Name: Anissa Helou's bulgur 'risotto' is perfect for hot summer days Recipe
Total time: 1 h
Yield: Serves 4 to 6
Ingredients: 1/3 cup (80 ml) extra-virgin olive oil; 1 1/2 cups (250 g) coarse bulgur wheat, soaked in cold water for 30 minutes; 1 bunch (100 g) scallions, trimmed, sliced fairly thin; 1 bunch (about 200 g) flat-leaf parsley, washed, dried, most of the stalks discarded, finely chopped; 3/4 bunch (about 150 g) mint, leaves only, washed, dried, finely chopped; 1/2 cup tomato paste, diluted in 3 cups (750 ml) water; Sea salt; Fresh vine leaves or cabbage leaves to scoop the mafrükeh

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By Anissa Helou

June 17, 2026

This is an interesting dish from Deir Intar in southern Lebanon, where the bulgur wheat is cooked with greens and a tomato sauce. I had never come across it before, having only had bulgur wheat cooked in a fresh tomato sauce. However, the addition of scallions and herbs here makes for a fresher and more intriguing combination. Also, it is served like tabbüleh and is scooped with fresh vine leaves when in season or raw cabbage leaves, a kind of cooked tabbüleh, as it were.

Lebanese-Syrian author Anissa Helou stops by the L.A. Times Kitchen to make mafrükeh, which she describes as bulgur wheat “risotto,” or cooked tabbüleh.

Bulgur 'Risotto' (Mafrükeh)

⅓ cup (80 ml) extra-virgin olive oil

1 ½ cups (250 g) coarse bulgur wheat, soaked in cold water for 30 minutes

1 bunch (100 g) scallions, trimmed, sliced fairly thin

1 bunch (about 200 g) flat-leaf parsley, washed, dried, most of the stalks discarded, finely chopped

¾ bunch (about 150 g) mint, leaves only, washed, dried, finely chopped

½ cup tomato paste, diluted in 3 cups (750 ml) water

Sea salt

Fresh vine leaves or cabbage leaves to scoop the mafrükeh

Put the olive oil in a medium wide pot and place over medium heat.

Drain the bulgur wheat and add to the pot. Stir for a couple of minutes, then add the scallions, parsley and mint. Mix well, then add the diluted tomato paste. Season with salt to taste. Cover the pan and let bubble for 10 to 15 minutes, until the bulgur wheat has absorbed all the liquid and is done.

Wrap the lid with a clean kitchen towel and put back on the pot. Let cool. Serve at room temperature with either vine leaves if they are in season or cabbage leaves.

From “Lebanon” by Anissa Helou, published by Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins.