracked wheat, see Recipe Notes
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/8 tsp Salt
- 1/8 tsp Black pepper - freshly crushed preferred
- 1/8 tsp Crushed red pepper
- 1 tsp Garlic-chopped finely 1-2 cloves
- 1/2 cup Tomatoes - diced finely Fully ripe, but firm tomatoes best - soft tomatoes will quickly become soggy
- 1 cup Fresh Parsley - trimmed, rinsed and chopped about 1 medium bunch; rough chop gives best texture to the salad - do NOT mince finely
- 10-12 leaves Fresh Mint - roughly hand torn if not available, use 2 tsp dried mint leaves, coarsely crushed
Salad Dressing
- 2 tsp Lime/lemon juice - freshly squeezed preferred if not available, bottled juice OK
- 1/8 tsp Salt adjust later as per preference
- 2 tsp Olive Oil - Extra-Virgin preferred
- 1/8 tsp Black Pepper - freshly crushed
Optional Toppings / Add-ons (not used in calculating Nutrition Information)
- 2 tbsp Cucumber - peeled and diced finely Mix into the salad if using
- 1 tbsp Walnuts - chopped coarsely Sprinkle on top if using - Do not "mix" into salad
- 1 tbsp Feta cheese - coarsely crumbled Sprinkle on top if using - Do not "mix" into salad
- 2 tsp Sesame seeds - toasted Sprinkle on top if using - Do not "mix" into salad
Instructions
- Heat a wide heavy bottom pan. Add steel-cut oats to the pan and roast on medium heat, stirring continuously, till aromatic, golden-brown and crisp, about 3-4 min. Some grains will pop as they roast. Set aside to cool.Note: I like to roast extra, to have some on hand if I need it in a hurry. These pictures show more than 2 tbsp steel-cut oats!
- In a glass/ceramic cereal bowl, place 1/2 cup water and 1/8 tsp each salt, freshly crushed black pepper and crushed red pepper flakes. Stir and microwave on Hi, for about 1 1/2 min (till it boils).
- Add the roasted oats to the boiling water in the bowl. Stir and cover, set aside for 5-7 min to soak.
- Meanwhile, peel and chop garlic.
- Peel and dice tomatoes - small dice - use a very sharp knife to prevent smashing the tomatoes while cutting.
- Stir the soaked oats, cover and microwave for 2 min on hi, covered. Stir, cover and microwave at 40% power for 2-3 min. Check if the oats are cooked: taste-test1-2 small grains - they should not taste raw. If needed, cook for another 1-2 min on Power level 4 (40% power).Set aside, covered and undisturbed, for 6-8 min to continue cooking further as it cools.
- Meanwhile, trim the parsley. Use the leaves and very tender stems. Discard the longer/ thicker / tougher stems.Rinse thoroughly in a colander. Allow water to drain completely, using a salad spinner if you have one handy.
- Mix the tomatoes and garlic with the cooked, cooled oats. cover and set aside while you chop the parsley - will yield about 1 cup.
- Chop the parsley - roughly chopped is the best for giving a good texture to the salad. Do NOT mince finely.
- Transfer the chopped parsley to a medium bowl. Add the mint, tomato-oats mixture, and cucumber, if using. Add the salad dressing ingredients - no need to pre-mix the dressing, but you may, if you wish: olive oil, lemon/lime juice, salt, pepper.
- Toss gently with a slotted spoon to evenly distribute all the ingredients.
- Serve immediately. Best within 30 minutes of tossing together. If kept for longer, the parsley wilts and the salad loses crispness and becomes soggy.If you want to make it in advance, see Recipe Notes for tips.Serve with warm Pita, seasoned chickpeas, hummus, Baba Ghanouj, etc.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Use Bulgur, to make traditional Tabouli
If you are OK with using wheat, and would like to use Bulgur to make traditional Tabouli, sure you can do that. Some things to note:- Look for Bulgur made from parboiled wheat
- This is different from "cracked wheat", which is made from raw wheat
- Labels can sometimes be confusing - so check carefully: Cracked wheat may be incorrectly labeled as Bulgur!
- Bulgur does not need to be "cooked", it only needs to be soaked in hot water at least for fine/medium textured Bulgur; coarser textured Bulgur still needs to be cooked a little
- Cracked wheat definitely needs to be cooked.
- This is different from "cracked wheat", which is made from raw wheat
- If you cannot find "real" Bulgur, you can use cracked wheat: you do have to cook it first
- I recommend dry-roasting it first till it becomes light golden brown and aromatic ( similar to the directions for steel-cut oats described in the recipe above)
- the cracked wheat will pop a little during roasting, making it lighter and nuttier
- add water and cook the roasted cracked wheat:
- for 2 tbsp cracked wheat (for using in this recipe instead of steel-cut oats), add 1/2 cup boiling water; soak for 5 min; then cook on low heat until liquid is absorbed about 8-10 min. Keep covered for 5 min. Sprinkle a little water, and a pinch of salt; gently fluff with a fork.
- Add diced tomatoes and garlic, stir gently and continue with the recipe as directed.
- I recommend dry-roasting it first till it becomes light golden brown and aromatic ( similar to the directions for steel-cut oats described in the recipe above)
Tips for prepping ahead of time:
Do not mix all the ingredients more than 15-20 min before serving, or the salad will lose crispness and become limp/wilted. However, almost everything can be prepared ahead of time and stored separately, so that mixing together when needed becomes super-easy.- Prepare the cooked oats as described.
- Can be made up to 2 days in advance: refrigerate to prevent spoilage
- Re-heat in microwave - about 30-45 seconds on Hi.
- Do not mix oats with tomatoes and garlic until 15-20 min before serving.
- Can be made up to 2 days in advance: refrigerate to prevent spoilage
- Prepare the tomatoes, garlic - keep covered until ready to mix.
- Place in refrigerator if made more than 2-3 hours in advance remove from refrigerator about 30 min before mixing with oats
- Prepare the parsley: trim, rinse, drain water thoroughly and chop
- Keep in refrigerator, covered, to maintain crispness.
- Mix all ingredients, including salad dressing ingredients, about 10 min before serving.
- Rest salad for 5-10 min before serving.
Gluten-free substitutes besides steel-cut oats
- Cracked buckwheat groats: roast and cook with seasonings; cool and use instead of steel-cut oats
- Quinoa: roast and cook with seasonings; cool and use instead of steel-cut oats
- Walnuts: Use chopped walnuts instead of steel-cut oats: no roasting or cooking needed. Just toss in with all the ingredients.
Storage:
This salad is best when freshly made. If you keep it longer than 2-3 hours, it starts to get wilted. It still tastes fine, just a bit watery and limp.- For prepping ahead of time, see tips described just above.
Nutrition
Calories: 61kcalCarbohydrates: 8gProtein: 2gFat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 158mgPotassium: 173mgFiber: 2gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 1537IUVitamin C: 25mgCalcium: 32mgIron: 1mg
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