Bulgur (from tr, bulgur, itself from fa, بلغور, bolġur (bolghur)/balġur (balghur), groats ), also riffoth (from biblical he, ריפות, riffoth) and burghul (from ar, برغل, burġul ), is a
cracked wheat
Wheat is a Poaceae, grass widely Agriculture, cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The Taxonomy of wheat, many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat ...
dish found in
West Asian cuisine
Middle Eastern cuisine or West Asian cuisine includes Arab, Armenian, Assyrian, Azerbaijani, Cypriot, Egyptian, Georgian, Iranian, Iraqi, Israeli, Kurdish, Lebanese, Palestinian and Turkish cuisines. Common ingredients include olives and ...
.
Characteristics
Bulgur is sometimes confused with cracked wheat, which is crushed wheat grain that, unlike bulgur, has not been parboiled.
Bulgur is a common ingredient in
cuisine
A cuisine is a style of cooking characterized by distinctive ingredients, techniques and dishes, and usually associated with a specific culture or geographic region. Regional food preparation techniques, customs, and ingredients combine to ...
s of many countries of the
West Asian cuisine
Middle Eastern cuisine or West Asian cuisine includes Arab, Armenian, Assyrian, Azerbaijani, Cypriot, Egyptian, Georgian, Iranian, Iraqi, Israeli, Kurdish, Lebanese, Palestinian and Turkish cuisines. Common ingredients include olives and ...
and
Mediterranean Basin
In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin (; also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea) is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and w ...
.
It has a light, nutty flavor.
Bulgur is recognized as a
whole grain
A whole grain is a grain of any cereal and pseudocereal that contains the endosperm, germ, and bran, in contrast to refined grains, which retain only the endosperm.
As part of a general healthy diet, consumption of whole grains is associated w ...
by the
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...
.
Composition and nutrition
Cooked bulgur is 78% water, 19%
carbohydrate
In organic chemistry, a carbohydrate () is a biomolecule consisting of carbon (C), hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O) atoms, usually with a hydrogen–oxygen atom ratio of 2:1 (as in water) and thus with the empirical formula (where ''m'' may or ma ...
s, 3%
protein
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...
, and contains negligible
fat
In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food.
The term often refers spec ...
(table). A 100 gram (3.5 oz) reference serving supplies 83
calorie
The calorie is a unit of energy. For historical reasons, two main definitions of "calorie" are in wide use. The large calorie, food calorie, or kilogram calorie was originally defined as the amount of heat needed to raise the temperature of on ...
s, with no
micronutrient
Micronutrients are nutrient, essential dietary elements required by organisms in varying quantities throughout life to orchestrate a range of physiological functions to maintain health. Micronutrient requirements differ between organisms; for exam ...
s in appreciable amounts of the
Daily Value
The Reference Daily Intake (RDI) used in nutrition labeling on food and dietary supplement products in the U.S. and Canada is the daily intake level of a nutrient that is considered to be sufficient to meet the requirements of 97–98% of health ...
(table).
Culinary uses
Bulgur does not require cooking, although it can be included in cooked dishes; soaking in water is all that is needed.
Coarse bulgur is used to make
pottage
Pottage or potage (, ; ) is a term for a thick soup or stew made by boiling vegetables, grains, and, if available, meat or fish. It was a staple food for many centuries. The word ''pottage'' comes from the same Old French root as ''potage'', whi ...
s, while the medium and fine grains are used for breakfast
cereals
A cereal is any grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, germ, and bran. Cereal grain crops are grown in greater quantities and provide more food en ...
, salads such as
kısır
Kısır is a bulgur based salad found in Turkish cuisine. The main ingredients are finely ground bulgur, parsley, and tomato paste. Common additional ingredients include onion, garlic (in some regions), sour pomegranate molasses, olive oil and ...
,
pilav
Pilaf ( US spelling) or pilau ( UK spelling) is a rice dish, or in some regions, a wheat dish, whose recipe usually involves cooking in stock or broth, adding spices, and other ingredients such as vegetables or meat, and employing some techni ...
s, breads, and in dessert
pudding
Pudding is a type of food. It can be either a dessert or a savoury (salty or spicy) dish served as part of the main meal.
In the United States, ''pudding'' means a sweet, milk-based dessert similar in consistency to egg-based custards, ins ...
s such as ''
kheer
Kheer, also known as payasam, is a sweet dish and a type of wet pudding popular in the Indian subcontinent, usually made by boiling milk, sugar or jaggery, and rice, although rice may be substituted with one of the following: daals, bulgur whe ...
''. Bulgur porridge is similar to
frumenty
Frumenty (sometimes ''frumentee'', ''furmity'', ''fromity'', or ''fermenty'') was a popular dish in Western European medieval cuisine. It is a porridge, a thick boiled grain dish—hence its name, which derives from the Latin word ''frumentum'', ...
, a cracked wheat porridge that was a staple of
medieval cuisine
Medieval cuisine includes foods, eating habits, and cooking methods of various European cultures during the Middle Ages, which lasted from the fifth to the fifteenth century. During this period, diets and cooking changed less than they did in t ...
.
In breads, it adds a whole-grain component. It is a main ingredient in
kibbeh
Kibbeh (, also kubba and other spellings; ar, كبة, kibba; tr, içli köfte) is a family of dishes based on spiced ground meat, onions, and grain, popular in Middle Eastern cuisine.
In Levantine cuisine, kibbeh is usually made by pounding ...
and, soaked but not cooked, in
tabbouleh
Tabbouleh ( ar, تبولة, translit=tabbūla; also tabouleh, tabbouli, tabouli, or taboulah) is a Levantine salad made mostly of finely chopped parsley, with tomatoes, mint, onion, bulgur (soaked, not cooked), and seasoned with olive oil, lemon ...
salad. It is often used where
rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species ''Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima
''Oryza glaberrima'', commonly known as African rice, is one of the two domesticated rice species. It was first domesticated and grown i ...
or
couscous
Couscous ( '; ber, ⵙⴽⵙⵓ, translit=Seksu) – sometimes called kusksi or kseksu – is a Maghrebi dish of small steamed granules of rolled durum wheat semolina that is often served with a stew spooned on top. Pearl millet, sorghum, ...
could be used. In Indian and Pakistani cuisine, bulgur is often used as a cereal to make a porridge with milk and sugar, or a savory porridge with vegetables and spices. It can be used to accompany other dishes in the same way as pasta or rice; it may be mistaken for rice because it has a similar appearance, although the texture is different.
The Kurdish word for groats is ''şile''.
Armenians
Armenians ( hy, հայեր, ''hayer'' ) are an ethnic group native to the Armenian highlands of Western Asia. Armenians constitute the main population of Armenia and the ''de facto'' independent Artsakh. There is a wide-ranging diaspora ...
prepare bulgur as a pilaf in chicken stock, with or without sautéed noodles, or cooked with tomatoes, onions, herbs and red pepper. The fine grind is used for making
eech
Eetch (otherwise known as eech, itch, metch or one of several other variations) is a traditional Armenian side dish, salad or spread, similar to tabbouleh. Eetch can be eaten either at room temperature or warm.
Its typical red colour is derive ...
, a bulgur salad similar to tabbouleh, prepared with tomato paste, fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, olive oil, and other salad ingredients to personal taste. Pomegranate molasses, which is sour and sweet, is commonly used instead of lemon juice to add tartness. A variety of
meze
Meze or mezza (, ) is a selection of small dishes served as appetizers in the Levant, Turkey, Greece, the Balkans, the Caucasus and Iran. It is similar to Spanish tapas and Italian antipasti. A mezze may be served as a part of a multi-course me ...
s and main dishes are prepared.
In Cyprus, it is known as "πουρκούρι" (poorkoori) and is used to make "κούπες" (koopehs, also known as ''bulgur köftesi'' in Cypriot Turkish), a variety of kibbeh. Its crust is usually made of bulgur wheat, flour, oil, salt and egg, then filled with ground meat (beef and/or pork), onions, parsley and spices. There is also vegetarian "κούπες" which substitutes the ground meat with chopped mushrooms.
The Saudi Arabian version of bulgur, popular in
Nejd
Najd ( ar, نَجْدٌ, ), or the Nejd, forms the geographic center of Saudi Arabia, accounting for about a third of the country's modern population and, since the Emirate of Diriyah, acting as the base for all unification campaigns by the H ...
and
Al-Hasa Al-Ahsa or Al-Hasa may refer to:
* Al-Ahsa Governorate, a governorate in Saudi Arabia
* Al-Ahsa Oasis, an oasis region in eastern Saudi Arabia
* Hofuf, also known as Al-Ahsa, an urban center in the Al-Ahsa Oasis
* Al-Ahsa International Airport, Hof ...
, is known as ''jarish''.
See also
*
Einkorn wheat
Einkorn wheat (from German ''Einkorn'', literally "single grain") can refer either to a wild species of wheat (''Triticum'') or to its domesticated form. The wild form is '' T. boeoticum'' (syn. ''T. m.'' ssp. ''boeoticum''), the domesticated ...
*
Freekeh
Freekeh (sometimes spelled frikeh) or farik ( ar, فريكة / ALA-LC: ''farīkah''; pronounced ''free-kah'' /ˈfɹiːkə/) is a cereal food made from green durum wheat (''Triticum turgidum'' var. durum) that is roasted and rubbed to create its ...
*
Semolina
Semolina is coarsely milled durum wheat mainly used in making couscous, and sweet puddings. The term semolina is also used to designate coarse millings of other varieties of wheat, and sometimes other grains (such as rice or corn) as well.
Etymo ...
*
Wheatberry
A wheat berry, or wheatberry, is a whole wheat kernel, composed of the bran, germ, and endosperm, without the husk. Botanically, it is a type of fruit called a caryopsis. Wheat berries have a tan to reddish-brown color and are available as either ...
References
{{Authority control
Arab cuisine
Mediterranean cuisine
Cypriot cuisine
Assyrian cuisine
Lebanese cuisine
Levantine cuisine
Jordanian cuisine
Syrian cuisine
Palestinian cuisine
Western Armenian cuisine
Wheat
Staple foods
Turkish words and phrases
Iranian cuisine
Israeli cuisine
Kurdish cuisine
Vegetarian dishes of India