I think this dish may be more Cypriot than Greek but it belongs in this section the most 🙂 I am discovering more about Cypriot cuisine and the different cultures that have influenced the herbs and spices used in Cypriot cooking. I love bulgur wheat (or cracked wheat) and to make this dish even simpler, my local Mediterranean supermarket sells bulgur with vermicelli noodles mixed in. This is an amazing side dish and seems to get better over a few days. It also has only a few ingredients which are pretty much store cupboard staples.

Ingredients

1 x cup coarse grain bulgur wheat with vermicelli
3 x tbsp of extra virgin Greek olive oil
1 x medium onion – finely chopped
1 x tbsp tomato puree (you could use fresh grated tomatoes as well)
11/4 x cups stock
1/2 x tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp dried mint
sea salt & ground black pepper

Method
Gently saute your finely chopped onion until they are turning translucent (about 5 minutes).
Now add in the smoked paprika, mint, salt & pepper, tomato puree, and bulgur wheat and stir everything thoroughly.
Pour in the hot stock and turn the heat down to a gentle simmer, put the lid on tightly and cook for 15-20 minutes (check liquid levels – it’s done once all the liquid has evaporated). Once cooked, leave to sit for a further 10 minutes (a good tip is to cover the saucepan with a couple of layers of kitchen paper and replace the lid tightly – this soaks up the extra moisture).
Now it is ready to serve – you can add a squeeze of lemon juice, or a sprinkling of parsley.
I often eat this on its own with some salad and olives but it goes with almost anything you have cooked.