Feta and strawberry tabouli salad is a great twist on a Middle Eastern favorite. Juicy ripe strawberries brighten the salad, adding color and a welcome sweetness. This is one salad that’s just as good as leftovers!
As much as I love a traditional tabouli salad (which is A LOT!) it’s also fun to mix things up and put a new spin on an old favorite. Adding fresh strawberries was inspired by the fancy salads we enjoy with not only greens but also fruit, nuts and cheese. In this case, the nutty-flavored bulgur wheat is standing in for actual nuts.
On a completely different subject, let’s talk about the first ingredient, a thing I like to call purple onion. In most recipes it is referred to as red onion or Spanish onion but since my first encounter with same as a child, I’ve called it purple onion. Because it is purple! This is my tiny hill and I am prepared to defend it.
A Google search quickly revealed that in some European countries it is indeed called purple onion and now I want to know where. Annoyingly, Wikipedia didn’t say. Even BBC Food had the nerve to describe the onion thusly, “Red onions are an attractive, milder alternative to the yellow onion with their shiny purple skin.” Purple. That’s right.
Have I convinced anyone? Join me on the purple side. It’s more accurate over here. Plus I have tasty salad.
Feta and Strawberry Tabouli Salad
For aesthetic reasons, I chose to use yellow cherry tomatoes for this festive salad. If you only have red ones, no worries. The flavor is what really matters.
Ingredients
For the dressing:
1/2 medium purple onion, sliced very thinly (about 2 1/2 oz or 70g)
2 tablespoons or 30ml fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup or 60ml extra virgin olive oil
For the salad:
1 cup or 210g bulgur wheat (3 1/4 cups or 615g when soaked and drained)
1 bunch green onions, just the green part, chopped (about 11/4 oz or 35g)
1 very large bunch (about 5 1/3 oz or 150g) cilantro
8 oz or 227g yellow cherry tomatoes, halved
14 oz or 400g strawberries, hulled and quartered
7 oz or 200g feta, crumbled (I prefer the sheep’s milk type.)
Method
In metal or heatproof bowl, cover your bulgur wheat with 1 3/4 cups or 414ml of boiling water and cover the bowl with an upside down plate or some cling film. Set aside.
Put your thinly sliced onions in a large bowl and pour the lime juice over them. Sprinkle with the salt. Add a few good grinds of fresh black pepper.
Let the onions marinate in the lime juice for a few minutes. This helps reduced their pungency and sharpness. Now mix in the olive oil.
Chop your green onions finely and set aside.
Cut the hard stalks off of the cilantro and discard. (The tender, narrow stalks near the leaves are fine to leave in.) Wash the cilantro thoroughly several times and dry in a salad spinner or a dry dishcloth. Chop it roughly.
Once the bulgur wheat has absorbed all of the water it can, drain it in a strainer and push down on the top to get rid of any excess water.
Fluff it with fork and leave it to cool.
Now we can assemble the strawberry tabouli. Add the halved tomatoes to the dressing first.
Tip in the cooled bulgur wheat, the green onions and cilantro and mix well to coat the wheat with the dressing.
Finally, add the strawberries and feta and toss gently to combine. This tabouli gets better and better as it sits so you can make it ahead without any problems.
Enjoy!
It’s Sunday FunDay and my friends and I are sharing side dishes for your Easter table. Anything that isn’t a main course qualified so we’ve got you covered from appetizer to dessert! Many thanks to our host, Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm.
- Bunny Cupcakes from Amy’s Cooking Adventures
- Feta and Strawberry Tabouli Salad from Food Lust People Love
- Fresh Pea Hummus from Culinary Cam
- Pineapple Bread Pudding from A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Pork Sorpatel - East Indian from Sneha’s Recipe
- Potato Salad with Condensed Milk from Palatable Pastime
- Stir-Fried Balsamic and Ginger Glazed Carrots from Karen’s Kitchen Stories
- Veggie Niçoise Salad from Mayuri’s Jikoni
- Whole Wheat Rosemary Garlic Bread Recipe from The Mad Scientist’s Kitchen
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