There’s something vibrant and energizing about the herbs and spices used to make tabbouleh. Also known as tabouli, tabbouli, tabouleh, etc., there are probably as many variations in how to spell it as there are ways to make this appetizer 🙂 This post shows one way to make tabbouleh using quinoa as the gluten free substitute to bulgur/couscous. Feel free to tinker with the ratios and proportions of parsley, mint, tomatoes/cucumbers, cinnamon, allspice, etc. to find your favorite version of deliciousness that is tabbouleh!
This recipe was inspired by one of the parents’ creations for my son’s class during a unit on global celebrations. The kiddos ‘traveled’ to different countries and learned about the foods, customs and other traditions unique to the places they ‘visited.’ They even entered their findings into a special passport. It was adorable…and impactful! My son had so many questions and nuggets of wisdom to share about ethnic diversity and the idea of being one global family. I learned a thing or two…or 100…as well, including how much I love tabbouleh.
Gluten free, plant-based and vegan, allium free (no onions, no garlic), low FODMAP, soy free and corn free with an easy nightshade free option.
Let’s begin! Jump to Recipe
Prepare the Tabbouleh
Cook the quinoa so that it is more dry and fluffy. I use a ratio of 1 cup quinoa to 1.5 cups water to get the desired texture. From this, I’ll use anywhere from 1 to 1.5 cups of cooked quinoa for this recipe.
Mince the flat leaf parsley and mint leaves. Finely chop the tomatoes and/or cucumbers. Combine the desired amount of cooked quinoa, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and black pepper into a bowl. Add cinnamon and allspice to taste. Set to the side.
Note: The amount of quinoa you use in the tabbouleh depends on personal preference. Lebanese tabbouleh only calls for about a quarter cup of fluffed bulgur (sub quinoa) to the approximate quantity of parsley used here. North African tabbouleh usually calls for a much higher couscous (sub quinoa)-to-herb ratio.
Tahini-Dill Sweet Potatoes
I typically use the large sweet potatoes for this, but you can’t go wrong even with the smaller ones. Cook the sweet potatoes in an oven at 450F until tender, about 45 minutes. Alternately, cook them in the slow-cooker for about 2 hours on ‘high.’ Either way, the sweet potatoes can easily be made 1 day in advance to reduce prep time.
Mince the dill. Combine the tahini, lemon juice and milk in a bowl. Add more milk as needed to achieve the desired consistency. Add the dill and salt to taste and set to the side.
Peel the cooled sweet potatoes. Slice the large ones into about 8 thick, circular cross-sections, or about 4 thick sections for the small sweet potatoes. Top with tahini-dill sauce.
Serve together!
Here is what the nightshade free version of this recipe looks like. I had cooked Japanese sweet potatoes on the day this was served, instead of the orange-flesh variety.
Tabbouleh with Tahini-Dill Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients
Tabbouleh
- 1 cup cooked quinoa Or more, to taste. See Recipe Notes for cooking suggestion
- 3 Roma tomatoes firm, ripe, chopped. Optional
- 3 Persian Cucumbers chopped. Optional
- 1.5 cups fresh flat leaf parsley, leaves and stems about 1 large bunch, minced, to taste
- 0.5 cups fresh mint leaves about 1/2 a bunch, minced, to taste
- 2 tbsp lemon juice to taste
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil to taste
- 0.5 tsp allspice to taste
- pinch cinnamon to taste
- salt to taste
- black pepper freshly ground, to taste
Tahini-Dill Sweet Potatoes
- 0.25 cups tahini
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tbsp fresh dill, mostly leaves minced
- 2 tbsp non-dairy milk or more to achieve desired consistency
- 2 sweet potatoes large, washed
- pinch salt to taste
Instructions
Tabbouleh
- Bring water to a boil. Add quinoa. Cook until tender. Remove from heat and set to the side.
- Mince/finely chop the flat leaf parsley and mint. Finely chop the tomatoes and/or cucumbers if using.
- Combine the desired amount of cooked quinoa (I use about 1 cup) together with the minced herbs, oil and lemon juice in a bowl. Add spices to taste. Set to the side.
Tahini-Dill Sweet Potatoes
- Preheat an oven to 450F. Cook the Sweet Potatoes for 45 minutes or until tender. Alternately, cook the potatoes in a slow cooker until tender, about 2 hours at high heat.
- Mince/finely chop the dill. Add tahini, lemon juice, milk to a bowl. Stir to combine. Add additional milk to achieve the desired consistency. Add the dill and a pinch of salt to taste. Set to the side.
- Remove the potatoes from heat. Discard the peel. Slice each large sweet potato into about 6-8 sections. Smaller sweet potatoes can be sliced into 4 sections or less. Top with Tahini-Dill sauce.
- Serve the Tabbouleh with Tahini-Dill Sweet Potatoes!
Notes
Tried this recipe or just have something fun to share? I’d love to hear about it. 🙂
