Grain Bowl with Tahini
Bulgur wheat topped with roasted cauliflower, chickpeas, cucumber and tomato, finished with a lemony tahini sauce and parsley.
Photograph credit: Bowl of Middle Eastern Food Happiness! by goblinbox_(queen_of_ad_hoc_bento) · CC BY 2.0 · Flickr
The smell of roasting cauliflower and cumin is the first sign it is working: nutty, sweet and a little burnt at the edges. Everything else in the bowl is cold and fresh, and that contrast is the point.
Cut the cauliflower into small florets so that the edges brown and the centres soften. Toss with oil, cumin and salt and roast at 200°C / 390°F for 25 minutes, turning once. If your oven runs hot, check at 20 minutes. Do not crowd the tray. Cauliflower that touches steams, and steamed cauliflower has no flavour.
Soak the bulgur in boiling water, covered, for 15 minutes, then fluff it with a fork. There is no need to cook it on the hob. Season it with a little salt and lemon juice while it is warm.
Build the bowl with the bulgur, cauliflower, chickpeas, cucumber and tomato, and drizzle over the tahini sauce, which is tahini, lemon juice, garlic and water. Scatter with parsley and serve with extra lemon.
Quick Answers
How long does Grain Bowl with Tahini take to make?
15 minutes of preparation and 25 minutes of cooking, plus 15 minutes of standing, so allow 55 minutes from start to finish. The recipe serves 2.
How to Make Grain Bowl with Tahini
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Heat the oven to 200°C / 390°F. Toss the cauliflower with the oil, cumin and salt and roast for 25 minutes, turning once.
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Pour the boiling water over the bulgur, cover and leave for 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
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Whisk the tahini, lemon juice, garlic and water into a pourable sauce.
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Divide the bulgur between two bowls and top with the cauliflower, chickpeas, cucumber and tomato. Drizzle with the sauce and scatter with the parsley.
Related guide: Prep, cook and total time.
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A Few Pointers
- Cut the florets small.
- Do not crowd the tray.
- If your oven runs hot, check at 20 minutes.
- Add the sauce at the end.
Swaps and Variations
- An eighth of a teaspoon of garlic powder per clove is the stand-in usually given when you are out of fresh garlic; it will not brown the same way, and it burns easily, so add it with the liquid.
Serve It With
Pitta bread · Pickled turnips · Mint tea · Lemon wedges
Sides from the same cuisine on this site: Flatbread, Pita Bread, Rice Pilaf.
Storage
Keeps in the fridge for 2 days, with the sauce separate.
Grain Bowl with Tahini Nutrition Facts
Per serving, calculated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central figures (SR Legacy). A calculation, not a laboratory analysis: brands, cuts and how you measure change the real numbers. How the figures are worked out.
Your notes on this recipe
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Compiled by Turab
Checked by script for timings, diet labels and nutrition arithmetic. How the recipes are checked. Found a mistake? Tell us.
First published ; last changed .
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