If you’re a fan of tabbouleh, you will love this breakfast plate served with eggs and pita.
If you haven’t heard of it, tabbouleh is a classic middle eastern/eastern Mediterranean salad that’s made with bulgur (cracked whole wheat), cucumber, tomatoes, fresh herbs, lemon and olive oil. It’s quite simple, yet it’s amazingly refreshing, simple and very wholesome. So if you hadn’t heard of it and you’re feeling a bit overwhelmed just by the name, don’t be! These are items most of us have on hand, with maybe the exception of the bulgur. My favorite is Bob’s Red Mill brand, but they even sometimes sell it in the bulk foods section at the grocery store. It has a similar taste to brown rice, but a bit nuttier with more texture. It’s actually pretty delicious, so I think you should grab a bag and give it a try if you haven’t already! PSA: I just ate a small bowl of bulgur with olive oil and salt for lunch, no regrets.
Anyway, I was inspired to make tabbouleh into a breakfast dish because, well, I like to make pretty much any dish into breakfast. Remember the Breakfast Brussels Sprouts? I just take any one of my favorite dishes, throw an egg on it, and call it breakfast. Also, I made a rendition of Breakfast Tabbouleh in culinary school with eggs and pita, and honestly I haven’t stopped thinking about it since. The refreshing nature of the dish is just really welcoming in the morning and makes me feel like I am starting the day off right.
I decided to use poached eggs because they’re beautiful, super easy to make, and give me that perfectly cooked egg with a runny yolk. And you know I’m into that. For some reason I don’t poach eggs very often, but the process is really quite simple and quick. Just bring a pot of salted water to a simmer (160-180 degrees, do not boil), swirl in some white vinegar, then add your eggs, one at a time. I use a slotted spoon to kinda lift and scoop them to help them hold together and not stick together or to the bottom of the pan. Then I let them simmer for about 3 minutes, until the white is nice and firm, but the yolk is not cooked. Ah-mazing, you guys.
Plus, you HAVE to have a vehicle to eat the salad and eggs, so toasted pita is an absolute necessity to complete Breakfast Tabbouleh.
I don’t hear anyone complaining about having to eat pita.
Tabbouleh Breakfast Plate
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Ingredients
- ½ cup bulgur
- 2 cups fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley (chopped)
- ½ pint grape or cherry tomatoes (diced)
- ½ English cucumber (diced)
- Zest and juice of ½ medium lemon
- 3–4 Tbsp. olive oil
- ½–1 tsp. coarse salt
- 1/4–½ tsp. ground black pepper
- 1 Tbsp. white vinegar
- 8 large eggs
- 8 pita wedges
Instructions
- Bring 1 cup water to a boil. Add bulgur and cook at a simmer for 12 minutes, until water has absorbed and bulgur is fluffy, stirring regularly. Let slightly cool, then place in an airtight container in the refrigerator until completely cooled.
- In a medium mixing bowl, stir together cooled bulgur, parsley, tomatoes, cucumber, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Taste and adjust seasoning, if necessary. Refrigerate.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a simmer (160-180 degrees). Add vinegar and stir to combine. Gently crack eggs into simmering water, one at a time. Gently scoop each egg with a slotted spoon to help keep them together. Let eggs cook 3 minutes, until white is set. Gently remove with the slotted spoon and lay them on a paper towel to dry off.
- Scoop tabbouleh and poached eggs on plates and serve with pita wedges.
Notes
Adapted from http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/libanais-breakfast
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
