Turkish Bulgur Salad

I have to be punished. I disappeared for the longest time again. Consider this a lame excuse, but I have been trying to adjust to my new life with a full time job, while juggling a zillion other responsibilities and projects my restless persona keeps creating for myself.  I felt a bit overwhelmed at the beginning, but things are much better now and life is beautiful. Even more so after I learned that Saveur mentioned AZ Cookbook among 55 great global food blogs! What an honor! I am thrilled, humbled, flattered, and grateful all at once. Thank you, Saveur!

I wanted to share something Azerbaijani in celebration of this honor, but since I promised the AZ Cookbook facebook fans  that I will share a bulgur recipe, I have to keep my word. But my next recipe… I will only say it is going to be Azerbaijani and very very delicious.

So, let’s talk about today’s recipe. It is for kisir, my favorite Turkish salad of all. It is made with bulgur that is first soaked in hot water until it is tender, then combined with other ingredients, including lots of fresh herbs, with parsley featured more than others. Kisir is meant to have a tang to it. This is achieved by adding either freshly squeezed lemon juice or pomegranatate paste to it, or both, like in the recipe below. This salad is easy to put together. It is very delicious and addictive. I know from my own experience and they say there is no remedy to cure me. Enjoy!

Turkish Bulgur Salad (Kisir)

Serves 4 to 6

There are perhaps as many variations of kisir as there are families in Turkey and everyone claims expertise:) Perhaps justly so, as kisir is amazing in any form.  The variations are, however, minor. For example, instead of adding chopped onion as is, sometimes it is first fried in oil, then added to the salad. Or, the onion is first  rubbed with salt, then squeezed to rid it of bitterness before tossing it with other ingredients. In another variation, no pomegranate paste is used whatsoever, and the tang is achieved by more lemon juice. I have tried bulgur salad with diced cucumber and tomato, chopped green pepper, and chopped dill added to it – you name it. Sometimes, either tomato paste or pepper paste is omitted, and in some variations none is used. The following is how I make kisir and I am happy with the results. If you want to add tomato and cucumber to your salad (I am not a big fan of these two in this salad), please seed them first – this will prevent the salad from becoming soggy from all the extra juices.

Ingredients:

2 cups fine bulgur (read about it here)
2 cups boiling water
1 tablespoonFUL tomato paste
1 tablespoonFUL red pepper paste (hot or not, to taste)
1/3 cup olive oil
Juice of 1 medium lemon
2 tablespoons pomegranate paste (called nar ekshisi in Turkey and narsharab in Azerbaijan)
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
1/2 cup chopped green onion
Crushed red pepper (adjust the amount of heat to taste)
Salt

To Serve:
Lettuce leaves

Bulgur

First, prepare the bulgur, using either of the 2 methods below.

Method 1: Put the bulgur in a medium bowl. Dissolve the tomato paste and the pepper paste in the boiling water and pour the water into the bowl with bulgur. Cover the bowl with a lid or a heat-proof plate. Set aside for 20 minutes, to allow the grains to absorb the water and to “cook.” Uncover the bowl. Make sure the bulgur has absorbed all of the water. Fluff the grains with a spoon or a fork.

Method 2: Put the bulgur in a medium bowl. Pour the boiling water on top. Cover the bowl with a lid or a heat-proof plate. Set aside for 20 minutes, to allow the grains to absorb the water and to “cook.” Uncover. Make sure the bulgur has absorbed all of the water. Fluff it. Add the tomato paste and pepper paste. Knead them into the bulgur with your hand until well blended.

Add olive oil, lemon juice, and pomegranate paste (in the picture above I am holding a bottle with especially delicious, tangy pomegranate paste that is imported to the U.S. from Azerbaijan and I received it as a gift – thank you, Elshan.  Azerbaijani pomegranate paste is available in some stores in California, and I will share more information with you as I receive it).

Adding pomegranate paste to bulgur salad

Add the chopped onion and fresh herbs. Toss to combine.

Season with crushed red pepper and salt to taste. Serve with lettuce leaves to scoop up the salad. Afiyet olsun!

11 Comments

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  1. K?s?r is also our favourite Turkish salad. It’s just so moreish! Congratulations on earning your mention in Saveur. Much deserved. 🙂
    Julia

  2. Love Love Love Kisir! Love that Saveur recognized azcookbook! Congrats on the new full time job! Does it involve cooking?

  3. Hello there,

    Congrats on new job and on your being recognized by Saveur. You deserve it. Love kisir,espcially with some toasted brown or pita bread.:)

  4. Congratulations!

  5. I wondered where you had gone to! 🙂

    Yes indeed, having a full time job and balancing life and interests in no easy take. Glad things have streamlined themselves.

  6. Forgot to mention congrats on the Saveur mention!

  7. THANK YOU, friends, for all your lovely comments!

  8. I am originally from mid-south of Turkey where bulgur dishes are huge 🙂 The way kisir is done there is same as above with a few more ingredients though :

    In addition to above ingredients:
    (finely chopped)
    cucumber
    green peppers ( if available)
    tomatoes

    also try to add lemon juice the last since it makes bulgur harder otherwise…

    on the side you can serve:
    pickles,
    boiled and copped cabbage leaves and/or grape leaves along with the lettuce leaves

    hope this helps 🙂

  9. So proud of you! Of what you are doing! Congratulations Farida, You deserve it!
    Kisir has been my favorite salad since my childhood in Soviet Amasiya although I did not know that it was Turkish( Political games to make people forget their roots).
    Thank you Farida!

  10. Hi there…missed you Faride 🙂 . This salad is excellent especially for summer. Thanks.

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