Recipes
(Recipe) Kisir spicy bulgur salad in lettuce cups
(Recipe) Kisir Spicy Bulgur Salad in Lettuce Cups
Serves 4 – 6
This dish is Yasmin Khan’s version of kisir, a Turkish bulgur salad that traditionally uses a hot pepper paste known as biber salçasi to add heat. In this recipe from Khan’s cookbook Ripe Figs: Recipes and Stories from Turkey, Greece, and Cyprus, she recommends substituting a little extra Aleppo-style pepper if you can’t find it. Pomegranate molasses adds enough sour-sweet flavor to round out the dish. Serve it in a large salad bowl, or nestle scoops of it in lettuce leaves.
Ingredients
Dressing
- 5 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
- 3 Tbsp. pomegranate molasses
- 1 Tbsp. plus 1½ tsp. double-concentrated tomato paste
- 1 tsp. Aleppo-style pepper
- 1 tsp. biber salçasi (Turkish hot pepper paste) or more Aleppo-style pepper to taste Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
Salad and assembly
- 1 cup bulgur
- ½ cup raw walnuts
- 3 small ripe tomatoes, cored, finely chopped
- 1 Persian cucumber, finely chopped
- 3 scallions, finely chopped
- 1 cup parsley leaves, finely chopped
- 1 cup mint leaves, finely chopped
- ¼ cup pomegranate seeds, Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper
- 2 heads Little Gem lettuce or romaine hearts, leaves separated
Instructions
- Whisk oil, lemon juice, pomegranate molasses, tomato paste, Aleppo-style pepper, and biber salçasi in a small bowl to combine; season dressing with salt and black pepper.
- Cook bulgur according to package directions. Let cool until just warm. Transfer to a medium bowl and mix in dressing.
- Meanwhile, toast walnuts in a dry small skillet over medium heat, tossing often, until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a cutting board. Let cool slightly, then finely chop.
- Add walnuts, tomatoes, cucumber, scallions, parsley, mint, and pomegranate seeds to bulgur and toss well; season with salt and pepper.
- Arrange lettuce leaves in a single layer on a platter and spoon some salad into each leaf.